Jack Harlow, Can I Get Blacker Too?

I'm just trying to figure out how this works.

Last year, my New Year’s Resolution was to be more petty. I know that “more petty” isn’t grammatically correct, but my pettiness includes lack of respect for the rules of grammar. The good news is that last year’s New Year’s Resolution was my most successful New Year’s Resolution ever. Normally, I forget my resolution by mid-January, but deciding to be more petty was so successful that I decided to extend it through 2026. Substack was home to some of my pettiest pettiness. I was petty with Trump. I was petty with Jillian Michaels. I was petty with Gavin Newsom. I was petty with my fellow comedians Joe Rogan, Louis CK, Andrew Schulz, and Theo Von. (I wish they would just get a room with fascism since they love it so much.) Wow! Even that was petty.

While I’ve extended my pursuit of pettiness through 2026, I’ve also added a new resolution. This year I’m going hardcore DIY (AKA do it yourself). Don’t be confused. I have no plans to build an extension on my house or even fix that one wobbly chair at our dining table. I’m taking a DIY approach to my career. And I have you to thank. Starting this Substack two years ago was a revelation. I have rediscovered how much I really enjoy writing, especially writing about current events. While the entertainment industry has turned away from Black creators in general and anti-racist work in particular, making Who’s With Me? showed me how much support still exists outside of the industry’s traditional channels. Case in point: I SPENT 3 DAYS IN MINNEAPOLIS. I partnered with my new friends at the McKnight Foundation to show how different folks in the Twin Cities have responded to Trump’s illegal federal invasion. The product was good, but I was also able to hire local crew and help direct resources to the people who need them most. DING! DING! DING! So I’m going to lean in even more. Not in the Sheryl Sandberg way. In the Madame C.J. Walker way.

Yup, I’m about to get BLACKER!

Some of you may be thinking, “Kamau, that’s a strange way to put it. Why would you say it that way?” Welp, I learned this phrase from the new arbiter of Blackness, The New York Times. Specifically, I heard white rapper Jack Harlow say that he recently “got Blacker” in conversation with his fellow whites, music journalists Jon Caramanica and Joe Coscarelli. Yup, a white man said he “got Blacker” as a way to sell his product, and nobody in the room said, “STOP! WHAT THE F*CK DID YOU SAY?”

Harlow made an appearance on The New York Times music podcast Popcast. Harlow’s new album, Monica, is a departure from his previous work as a rapper. On his new album, Harlow sings, warbling through his version of R&B. He appears to be cosplaying the late ‘90s and early 2000s neo-soul era. Think D’Angelo, Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill, Maxwell, Musiq Soulchild, and India Arie. The reviews are overwhelmingly not good. Full disclosure. I haven’t listened to it. Even though the entire album is shorter than a John Coltrane solo, there isn’t enough time left of earth for me to listen. I don’t have 28:01 to give to Jack Harlow. I have three kids and nine jobs. Also, Jack Harlow has always struck me as rap music for white teenagers or for adults who like to think that they like rap music but really do not. I care about Jack Harlow in the same way I care about understanding the 6/7 meme. It is a way to keep an eye on popular culture, but I promise I’ll forget it as soon as it leaves the culture.

In the interview with Harlow, the podcast hosts seem to have some great questions for him, but they also seem to be bedazzled by him. There’s a lot of hemming and hawing. I have boiled it all down to what they were trying to get at:

1. Do you think it is easier for white musicians to switch genres than it is for Black musicians?

2. Why are you pivoting to R&B instead of the safer genres for white musicians? (Former white rapper Post Malone is now a full fledged and successful country artist. Former not-so-successful white rapper MGK is now a not-so-successful pop punk and alternative rock artist.)

It began with this exchange.

Joe Coscarelli: White rappers are afforded more freedom to change their genre at will. True or false?

Jack Harlow: I might have to think about that. What do you think?

Joe Coscarelli: Yeah, definitely.

