Black Folks' Comments About A Light Skin Woman Being The Romantic Interest In A 2016 Nigerian Afrobeats Music Video

Edited by Azizi Powell

This pancocojams post documents a number of comments from Black folks about a light skin woman being the romantic interest in the official 2016 YouTube video for Nigerian Afrobeats singer Korede Bello's hit song "Do Like That".

That YouTube video is embedded in this post.

The content of this post is presented for socio-cultural purposes.

All copyright remains with their owners.

Thanks to Korede Bello for recording this song and thanks to all those who are associated with this video/song. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post and thanks to the publisher of this video on YouTube.

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PANCOCOJAMS EDITOR'S NOTE
This compilation documents most of the comments that I read about skin color and colorism that are found in the discussion thread for the official YouTube video of Nigerian Afrobeats Singer Korede Bello"s "Do Like That" (as of January 21, 2020). These comments were posted by Black people (as indicated by their screen pictures and/or their comments). Also, judging by their names and/or their comments, most of the people commenting about this subject in that discussion were young adult (20-30 years) Africans. A number of other comments on that subject were from young adult people who self-identified as being from the Caribbean.

There are lots of comments on other topics in that discussion thread. However, I wanted to document comments about skin color and colorism from these populations for the historical record.

Here's a definition of "colorism" from https://www.dictionary.com/browse/colorism
"differential treatment based on skin color, especially favoritism toward those with a lighter skin tone and mistreatment or exclusion of those with a darker skin tone, typically among those of the same racial group or ethnicity."

Most of the commenters in this discussion thread criticized what they considered to be colorism directed against brown skin or dark skin woman toward the light skin woman who was chosen to play the role in that video of that singer's romantic interest.

It should be noted that there didn't appear to be any other light skin people in the setting for that video - a dance club or dance party. However, judging by her hair texture, her skin tone, and her facial features, the actress chosen for that role was clearly of some Black descent (a number of commenters referred to her as being "mixed".)

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SHOWCASE VIDEO: Korede Bello - Do Like That ( Official Music Video )



MavinRecords, Nov 22, 2016
-snip-
Click https://genius.com/Korede-bello-do-like-that-lyrics for the lyrics to this song which are mostly in English.

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SELECTED COMMENTS
(with numbers added for referencing purposes only)

1. Sherisse Scott, 2016
"The song and the mix is lovely but I am disappointed in the video. The concept was lame and it did not show off your dancing talent that you clearly have. The girl was ALL wrong and you should have done a solo African dance with you and and a lady. I totally agree with Caribbean Snow in the comments. Stay true to your roots don't turn your back on our ppl."

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2. Michelyn Boateng, 2016
"Nice, Korede next time feature African queens. You said that you prefer Chocolate ladies on multiple radio interviews, and yet never feature us. As much as I love you, I'm a bit disappointed."

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3. Joy Thompson, 2016
"Colorism has always been in our culture especially in music"

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4. sweetbabyboo5, 2016
"1. where's the dancing
2. Where's the beautiful chocolate 4C Goddess
3. Love the song but probably won't watch the video much."
-snip-
"4c" is a contemporary African American created term that is used as a referent for the tightly curled hair texture that most people of Black African descent have. Click https://www.thatsister.com/what-are-4a-4b-and-4c-hair-types-answers-and-picture-examples-inside/ for information about and pictures of 4a, 4b, and 4c hair textures.

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5. Dancehall Divas Africa
"Disappointed in this video! & perpetuating this stoopid culture of "light bein right" is annoying me now! Of ALL the beautiful African women that can actually buss a move and this is what we get???"

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6. Empress Triumphant, 2016
"There r soooo many BEAUTIFUL dark African sisters on this planet! Why not put one in ur video?"

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7. Aleki Ajuet, 2016
"Tired of the light skin broad theme. Even in Africa smh"

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REPLY
8. Airy2020, 2017
"Aleki Ajuet just stop hating don't let people know your insecurities"

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9. Day_bore_uh, 2016
"Dam very disappointed with the video was hoping for more dancing and was hoping for dark skin queen."

