Over the past few months, the debate about colorism in the music industry again reached a fever pitch thanks in part to breakout rapper Mulatto, her objectionable moniker, and some unfavorable interpretations of her defense for it on chat app Clubhouse. However, she’s not the only one to be criticized, as DaniLeigh‘s song “Yellow Bone” has shifted the spotlight — and fans’ disapproval — in her direction. After posting a video previewing the new song, the Miami singer deleted it when fans pointed out its questionable connotations.
https://twitter.com/Mocha___Hontas/status/1352332328253665283?s=20
DaniLeigh, who recently made headlines when she confirmed her relationship to North Carolina rapper DaBaby, posted the video on the popular TikTok precursor Triller, mugging for the camera in her Marilyn Monroe-inspired makeup look. However, when she shared the video to her Instagram, fans were quick to point out the song’s messaging might be disagreeable due to the history of colorism in the United States. Despite DaniLeigh, who is of Dominican descent, trying to defend the song, the criticisms continued until she ultimately deleted it. Unfortunately for her, It had already been reposted, along with her response in the comments, by other accounts, preserving it for continued censure.
“Why can’t I make a song for my light skin baddies?” she wondered. “Why y’all think I’m hating on other colors when there are millions of songs speaking on all types?”
At 26 years old, though, DaniLeigh is probably experienced enough to have encountered the historical connotations associated with praising lighter-skinned Black women at the expense of others. While her intention was probably not to mock or taunt women with darker complexions, the power imbalance already exists in the world, and her song does little to alleviate tensions or make up for a cultural legacy of harmful rhetoric and imagery.
Dani Leigh made a song for light skin women but her parents look like this. She wanna be a negro so baddd😭 pic.twitter.com/GNvivTsPUe
— Frantzisca❤️ (@Frantifaine) January 21, 2021
It's the fact that Dani Leigh not even black💀 pic.twitter.com/meugllYkvZ
— Imaramařaj •🦄🍀 (@MochaMara) January 21, 2021
Dani Leigh lost me with that "Yellow Bone" song. Yall still makin songs that enforce colorism and fetishization of light skinned ppl in 2021? Being Light Skinned is NOT a personality trait, and sad to say, it's honestly all some of yall got, which is tragic. #DoBetter
— Virgo Breathing: 7th Form ♍️🗡🦋 (@Uri_Mercury) January 21, 2021
Please don’t compare Dani Leigh’s trash song to Beyoncé’s Brownskin Girl. One is a song about how brownskin women are beautiful, the other is a song saying he wants a yellow bone. They are not the same. Plus her song sounds horrible.
— Devin 🐺 (@GeauxDevin) January 21, 2021
Just because someone is Dominican does not mean they're Black. There are plenty of NON-BLACK Dominicans. Dani Leigh is not Black and never will be. https://t.co/xfl07bqvaB
— Jason (U mad) (@EmperorTChalla) January 21, 2021
https://twitter.com/iIoveweed/status/1352343241635594243
Y’all shoulda known🙄🙄 Dani Leigh wasn’t “Black” or even Afro Latina when she went
From this: To this: pic.twitter.com/6ioVAn87Ct
— silkystunna (@silkystunna) January 21, 2021
You can hear the song in the videos above and see more responses below.