My first reaction upon hearing this was THE NEW YORK TIMES DOES IT AGAIN! Remember when Ross Douthat had a conversation with Leah Libresco Sargeant and Helen Andrews about feminism but there wasn’t one single feminist in the room? Now we have the NYT hosting a conversation about Black music AND THERE ARE ZERO PERCENT BLACK PEOPLE PRESENT. The New York Times certainly employs Black people who would have some opinions/knowledge/backbone for this discussion. However these particular New York Times journalists clearly want Harlow to like them more than they want to do their jobs. One of them asks Harlow a question. Harlow, a 28-year-old man, pretends that this very obvious question has never occurred to him before. Harlow then demurs from the question in a way only a publicist would love. “What do yooooooou think?” And then The New York Times journalist GIVES HARLOW THE ANSWER.

The whole podcast comes off like two state college professors giving the star quarterback an open book test but not trusting that he is even smart enough to copy the answers from the text book to the blue book. In the midst of these two journalists trying to set Harlow up for success, Harlow calls an audible. They want to know why Harlow would pick R&B while many of his peers are picking genres that have already cleared the way for white artists (country and rock). Harlow’s response is the equivalent of farting at fancy dinner.

Joe Coscarelli: John is saying you didn’t retreat into a whiter genre. In fact, you arguably went deeper into Black music.

Jack Harlow: I got Blacker. Yeah.

The “yeah” at the end is the kicker. With that “yeah,” Harlow has invited the journalists to be accessories to the crime of cultural appropriation through white supremacy. Neither of the journalists push back on Harlow’s conclusion that he “got Blacker,” which means that they are now caught up in the RICO charge, too!

The Black Hivemind* had a field (Negro) day with the news of Jack Harlow’s neo-soul rebrand. There is a growing list of possible name changes for Harlow.

I’m also a fan of the Jack Harlow names D’Anglo, Luther Klandross, Stevie Wonder Bread, The Weakend, and IRS-One.

If you are beginning to in any way feel sorry for this adult man, there is also a twist. By naming his album Monica, Harlow had poked the Black Hivemind in a different way. Last year a white, French comedian named Zach Mama posted a joke where he does the impossible. He makes a room full of Black people laugh out loud by saying the N word. Buuuuuuuut he did it in an extremely clever way that even gets the W. Kamau Bell seal of approval. You just need to watch it.

If you say the name “Monica” and put the emphasis on the second syllable instead of the first, you create a secret linguistic timebomb. But just like the actual N bomb, white people should be careful before wrapping their lips around it. Kinda like the juke joint from Ryan Coogler’s Oscar-winning film Sinners, it is not open for all white folks. We need to trust you first. You might be a vampire or worse; you might be the KKK. Harlow claims he named his album Monica because he likes the name, but after he “got Blacker,” the Black Hivemind is side-eyeing all of his decisions.

Jack Harlow, you seem like the kind of white man who would look for a way to get away with saying the N word.

Lemme be clear about one thing. None of this is about stopping white musicians from being inspired by Black music. This is about who that white person is and how that white person goes about it. Black people love the soul stylings of whites like Michael McDonald, Teena Marie, Jon B., and Justin Bieber, to name a few. But if you get too comfortable, overstep, disrespect us (See Justin Timberlake at the 2004 Super Bowl.), or just reveal yourself to be a creep (See Robin Thicke’s album Paula.) then you can head out before we kick you out.

Also, a key point with Harlow is that he forgot that in order to be a singer he needed to be able to sing. A throughline I hear in nearly every review is that he hired some of the best musicians to play on his album, but they couldn’t save his thin and shaky vocal range.

Black people shouldn’t have to hear about Harlow getting Blacker over the same weekend that Sinners won far fewer Oscars than it should have. One Battle After Another winning Best Picture has the stench of when Driving Miss Daisy won Best Picture while Do The Right Thing went home with nothing except a validated parking ticket. Also, that Best Supporting Actor Academy Award going to Sean Penn and not to the regal Delroy Lindo hurts in ways I never imagined it would. It is made even more painful knowing that Sean Penn cares so little about the Academy Awards that his other two Oscars are probably in some long-forgotten storage locker soon to be discovered on an upcoming episode of Storage Wars.

One of the things about being Black is that we aren’t afforded the ability to be as casual and flippant in public as white folks are. We aren’t allowed to be as reactive as our white associates. Our casualness, our flippantness, and our reactions are magnified and made to reflect poorly back on our people. There are many legitimate reasons to spurn institutions like the Academy Awards, but if Michael B. Jordan had chosen one of those very legitimate reasons and decided not to show up for his Oscar, the Black Hivemind would collectively and rightfully have exclaimed, “WHAT ARE YOU THINKING, MONICA?”

When Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo had the N word launched in their direction by a man with Tourette’s Syndrome at The BAFTA’s, I recognized the look in both of their eyes. It was a look that said, “Stay calm. Stay cool. Just breathe. Don’t react. You can get through this. If Harriet can navigate her way through the southern woods you can finish reading the teleprompter.” The two actors didn’t dare take a moment to exhibit hurt, or even mild shock. They just put their heads down and did the work of being Black in public. White supremacy is like Bill Belichick’s New England Patriots:.

No days off!

As Trump continues his dreams of laying waste to the entire world, as many of America’s richest people do everything they can to support his efforts, and as my industry consolidates, lays off, and turns away from all DEI efforts, I pledge to double down on DIY DEI I’m about to get Blacker. Please don’t tell Jack Harlow.

Details on my plans soon.

WHO’S WITH ME?

*”Black Hivemind” is how I am referring to the entity that used to be known as Black Twitter. While some Black folks are still holding it down on Twitter (I’m never calling it the new name.), now we also have Black Threads, Blacksky, and even Blackstack. Black Hivemind is any place Black people assemble on white owned social media platforms.

2026 WHO’S WITH ME? Stand-up Comedy Tour Now On Sale

April 17 North Bethesda, MD at The Music Center at Strathmore

April 30 San Francisco, CA at 10th Annual Comedy Night for Immigrant Rights

May 22-24 San Diego at The Mic Drop Comedy Club.

Me & Jane Fonda, No Big Deal

It was actually a very, BIG deal. My friend and ACLU wrangler, Jessica Weitz, invited me to be on a panel with THE JANE FONDA. We were there to talk about the importance of free speech and whatever else MS. JANE FONDA wanted to talk about. It was truly an honor. Ms. Fonda was so nice. She even made a video for me to send to my mom. Enjoy the hour I spent with Jane Fonda.

Another Day, Another Mahogany Mommies Sweatshirt

Of course, I had to wear a Mahogany Mommies shirt when I was with Jane Fonda. She was rocking her bedazzled “RESIST” shirt, and I had my “Drink Water, Love Hard, Fight Fascism”. If you want your own Mahogany Mommies shirt, don’t forget to use my code WKB to get 20% off!

Another Jack Harlow Perspective

Open Mike Eagle is a rapper who is often called an “alt-rapper”, because he is pursuing his version of rap music and not the mainstream’s version. I took my wife with me to see him in concert recently, and the way I described him was, “He’s like me if I was a rapper.” I later told Open Mike that description and he said, “Fair.” Open Mike has taken to Youtube recently to get his own DIY DEI on. His channel features him opining on the events of the day, the rap music events and other events. He weighed in on Jack Harlow’s “I got Blacker.” It is hilarious and salient. And only 10 minutes long.

I Stand With Dolores Huerta and all of Cesar Chavez’s survivors

Me and Dolores Huerta at Santa Clara University in 2017

Earlier this week, The New York Times broke a heartbreaking story about civil rights leader Cesar Chavez. Several women have accused Chavez of sexual abuse, rape, and grooming. Many were well under 18 years old. The evidence more than supports the stories they have told. As the article made it’s way around, civil rights icon Dolores Huerta posted a statement on Instagram. In her statement she recounted a time when Chavez had coerced her into sex. (He was her boss and already a living legend at the time.) Another time Huerta said Chavez raped her. As a result of the encounters, Huerta gave birth to two children, who were given to other families to raise. DNA evidence has proven those tow children (now adults) to be Chavez and Huerta’s.

All of that is a lot. But what is sort of beautiful is seeing how much support has come Huerta’s way and also how quickly Latino, Latina. and Latinx activists have pushed to take Chavez’s name off of holidays, festivals, celebrations, and schools that were in meant to honor him.

I was honored years ago when I was able to share a meal with Ms. Huerta and also to have a public conversation with her, as part of my artist residency at Santa Clara University in 2017. My family (including my mom) came to the event. It was a glorious evening. Suffice to say, I stand with Dolores Huerta, all of Cesar Chavez’s survivors, and all survivors of sexual assault.

One more time. WHO’S WITH ME?