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REPLY
10. African Child, 2016
"Deborah Charles I feel you, I painfully accepted the reality with american hip hop videos but now it's just messed up that this is being replicated in to afrobeats videos. It used to be refreshing to watch them...just unfortunate"

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REPLY
11. Saran Wright, 2016
"Deborah Charles i feel your pain babygirl"

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REPLY
12. khanhalee, 2016
"Deborah Charles Africans comes in different shades! ppl like what they like. there are guys who like lighter shade. I like dark skin men! ppl hv preferences."

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REPLY
13. Fab 4, 2016
"Right"

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REPLY
14. kayla Nicholas, 2016
"Deborah Charles yeah for real I was expecting that there would dark skin girlss"

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REPLY
15. FaithsStardust, 2017
"I think people understand that +khanlie .... but when you only get to see one type of brown female represented .... it gets abit tiring.

As you said, Africans come in different shades and yet when it comes to attractive females, for the most part only lighter brown woman are shown leaving the darker hues to feel inadequate.

Yes, all of us brown woman are strong and beautiful but sometimes you need a pick me up, you know? Especially since a good portion of Africa is on the darker side."

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REPLY
16. D.i.n BEATS ღ, 2016
"I was expecting some dope Nigerian/African girl dancing here.. But anyway cool video ♫"

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REPLY
17. Joseph S. Koroma, 2017
"idek if it is just my attitudes or if African music and video are becoming more Anglo-saxon influenced"

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REPLY
18. Chris Oghenetega Maloney, 2017
"Y'all keep whining n natch your teeth"

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REPLY
19. BLUE SEE, 2018
"The girls in the video are chocolate they are Africans"

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REPLY
20. Arusha Nishiki, 2019
"Not all african are dark girl"

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21. Dini G, 2016
"Nice song but where re all the DARK SKIN GIRLS are they on exile?? There re beautiful black girls please feature them more am tired of seeing all these fair chicks."

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REPLY
22. hassan oye, 2016
"its okay with all these 'where r the dark skinned girls' talk, abi is it your video... e don do abeg"

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REPLY
23. Joy Thompson, 2016
"Dini G Yess"

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REPLY
24. Dini G, 2016
"hassan oye am entitled to my own opinion and ur name does not look like koredo so don't try to be rude! how many famous white artists do u see featuring black girls as the main chick in their songs???There is nothing wrong in featuring other skin tone but it's now a habit with most nigerian musicians."

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REPLY
25. attagirl, 2016
"Dini G some of you girls complain too much u should know what to expect by now"

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REPLY
26. Dini G, 2016
"Souljagurl 107 am not complaining it's just the fact,this is the reason most black skinned ladies bleach their skin cos the men act like fair girls re more beautiful."

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REPLY
27. E Don Do, 2016
"Dini G thank u, you said it all"

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28. Lilian Williams, 2017
"Why don't they put dark skinned women 😟😟 we are beautiful too"

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REPLY
29. Logose Christinems, 2017
"ov course even us we are beautiful"

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REPLY
30. Smile3311, 2017
"The absence of a dark skin girl in a video doesn't invalidate her beauty. Be self-secure,they can feature other skin tones aswell.All black is beautiful."

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REPLY
31. TT, 2017
"his other videos have gorgeous dark skin women, better looking then this girl too"

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REPLY
32. Lilianna Sabandith18, 2017
"Lilian Williams he never said that u guys aren't beautiful it what he wants cuz it's his music video. He prob will putt dark skin soon"

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REPLY
33. ɴᴏᴛᴄᴜᴛᴇ. ᴀʀɪɪɪ, 2017
"No body said you guys are not pretty I believe that evrygirl is buetyful I'm mixed so I can relate....a little"

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REPLY
34. Olivia Johnson, 2017
"thats right B.L.M/Black.Lives.Matter"

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REPLY
35. Spiritual Entrepreneurs, 2017
"Lilian Williams hey beautiful you know you're beautiful its all within u and any credit you get externally is extra to what you already know. You're beautiful"

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REPLY
36. Emma Kariuki, 2017
"Preach!!"

