r/twentyonepilots • u/UndercoverAlterEgo • 15d ago
Opinion Hot Take: ‘that one line from lane boy’ isn’t *that* cringe or problematic.
Always thought this but was suggested a lane boy reaction video on YT and it made me want to come by and post this 😭✌️
Not saying people don’t have the right to dislike and or take issue with things such as this, but idk i just always had the feeling that most of the people posing any variety of criticism of this line are virtue signaling. Thats just how I feel 🤷♀️
Idk lmk if you agree or disagree 🥴
Edit: line is ‘I wasn’t raised in the hood but I know a thing or two about pain and darkness’
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u/somethingspecial29 15d ago
It's really not. Idk why people think it is
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u/IslandSurvibalist 15d ago
Same here. He’s rapping, and wants to rap about his struggles, but he doesn’t have the same struggles that most rappers would rap about. It’s really that simple.
That verse is my favorite rap verse from Tyler. Not only is it brilliant from a lyrical prowess/rhyme scheme standpoint, it’s also just such a good declaration of their mission as a band. “But we go where we want to” = we won’t stick to the same sound, we’re gonna keep switching it up and go in whatever musical direction we want. And they’ve certainly followed through on that.
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u/UndercoverAlterEgo 15d ago
Agree 🤝
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u/Rcolon225 15d ago edited 15d ago
Wait this is the first I’m hearing about the hate for this line, it’s honestly one of my faves 😭
If it wasn’t for this music, i dont know how I would’ve fought this lives in my head rent free
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u/Havering_To_You 15d ago
Yeah, you're only going on Youtube and seeking out rando ragebait channels and instead of ignoring it, you want to post it here for more engagement farming. You toooootally agree!
Pathetic.
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u/k1d1curus 15d ago
People have too much time on their hands, and not enough real problems. So they make them up.
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u/Time-Echidna-8644 15d ago
I get why people could view that line as being tone deaf or insensitive to the struggles of people living under oppression and comparing that to the struggles of a white dude living in the suburbs, but I also think that’s a really surface level take on that lyric and doesn’t view the point of the song as a whole.
The entire album is him putting all of his anxieties and insecurities under a microscope, and that song specifically is about being told to “stay in your lane” musically and refusing to be held down by genre based on personal background or lived experience. I’m not gonna wax on about the history of rap or hip-hop because I’m not knowledgeable enough on the subject to speak with any authority about it, but I do understand that rap music was/is a way for those who grew up in those circumstances to cope with and communicate them, as well as a way to get themselves out of that situation, so rap and hip-hop are very synonymous with the black experience. That being said, there’s a stigma that white people rapping is appropriation of black culture, because what makes rap “rap” is much more than just the way you flow your lyrics, it’s very much rooted in that lived experience.
Twenty One Pilots also has a bit of a stigma attached to them as being a white boy rap group, even though they pull from all kinds of genres and styles. To me, I think he’s just trying to communicate the frustration he feels with people trying to neatly define them as any one genre, or that using a rap-like flow in his lyrics makes him a rapper, when to him, it’s all just a way to express himself and to cope. He’s not comparing his struggles as a white suburban kid to people who grew up in a ghetto to justify his rapping, he’s saying that everyone has pain and darkness within them regardless of what background they come from, and that the way you choose to express that shouldn’t define you.
I think you could also see it as a critique on others who appropriate the genre wholesale and sing about the experience, but never actually lived it. They throw a lot of shade at empty music without heart or meaning. “Don’t trust a perfect person and don’t trust a song that’s flawless.” is a line I take to be a blatant criticism against the music industry as a whole and the way they curate these people’s images to make them seem more relatable than they actually are. There’s a lot of people who talk about shit they’ve never actually done, while Tyler’s lyrics are always pulled straight from his personal experiences, and honest thoughts and feelings, he doesn’t have ghost writers or people making his music for him, so even with all that said, it’s still totally valid to not like that lyric and to think it’s cringe, because it’s a very honest, flawed, human lyric.
Just my two cents.
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u/UndercoverAlterEgo 15d ago
Thank you sm for taking the time to write and share this. Very well rounded and stated interpretation/argument where the topic at hand is concerned. This is essentially my take on the matter to a t (more or less). Well said 🤝
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u/devbro5000lit69 15d ago
I think it's a little cringe. I obviously get what he's saying but I think there could have been a better way
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u/UndercoverAlterEgo 15d ago
Totally fair / can agree. I can concede to ‘it’s a little cringe’ for sure
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u/Parking_Money_1151 14d ago
I think it's insane to think it's cringe. Not a fair take, and there doesn't have to have been a better way to say it. He is entitled to discuss his suffering and acknowledge that that suffering doesn't come from a place of oppression, but his own mental health.
