Migos – CULTURE
“My bitch is bad
and boujee,
Cookin’ up dope
with an Uzi”
Trap trio Migos are primarily known for dominating the charts with their “turnt” and “lit” mumble-rap tracks. But, Quavo, Takeoff and Offset are also pioneers of modern Marxism. In their number one song ‘Bad and Boujee (Ft. Lil Uzi Vert)’, the hip-hop group (consciously or not), bare the realities of Karl Marx’s socioeconomic theory. Given their explicit drug use, we’ll assume it’s unconsciously.
A literal understanding of the line, (lol line), sees rapper Offset, as he stirs the meth he is preparing with an Uzi submachine gun, stating that his lover is deviant and stuck up. By “cooking up dope in a crock-pot,” he reminisces on the time when his stove broke so he mixed the drug in his mother’s Crock-Pot, (a branded slow cooker). The group refer to the shake ‘n’ bake or one-pot method of crystal meth production, which is particularly common within the trap lifestyle given its ease and portability.
He’s in a vulnerable position when cooking so he says “I’m not stupid so I keep the Uzi.” The weapon has multiple uses for Migos – why use a wooden spoon when you could use a gun? It’s all about practicality. However, given that the track features rapper Lil Uzi Vert, these references could suggest that the two trappers are cooking together – romantic, I know.
Typically, people described as “boujee” are second-rate attempting to appear first-rate; the status of these social climbers is performative
Now, on to the term that has been baffling 80% of the track’s listeners: “boujee.” Am I boujee? Do I want to be boujee?! What makes his bitch so boujee?? In fact, boujee is an intentional misspelling of the word “bougie”, which in turn is an abbreviation of “bourgeois.” The French word traditionally describes the middleclass whose values are conventionally materialistic and profoundly capitalist. The social class is often seen as aspirational and dominant, but has become to evoke a sense of sensibleness and blandness. Hence, it is seemingly impossible to be both “bad” (cool and mischievous) and “boujee” (conceited and conformist).
Typically, people described as “boujee” are second-rate attempting to appear first-rate; the status of these social climbers is performative. This is evident in the single’s album artwork which shows model Tommie Lee glammed up extravagantly, but eating instant noodles out of a pot at a dining table. This juxtaposition shows how the external bourgeois appearance is false. The rappers state that they “came from nothin’ now we somethin’,” showing a movement from the working class to a rich and materialist “boujee” class. By claiming “I’m young and rich and plus I’m boujee,” Migos acknowledge their place in this group which they have evolved into being presented as hedonistic and seductive. Moreover, the alliterative /b/ of “bitch,” “bad and boujee” forms a powerfully plosive triplet describing the girl’s assertive personality. Migos now interact with well-off women having found success through music, but regardless of social status, no one lacks immorality and egotism.
The realest.
In his Communist Manifesto, Karl Marx describes how following social unrest at the hands of the minority bourgeoisie group, the working class AKA proletariat will revolt and form socialism where wealth is shared. Having lived in the poverty and labour of trap life, Migos have escaped and now reside in their newly defined boujee class. Interestingly, by cooking meth, they have ownership over their production and therefore money is distributed in relation to their contribution, albeit privately. Whilst the private ownership here contrasts with socialism’s idea of collective ownership, wealth is shared accordingly by those trapping and therefore dodges capitalism’s exploitation of the intensely laboured working class.
Are Migos today’s leaders of Marx’s communist revolution? If the revolution will include a deluge of hibbiddy-hobbiddy trap rappers emerging from the proletariat but feeding off the music industry’s capitalist disposition, then perhaps we should all start mixing up meth.