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REPLY
37. Leslyn Klass, 2017
"Lilian Williams amen"

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REPLY
38. CaNt StOp GaMiNg, 2017
"Lilian Williams they do! In the background"

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REPLY
39. Saphhire Gem, 2017
"Lilian Williams they did the light skinned girl was just the main person he saw and she is african too but it's good for our races to kid with each other just look at mixed babies every baby is special but I'm saying some people think we should only love our own race and I real like diffrent races from all around the world shouldnlobe each other create more defined children so where is my mixed squad at every one is beautiful in their own way love you all"

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REPLY
40. Infullbloom Time, 2017
"Right it's ridiculous it's like this everywhere"

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REPLY
41. Mrm, 2017
"You have no confidence when you need a darkskin girl in the video to feel beautiful.The girl in the video is beautiful please stop this Light skin Dark skin sh&t* we are all black.
-snip-
*This word is fully spelled out in this comment."

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REPLY
42. Finding Medicine, 2017
"Mrm I disagree with you. It is not a matter of lacking in confidence. It is a subtle bias ness that most of us Africans have to admit to prior to finding a solution. It is not that light ppl are not beautiful and it is not that lighter complexion ppl are not love worthy or appreciated but it’s the monster that the more melanated men and women have to deal with. This problem is a consequence of colonization. Whether you are dumb , deaf or blind we know what this is. So desist from amalgamating and crying for forgetfulness. Let’s fix the psychological problems we are afraid to talk about.Just like a light skin girl is deceived that the lighter the better it is the same reason a darker complexion is deceived the more melanated the more hated. Doubt my claim , rewatch the video, look around you , watch more videos amongst us blacks. Quit playing ignorant and start the mental fixing that we need. We I mean black ppl all shades."

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REPLY
43. Mbock Brimandi, 2017
"Africa has the most diverse phenotype. We can produce all types of skin color. So don't remain behind. Dark skin does not mean you are the only african. We have our children from mixed mariages; what do you want them to think since their skin is not as dark as yours?"

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REPLY
44. Cici Ni, 2017
"All colors are beautiful, don’t ever underestimate or doubt your beauty. Ever."

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REPLY
45. Rose Reacts, 2017
"D.i.n BEATS ღ The girl in the video is mixed with black though so what's the problem? Lol"

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REPLY
46. Mel is the best, 2017
"I look like the girl"

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REPLY
47. Yesenia Hernandez, 2017
"Why were you expecting that and is it wrong that he chose her?"

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REPLY
48. xokuox, 2017
"I dont care about her being mixed, but its pretty boring when all she's doing is looking at the camera. This is the kind of song you dance to and the video should have had some type of dance to fit the music."

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REPLY
49. tigerstripes, 2018
"Yesenia Hernandez go away! You wouldn't understand where she's coming from but then again Hispanics are notorious for keeping dark women from their music videos. We don't want to see that in African videos where the main supporters are African women like it is already happening in black American videos! The day y'all start putting afro Latinas in Hispanic media is the day you can freely come here and ask your stupid question! STOLE African dances and culture and wouldn't put afro Latinos in your media gtfoh!"

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REPLY
50. dahlia sherman, 2018
"Rose Reacts black=/=half-black."

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REPLY
51. ryan C, 2018
"Yeah kinda kills the African vibes
..I looked in the comments to see if anyone else was feeling the same lol"

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REPLY
52. paddy Bibs, 2018
"D.i.n BEATS ღ she is Nigerian. Sorry"

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REPLY
53. OnikasTEA, 2018
"tigerstripes how are Hispanics stealing culture when we have Africans roots in us? I swear you’re bitter"

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REPLY
54. Tessy May, 2018
"Rose Reacts to a pure African...mixed with black is NOT black. In America she's black not here"

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REPLY
55. Emmanuel Abijo, 2018
"@Yesenia Hernandez cause he's a Nigerian artist and alot of lyrics are in Yoruba. Would have been nice to see someone that least looks like she understands the lyrics he's serenading her with.

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56. La'Cara Reddick, 2017
"the music itself is dope I just feel there should have been a sezy dark chocolate women to fit the video" itself

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57. Glo Doll, 2017
"Real Africans but the main chick is always lightskin"

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REPLY
58. Dembouz Silva, 2017
"Glo Doll i know but they are africans 😄 so....."