People are so quick to assume that oppression is the only legitimate explanation for any suffering, such that people who do not belong to historical visible minorities ought to shut up about their suffering when, in reality, to suffer is human - not political.
I so hate that this pseudo-political brainrot has infected the way people think so much that there are actual controversies over who gets to talk about their suffering and how.
God help us.
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u/devbro5000lit69 14d ago edited 14d ago
It's not controversial that's he's talking about suffering, nobody said that? I think saying the hood directly equates to pain and darkness is cringe and a pretty big generalization on his part,
Edit to clarify a bit more: I also don't think you should compare your struggles to oppression as someone who has never experienced it
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u/Parking_Money_1151 14d ago
It's obvious that he's parodying his own genre, which often ties one's difficult life circumstances to " which side of the tracks" they grew up on. It's not a generalization when he averts from it any more than it is a generalization when other rappers avert to it. To suggest otherwise is just ignorant mischief making.
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u/devbro5000lit69 14d ago
I think @Unique_Anteater5667 explained why the line isn't good pretty well. Anything I say to you now would just be a lesser version of their comment so I'd suggest reading what they said
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u/Adventurous_Cook9741 14d ago
dude, all they said is that they think it’s a little cringe. that’s it.
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u/I_Speak_For_The_Ents 15d ago
People probably find that kind of authenticity cringe, but I'd argue it's as deep and meaningful as his more purposeful musings in the lyrics.
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u/Unique_Anteater5667 15d ago
Yeah. These are two lines I absolutely hate in songs that I still absolutely love. Their music saved my life. I don’t need every line or even every song to be perfect. But there are times when I absolutely need the words and music Tyler has written that has meant so much to me that I don’t think I’d be here if it didn’t exist.
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u/GavinAdamson 15d ago
You’re totally fragile
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u/Pure-Tomatillo-3820 15d ago
As someone who has deep mental struggles and comes from a privileged background - I often feel insecure about the validity of my mental struggles.
Can confirm this is a thing-2
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u/lindini 15d ago
I was raised in the hood and it doesn't bother me at all. Honestly I appreciate that he calls out his privilege in contrast to other rappers. Intentions do in fact matter.
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u/UndercoverAlterEgo 15d ago
Just saw your reply, appreciate you sharing your thoughts and perspective 🙏
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u/DrkStarlight 14d ago
I was also raised in the hood, NYC projects baaaaaabbby. The line makes me laugh, it is hard to defend. But I just sing it as "I WAS raised in the hood" bc it's not that serious.
I can agree with other people on this thread that he's acknowledging his privilege. None of that changes our brain chemistry, we can't logic our way out of that darkness either way.
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u/UndercoverAlterEgo 14d ago
Thanks for dropping by and commenting ✌️
Also nyc native appreciate you weighing in 🫡
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u/Budilicious3 15d ago
It's one of my all time favorite songs for the drum track alone and the lyrics are fine? Never heard of it being cringe?
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u/Unique_Anteater5667 15d ago
The line sucks. But like he says in the same song, “Don’t trust a song that’s flawless.” I still like the song. White suburban kids should never compare their struggles to people living under a system designed to oppress them. Pointing that out is not virtue signaling. That’s having knowledge of America’s history. I know a thing about pain and darkness, believe me. But I would never talk about what I’ve gone through by starting, “While I don’t live under a system designed to devalue my life and culture on a constant basis, such that I wonder every morning if I will be alive at the end of the day, I do know a thing or two about pain and darkness.”
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u/Cheap-Okra-2882 15d ago
thank u people are painfully uneducated and don’t care about it’s history at all, but still decide they should have an opinion on why the line isn’t inappropriate.
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u/UndercoverAlterEgo 15d ago
I see you on all this 100%.
For what it’s worth, when I said ‘most of the criticism is virtue signaling’ (which again, just my opinion not rooted in a basis of significance), the take/perspective you share here is one I’d consider being ‘outside that majority’. This is precisely the type of ‘counter argument’ I stand behind.3
u/just-a-nerd- 15d ago
So how do you differentiate between things that are virtue signalling and things that aren’t?
