“I’m a Nazi”

I really hate (n-words)/I’m a Nazi.

This lyric is from Dej Loaf’s popular rap song, Try Me (0:55-0:58), which is of course mostly about murdering people.

Why is the mainstream media (not to mention the Anti-Defamation League) seemingly ignoring this story? The 23-year-old, female rapper from Detroit has already been identified as a rising star, with a record deal from Columbia Records to prove it. And Try Me has proved to be a popular anthem. According to Billboard, the song is no. 64 on the Hot 100.

Dej is apparently now rap’s defiant new female voice – I guess “defiant” is one possible word choice for labeling oneself a Nazi in a rap song. I can think of others…

I’ve blogged here before about how celebrity anti-Semitism is often ignored by the media, so I was surprised when rapper Nicki Minaj was recently called out for the Nazi-like imagery in the video for her song Only. Although Nicki’s “if it has offended anyone” apology was weak and the director of the video proudly refused to apologize, at least the media was paying attention.

They were also paying attention when Khloe Kardashian made a joke about the KKK. That incident blossomed into a huge scandal. So why has Dej’s Nazi reference been largely ignored?

Unfortunately, I don’t know the answer. Dej is not as well known as Nicki Minaj or Khloe Kardashian, but her song has gotten a lot of airplay and she’s definitely on the cultural radar.

If featuring Nazi imagery in a music video is wrong (which I of course believe it is), saying “I’m a Nazi” in a song is also unacceptable. Hopefully the mainstream media will begin reporting on this story, so that other artists will think twice before trivializing the Holocaust and identifying with Nazis.