Take Lil Wayne’s ‘Every Girl’ Off The Radio!
Published: November 30, 2009
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Just like millions of other people, Milan and Imani Ford tuned in to watch the 2009 BET Awards, which aired just days after Michael Jackson's death. For the most part, they enjoyed the star-filled tribute to Jackson—that is until hip-hop's crowned prince Lil Wayne took the stage with his up-and-coming group Young Money featuring rapper/singer Drake to perform their latest hit "Every Girl." The performance not only left the Fords stunned (the song explicitly expresses Lil Wayne's desire to have sex with every girl in the world) it spurned them into starting their own mini movement. A few days later, the Atlanta couple launched IAMNOTEVERYGIRL.com, an online campaign to remove Lil Wayne's song from radio airplay. First, they started by petitioning three local radio stations that currently play the song on heavy rotation. Now, they're spreading their message through social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Milan spoke with ESSENCE.com about the choice to start this campaign, the message he's received from other brothers who have joined his cause, and given the chance, exactly what he'd like to say to Lil Wayne man-to-man.
lil Wayne Young Money – Every Girl
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Discuss "Take Lil Wayne’s ‘Every Girl’ Off The Radio!" in the forumsESSENCE.COM: What are you trying to achieve with your campaign?
MILAN FORD: We created the site to provide a vehicle for men and women to have their voices heard. You know in every situation regarding the degradation of African-Americans, we take a stand. Remember when Don Imus called the Rutgers [University] women’s basketball team a bunch of nappy-headed hos? We got CBS to remove him as a host just a few days later. Why do we limit our defense only to those who don’t look like us? As a husband and father, something in me just said we need to protect our women.
ESSENCE.COM: Are people surprised to find out that a brother is spearheading this cause?
FORD: Of course people think this whole concept came from a woman, but there are actually a number of men out there who won’t stand for this. This song causes women to believe this is how they need to be viewed or how they should behave. I think more women would speak out if they knew they had more men supporting them than exploiting them.
ESSENCE.COM: So what’s your strategy?
FORD: We’re focusing on three radio stations in Atlanta: V-103, 95.5 The Beat and Hot 107.9. Our supporters are calling every Monday to request that the song either be taken off the radio or at least limited to radio play during later hours. On Wednesdays, we do our letter writing campaign. On Fridays, we leverage our Facebook and Twitter accounts to draw more attention to the stations. The program managers have been honest enough to say that while they respect what we’re doing, the only way to remove these songs is to lower the volume or requests. But it’s not the men who are calling to request this song. In Atlanta, it’s the number one requested song from women between 16 to 35 years old.
ESSENCE.COM: But you’ve said on your Web site that you still respect Lil Wayne for his talent.
FORD: Lil Wayne is our brother. This is not a site to attack this young man. His talents are unquestionable, but when it comes to the message and explicit lyrics of these songs, we have to talk about what is questionable and what is deserving of our disapproval. I know “Every Girl” is a Billboard Top 20 song. Many people have told my wife and I that we won’t be able to accomplish this but we’re really trying to use the site to focus on one city right now. We want to see if we can create a proven model on how people in their respective cities can then take a stand for their daughters, sisters and to a certain degree mothers.
ESSENCE.COM: Can’t people just make the choice to turn the song off or listen to the edited version?
FORD: We’re living in an unparented generation. We can’t be concerned with just what’s going on in our house anymore. We have to be concerned with those kids especially who are listening to this and are not being parented. I believe there are many who are editing songs but don’t understand there are still consequences associated with them. You’re creating an interest in what that song was prior to editing.
ESSENCE.COM: What would you say to Lil Wayne if you could have a 10-minute sit down conversation with him?
FORD: I’d love to see if he’s open to the idea that what got him here is no longer necessary. Lil Wayne, Drake, all these young men have used their talents to get them out of poverty and secure their future. Now that that’s done, I really would like to talk to him about what the next couple of years look like for Lil Wayne. What type of songs can come out of his experiences to uplift his community? Unfortunately, we have an industry that exploits these types of artists and probably encourages them to do these songs if they want radio play. But I hope he can understand that at this point in his career he should consider changing his message and produce a greater product that lives beyond him. After all, isn’t that what artists like Michael Jackson were all about in the first place?
Milan Ford currently serves as a content editor for a number of online Christian networks, and is the author of "83 Things I Wish The Black Church Would Stop Doing," scheduled to be released in September 2009. He recently launched the website IAMNOTEVERYGIRL.com, an online campaign to remove Lil Wayne's song from radio airplay. Milan and his wife, Imani, are the proud parents of three children: Kayla, Aliyah, and Ethan.
Original article can be found at Essence.com.
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