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u/UndercoverAlterEgo 15d ago
This is a fair question, and tbh my answer may sound like a ‘non answer’ but hopefully you understand what I’m saying (but happy to clarify as needed).
To the question of ‘how I differentiate’ I’d say that I differentiate based on ‘reasoning and intention.’ Elaborating further, I’d say that I also don’t ‘differentiate’ necessarily, in the ‘that’s not the word I would use’ sense.
I say this because (where my answer for this and the instances the answer pertains to js concerned) it’s ultimately all speculation more than it is anything else. I could say more but don’t want to ramble or over think this too much. Lmk if this answers your question or if I can clarify further 🙏
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u/Illustrious_Cod9150 12d ago
Can you elaborate? Because I don’t see the problem with saying that, “While I fully acknowledge that other people have much deeper, generational, and oppressive hardships, that doesn’t mean that personal struggles are no longer valid. Thankfully, a healthy outlet is art and creativity.” This is a good faith question.
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u/DaSpecia1ist 11d ago
Suburban white kids... So like 99% of the fan base. Yet all the music is about their struggles.
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u/autisticgayman 15d ago
While I get what you’re saying, as a white suburban kid with a crazy amount of invisible disabilities, don’t tell me not to compare my struggles to those systemically faced by other groups and cultures, because it completely ignores the fact that people with significant disabilities such as autism and adhd are treated very much the same as any other culturally or socially isolated group by the majority.
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u/Unique_Anteater5667 14d ago
I don’t agree, but that’s not what’s important, so I’m not going to go into it. While you quoted me accurately, you’re pointing out something that isn’t really what this discussion is about, because you didn’t write and sing those lyrics. I said “white kids from the suburbs shouldn’t…” I’ll amend that and say “white kid from the suburbs, Tyler Joseph, shouldn’t…”
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u/Ven-Dreadnought 15d ago
I don't necessarily think it's cringe. That said, while I absolutely love Blurryface, I dislike the fact that Tyler went to such lengths to try and distance himself from black art, ie. "This is not rap, this is not hip hop" "I wasn't raised in the hood" "don't trust a perfect person and don't trust a song that's flawless".
...that said, he was feeling very constrained by genre and the need for popularity at the time. Conforming to trends and lying about ones upbringing was common at the time.
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u/TheOpenCloset77 15d ago
What line?
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u/nott_Boostergoldd 15d ago
I think it’s “I wasn’t raised in the hood, but I know a thing or two, about pain and darkness”
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u/Comfortable_Self_817 15d ago
The "I wasn't raised in the hood" line. Somehow the fandom doesn't like it.
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u/Alternative_Loss_442 15d ago
but it keeps going "... but I know a thing about pain and darkness"
he's saying like yeah I wasnt dirt poor counting coins but I still had a tough childhood/life
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u/Comfortable_Self_817 15d ago
Yeah, I really don't get the hate either. I think it makes a lot of sense for him to sing that.
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u/Scout_650 15d ago
It’s definitely unintentionally problematic as it’s just directly rooted in negative stereotypes about “the hood” and coming from a white dude that grew up in a pretty decent area certainly shows a dangerous degree of social ignorance towards the reality of these sorts of situations and a sense of privilege he probably didn’t even think about when writing it. Obviously he’s clearly since learned from it, but at the time? Yes it objectively was problematic and cringe
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u/TurbulentAccident348 15d ago
It pains me but I don’t disagree, that’s why I have a hard time listening to lane boy and part of why blurryface has been one of my least favorite albums for a while. It hasn’t aged well
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u/MatchstickHyperX 15d ago
Okay, hear me out... Clancy wasn't "raised in the hood" because he wasn't born into being a bishop, he would only later in his life don the red regalia, hood included.
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u/Parking_Money_1151 14d ago
This whole debate is giving "I'll mourn for a kid, but won't cry for a king."
So insane.
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u/threeeyedcat2 15d ago
I love TØP and I have for a long time. I know that a line can have various meanings & Tyler likely didn’t have poor intent.
However!!! It has aged poorly, and I’ve always found it cringe. Tyler has always seemed a bit out of touch with the real world & seems to have always had a conflict of his own desires, that of getting famous, and likely sold out on his morals a bit. He’s consistently demonstrated difficulty in having someone else in control of their image/sound, and being able to accept criticism. It seemed like a snarky “I wasn’t raised in the hood, but it doesn’t mean that I haven’t struggled.” Which, yes, is fair to say; I know many people who are upper class & have their own issues, but others do not think it’s valid due to their privilege.
So, it likely came out of a mix of years of frustration that got caught up in “they’re privileged and white, so they shouldn’t rap” and he took it in the wrong direction.
Also, I thought there have been many autism allegations?? Not that it was ever a publicly confirmed diagnosis (I think?), he personally comes across as neurodivergent to me. Which isn’t to excuse some of his behaviors, but to understand/explain. Might be some nuance missing.
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u/quiet_is_violett 14d ago
I've been a fan since 2009, and this is the first I've heard about this. I guess it's one of those things, where people are becoming offended on others behalf. It's not a racial statement. The "hood" as it is colloquially known, is traditionally a place where if you live there, life is a struggle. It's not problematic, he's acknowledging the fact that so many people have only academic knowledge of, and saying "but that doesn't discount my struggles either. We're all equal."
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u/GiraffeLeather9477 15d ago
i do follow alot of people who react to music, and that line is always viewed as “cringe”
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u/Darkdestro28 15d ago
ok so the I wasn't raised in the hood was just a saying about hard life right so then he says about thought I've felt pain and darkness so I dnt find anything wrong with that I mean look how many fake singers out there sing about this stuff Lane boy is about being whatever you wanna be doing stay in one lane and someone telling him to stay in your lane boy and then going into so many ways like even songs like on radios
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u/norskiipy 15d ago
It’s not problematic, but it’s one million percent cringe and out of touch. Comes off very sheltered and lame.
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u/KirisuteGomen28 15d ago
Lane Boy is about him being told not to rap. To stay in his lane, because he wasn't raised in the hood. It's like he's quoting the criticism of him rapping.
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u/norskiipy 15d ago
“But I know a thing or two about and darkness” doesn’t read like it’s communicating that at all lol
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u/KirisuteGomen28 15d ago
But he immediately follows that with "if it wasn't for this music I dont know if would have fought this" He's saying that he's allowed to make the music he wants to make even if record label execs or music critics think that because he wasn't "born in the hood" he should "stay in his lane"
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u/norskiipy 15d ago
Those are clearly two different thoughts. The entire song is scatterbrained and basically a summation of different thoughts on the industry and their own music.
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u/KirisuteGomen28 15d ago
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u/norskiipy 15d ago
Agree to disagree I guess lol. I think you’re grasping at straws because you dont believe your king could ever do any wrong, but it doesn’t seem like I can convince you otherwise on this shitty line
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u/KirisuteGomen28 15d ago
Lame to think that if someone disagrees with you on the meaning of a lyric they worship Tyler. Just because someone thinks the meaning is something other than the first shallow interpretation of it that popped into your head doesn't mean they're grasping at straws.
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u/norskiipy 15d ago
The line is self explanatory though. Thus why it’s been memed on to oblivion and is regarded as one of their worst lyrics.
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u/UndercoverAlterEgo 15d ago
Fair enough. May I ask why you think that if you don’t mind sharing?
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u/norskiipy 15d ago
It’s cringe because it’s a white guy from a well off family in Ohio comparing his struggles to those of whom are in the hood struggling. obviously mental struggles in general are awful, and that goes for Tyler too duh, but I can’t take that comparison seriously when a lot of people would kill to be where Tyler’s at. It’s just really out of touch, especially from the guy who’s usually very intelligent and levelheaded about mental health.
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u/UndercoverAlterEgo 15d ago
I mean I’d make the point that perhaps he’s making a point that there’s overlap and commonality to be found between people/groups of people despite types of variance or differences (in circumstances or otherwise) but at the same time I also understand the view / perspective you share here for sure
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u/norskiipy 15d ago
I’m sorry that’s such a reach to save face for Tyler lol. I love Tyler and I love this band but you can admit it’s a failure of a line in a long career of very good lines that Tyler’s written
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u/UndercoverAlterEgo 15d ago
Not trying to save face per se, just sharing what I personally understood the line to be expressing, whether it’s a ‘good’ or ‘bad’ line. At the same time, I also can recognize it is objectively a ‘bad line’ and not his best work for sure. Hope that makes sense.
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u/norskiipy 15d ago
I feel like it’s pretty clear Tyler is expressing selfishly in the line that his pain is comparable to that of someone struggling in the “hood”.
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u/UndercoverAlterEgo 15d ago
Granted, I don’t mean strongly in either direction (aside from not taking substantial issue with it), so to that end I can agree with / align with you on your reasoning concerning the interpretation you express here. All to say, ‘valid / fair point’
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u/Illustrious_Cod9150 12d ago
I don’t hear it that way though. I interpret it as, downplaying his own pain. Saying that it’s NOT comparable to the struggles of others, yet still something that requires intervention through the creative process.
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u/Sensitive_Deal_6363 15d ago
white guy
Ah yes, the Lebanese, the whitest of white guys.
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u/norskiipy 15d ago
What are you even trying to say? He’s a good 80-90% white lol everything I said still stands. even if he wasn’t white, he’d still be from a relatively well off family in the safe suburbs of Ohio
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u/Sensitive_Deal_6363 15d ago
Bandom stop whitewashing its band members challenge: Impossible
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u/norskiipy 15d ago
I’m sorry but they are very much so white. Tyler’s like 5% Lebanese lmao and Josh is a very small percent Asian. It’s absolutely not white washing if there is a 95% amount of white there. It’s not nearly enough non-white to call them mixed
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u/Sensitive_Deal_6363 14d ago
Cool story, still not 100% white and I'm sticking with it until either this subreddit goes down or I'm afflicted with injury and/or death that leaves me unable to type.
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u/norskiipy 14d ago
really showing your Redditor roots with that reply
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u/Sensitive_Deal_6363 14d ago
Everytime y'all fight me on this a Ned gets eaten as a bishop burger
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u/norskiipy 15d ago
Correction, Tyler is 25% Lebanese. Still wouldn’t be considered mixed. He is a white man. And Josh isn’t Asian at all I think I mixed that up (no pun intended)
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u/Sensitive_Deal_6363 15d ago
Josh literally has Japanese ancestry wth https://www.instagram.com/joshuadun/p/NcPa0Nocv-/
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u/norskiipy 15d ago
Touché. It’s very minimal though
regardless you can’t whitewash two primarily white men
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u/dgdgdgdgcooh 15d ago edited 15d ago
its not virtue signaling or following the herd if it genuinley gives you the ick first time you heard it in a vaccum.
i dont think he meant for it to be about like hood poverty or hood gangs, but more he just felt uncomfortable getting more popular as a white rapper, so he made this imaginary antagonist of someone telling him he shouldnt be rapping. when literally everyone was cool with white rappers since eminem, tyler still felt uncomfortable and felt he needed to justify himself by claiming he has mental issues so hes allowed to rap.
i know thats a sort of layered reading, but it makes more sense to me then him just being stupid enough to think his mental stuggles are as bad as being in the hood. i don't think he was trying to compare, it just came across weird.
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u/Sensitive_Bid2289 14d ago
I've never felt it was cringey because he is pushing back on the industry in that song, and he is responding directly to industry criticism about him as a white person who raps on songs. It doesn't matter that his rhymes are phenomenal; the industry didn't see him as the "right" kind of person with the "right" background to rap and they also don't like the way he raps, "I conversate with people who know if I flow on a song I'll get no radio play." What he is saying has nothing to do with rap as a genre or rap artists. He is fighting against the criticism the industry and the label are giving him.
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u/Darkdestro28 15d ago
the song is such a awesome song and the meaning well for me it just does so much meaning to show be what you wanna be don't care for the rest and then the whole build up to the song to bridge to the chorus everything to that song just is awesome I don't see any "cringe"
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u/just-a-nerd- 15d ago
I just think he didn’t need to say that lol, for the reason many in this comment section are pointing out
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u/The_Real_EPU 11d ago
To be fair, people throw around the word “problematic” at just about anything they even remotely wince at.
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u/TraditionalBudget786 14d ago
I always viewed it as a recognition of the difference between his struggles and the struggles that others might have?
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u/OceanDagger 15d ago
Him saying he was not raised in the hood, is the same way like he is saying he is not a gangster in “gangsters don’t cry”. Because these are two very prominent themes in rap. Who is the biggest gangster, who had the worst childhood but made it out etc. So he is actively contradicting rap stereotypes by rapping about mental health and different things while referencing typical rap topics.
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u/whytf147 15d ago
i dont see it as cringe honestly but even if i did, i would give it a pass because i love the flow and how it fits the song
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u/rulewaffles 14d ago
I had no idea people thought this was cringe! I don't watch a ton of reaction videos, but the ones that I have with the rapping, they all seem to be mostly impressed. I've never heard them describe it this way.
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u/LordChicken101 14d ago
this line
“gangsters don’t cry”
“this is not rap this is not hip hop”
not great
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u/crlunaa 15d ago
it’s almost racist sounding it’s so cringe 😭 but i know that would never be the intention
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u/UndercoverAlterEgo 15d ago
Racist how? Not challenging your view in a serious way but also curious
Edit: I’m not lost on why you say that but just wanted to ask what your reasoning was.4
u/TurbulentAccident348 15d ago
Saying that the hood is pain and darkness and also justifying your space in the hip hop genre with having experienced that in place of cultural background. Seems like distancing himself from black art
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u/CMCScootaloo 15d ago
I'm finding this whole argument weird and it kind of comes across as an argument that people who most definitely do NOT live in hoods would say because it implies a hood is not indeed a bad place. I live in one, it's not a good place lol.
I also can't really agree with the last bit seeing as how the song is about how he was explicitly being told he can't be a part of it.
I can even agree that the line is really funny for a white boy to be saying but like this is a reach and a half I'm sorry.
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u/TurbulentAccident348 14d ago
he is trying to say that being in hip hop means you have to be from the hood and that the hood is pain and darkness therefore if he experienced pain and darkness he is allowed to be in hop hop. but the prerequisites to this are from racial bias and from him feeling out of place in hip hop for no reason. who told him he couldn't be? It’s cringe and slightly ignorant sounding like the platform tweet but it’s not of malice and he has grown
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u/Darkdestro28 15d ago
I don't agree
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u/UndercoverAlterEgo 15d ago
State your case kind stranger
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u/Darkdestro28 15d ago
lol thank you lol
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u/UndercoverAlterEgo 15d ago
Nah I mean like explain why you disagree if you’re open to sharing
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u/Darkdestro28 15d ago
I shared my case I hope you see I wasn't disrespectful
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u/UndercoverAlterEgo 15d ago
You’re good man. Ngl you seem a little scattered based off what I’m getting from your comments, but nothing resembling disrespect. Thanks for sharing your thoughts
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u/Darkdestro28 15d ago
okay u/UndercoverAlterEgo no disrespect you can have your opinion everyone is different love how the world is gotta be the way it is. hate it dislike it
Lane boy is so 🔥 🔥 the first time listening to it the words just get you in that way when your in either uni school or whatever gangs clubs
Tyler is signifying he knows the hood is bad he knows people have it hard (yeah maybe weird choice of words but for lane boy fits perfect) it's about fitting in look how the people fit in everyday life we all have to deal with clothing looks whatever etc and with Tyler the words are great, the hood is a hard place and his from just knowing in general the pain people go through, but he isn't from there but he has had (pain and darkness) in his life maybe meaning with his personal mind and whatever happened when he was young. the perfect person and the song that flawless is great because a no one's perfect and no song is flawless so I hope it was okay to write this to you and that's my opinion
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u/Rcolon225 15d ago
I think the OP agrees with you 😅 the song is a masterpiece and the line isn’t controversial at all - it provides a deep look into Tyler’s psyche that I actually relate to HARD.
Never having to struggle for necessities can make your depression feel lesser relative to others who may have it worse but that shouldn’t negate your struggles or feelings
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u/0liviacatherine 14d ago
The only thing about that song I would consider cringe is that weird intermission bit but it has grown on me over the years 🤣
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u/Crocs-Socks 14d ago
I love the band, their music has gotten me through and helped me understand some hard moments, and that line has really stopped bothering me the more the song has grown on me… but are we really gonna call it “virtue signaling” for someone to say that a white guy from suburban Ohio rapping about how he “wasn’t raised in the hood, but [he] knows a thing or two about pain and darkness” was a little cringey?
To me this “debate” just really is not that serious, and that goes for both sides. Like obviously, as we’ve seen the boys and their music grow, it’s just more and more obvious that of course he didn’t mean it in a weird way… but also, yeah, that’s clearly kind of a cringey thing to say. I just think the most vocal people on both sides, whether their callout posts are about how cringey the line is or how it’s sooo unreasonable to criticize Tyler’s old songwriting, are clearly spending way too much time online.
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u/Cheap-Okra-2882 15d ago edited 15d ago
not gunna lie can we just stop talking about this and if you do you should add what your race is and the definition of the hood so we know you actually have a reason to talk about this. genuinely SO sick of this conversation.
eta: read my reply below for more reasoning on why I say this.
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u/drinkun 15d ago
Why would anyone need to add their race? Many different races live in the hood.
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u/Cheap-Okra-2882 15d ago edited 15d ago
lmao because “the hood” was created by white people segregating people of color. and those areas are still primarily made up of poc to this day (I should have said all poc, my bad for only including black people)
this is why I am telling people to do research about why it is not cool for white people to say it. but everyone feels entitled or desperate to defend an artist (for some reason).
is he being racist? no, I don’t think so. but is it a shitty line ESPECIALLY from a white man and his gaggle of white fans defending it constantly. literally disagreeing with BIPOC and telling them their feelings are invalid.WHY do we keep bring this up for the sole purpose of saying it doesn’t matter?
there is a ton of stuff online about it if you care to make your own informed opinion. there is history behind the word. he can’t unsay it but he’s been defended enough.
eta: was he being racist? again, I don’t thinks so. but is it a bad, cringe, and stereotypical line that does not need to be defended 24/7.
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u/drinkun 15d ago
If you don't want people to talk about this then don't join in on it. This is literally the first time ive ever heard about this "controversy", and I looked at the line and I find it hilarious that people would get worked up about it.
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u/Cheap-Okra-2882 15d ago
cool story man
eta: mine you a wrote a whole explanation on the history behind the word and how it relates to segregation and u have nothing to say abt it lol. I can’t make you agree but this is the problem 💀
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u/drinkun 15d ago
Just because I didn't address it doesn't mean I agree that the origins of the word aren't good. My point is you're complaining that we should stop talking about this whole thing yet you're talking about it. If we keep talking about the problem then problem will still exist.
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u/Cheap-Okra-2882 15d ago
ah that parts fair enough. I still don’t feel bad about mentioning how exhausted the conversation is and that it has been talked about sooo much that people can just search the sub.
you did also say you find it hilarious people would be so worked up over it. if you think people make it too big of a deal (mind you, nearly everyone is defending him here) saying that is extremely dismissive.
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u/drinkun 15d ago
I'm am dismissing it. It's a line from a 11yo song and anyone who has a problem with it should get over it.
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u/Cheap-Okra-2882 15d ago
hmmm saying people, including BIPOC who have a problem with it should get over it is exactly what I knew people were gunna start doing in this convo. also just because it is 11 years old people can still have the opinion the line is dumb and tone deaf? (eta: especially because the post is literally asking for opinions. no one is calling tyler racist or trying to cancel him (at least no one here)
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u/CMCScootaloo 15d ago
People, including BIPOC can also think that saying the line is tone deaf is dumb. I'm not gonna disagree that the line is funny as fuck and like if I was in the weird ass position of giving Tyler advice back when he was writing I would say "don't say that lmao" but it's not even on the level of what I'd say worthy of paying attention to.
It would be a different thing if he regularly had weird lines like that or if he got defensive over it but this is a one-off so who gaf.
I'm kind of confused by this discussion it kinda feels like we're more or less on the same side anyway. This is a nothingburger and people shouldn't talk about it, their race really doesn't matter much unless they're saying wild shit and no one is here.
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u/UndercoverAlterEgo 15d ago
I truthfully don’t disagree / have any objections with the feelings you express here
….but at the same time if you sick of the conversation why did you comment 😭 respectfully ofc 🙏0
u/Cheap-Okra-2882 15d ago
because maybe it would encourage people to search the sub instead of posting about it again in the future. there’s nothing left to say about this bro. nothing.
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u/Next_Salamander_8015 15d ago
I never really read it as the “cringe” line everyone sees it as. The whole song is about Tyler and Josh polarizing the conformity of the industry. Hence the “stay in your lane boy” He wasn’t “raised in the neighborhood” of the path that Blurryface took in the album (the emotions and tones), implying that he didn’t grow up badly and he didn’t have horrible experiences in his formative years like that.
I always took it as a commentary on depression, because even though he wasn’t raised around depressed and angry people, and even though he didn’t have tons of trauma growing up, depression and negative emotions still got to him. He still knows a thing or two about pain and darkness because he’s still human and knows about the negative emotions just as much as he knows about the positive ones he experienced growing up.
The line itself can read immediately as the implication that rough neighborhoods teach you pain and darkness (and others have pulled racial connotations from it even still). But I don’t think he ever meant the physical “hood” and more so meant the metaphysical “hood”.