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59. Mercas Ed, 2017
"nice music but naija boys ya have to start love dark skin black women in your videos"

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REPLY
60. FAQsofLife, 2017
"Mercas ED I'm sure your comment is meant with nothing but appreciation for diversity of skin colour, however have you pondered on the possibility of these artists not featuring many dark skinned beauties simply because there are very few supplying such services. They surely have higher standards than being reduced to some artist's video vixen in order to attract an audience keen on sexually objectifying one. I believe some if not most dark skinned women are glad to not be associated to one more negative aspect of today's society."

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REPLY
61. Mercas Ed, 2017
"i am capeverdian and trust i african and i know there is alot of Beautiful dark skin girls in Nigeria or where ever they are shooting this video s.i know THE mentality"

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REPLY
62. Eunny Olohi, 2017
"black is beautiful"

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REPLY
63. reè anastasia, 2017
"Does it matter? We're all women of colour."

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REPLY
64. nnadaddy, 2017
"reè anastasia It does matter. Inclusion is important"

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REPLY
65. Kokoette Sunday Itim, 2017
"Mercas ED you should know that in Nigeria they are a lot of light skin people especially girls. I think it's based on choice of the musician, cuz someone like runtown always uses dark skinned girls."

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REPLY
66. Musah, 2017
"you mean there are a lot of artifcially lightskinned women....."

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REPLY
67. Esther Coker, 2017
"Mercas ED Stop hating ... All shades of brown is beautiful. I love the diversity."

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REPLY
68. Susan Machau, 2017
"it's high tym African understand that black is beauty!! please this goes to all African artists include your beautiful black beauty women in your videos atleast to represent your African beauty... it was my opinion though..."

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REPLY
69. Ponsford Doe, 2017
"Dark skin light skin is the same as black so what is your point. Are u saying light skin girls are not African."

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REPLY
70. zadu baba, 2017
"Sel Bel inclusion is important until they intentionally exclude the appearance of their main audience 🤔"

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REPLY
71. Nia, 2017
"Mercas ED thank YOU!! All those beautiful black dark skin women and you in the club dancing with the lightest one! Smh So obvious too"

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REPLY
72. Abena Candy, 2017
"I like the song but it’s something man... when all these West AFRICAN music videos never feature dark skin women, rather mixed women or women of different nationalities. The woman in the video was beautiful and she did her thing, but damn this just shows that not even black Africans want to represent other black Africans even if they’re in Africa. I’m not saying only dark skin women should be featured, I’m just saying Africa is a continent full of different beautiful chocolate women, so use them!"

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REPLY
73. Austin Dave, 2017
"Those girls are Africans, Nigerian girls ain’t so dark."

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REPLY
74. Atta Mike, 2018
"No the woman is black, I have the same skin colour like her pole think that I'm an American buh I'm a Ghanaian"

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REPLY
75. RO Tail, 2018
"Abena Candy wish u overcome the color issue here and just enjoy the art. I'm African purple and I could care less."

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REPLY
76. Wigan Sichilima, 2018
"Roni she's right only Maleek Berry and Maybe Mr Eazi use black girls, Tekno Uses Latinas, Davido uses everyone etc"

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REPLY
77. oscar genova, 2018
"Abena Candy the darker the better !!!"

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78. Saran Wright, 2017
"Chocolate women are so beautiful 🍫❤"

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REPLY
79. Kechena Barrett, 2017
"U can just say black it's not offensive. And thanks 🙏🏽"

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REPLY
80. Maria Blu, 2017
"Kechena Barrett he said chocolate because some of us are dark"

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REPLY
81. Happy Thinking Is Healthy, 2017
"God loves all, no matter color. We are all family, no matter color, and we should treat everyone like family, beacause family and love is the most important thing. 🙏"

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REPLY
82. Sisanda Ngwenya, 2017
"Saran Wright thanks😂"

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REPLY
83. M. R., 2017
"African American chocolate 👎.... Caribbean chocolate or Latin chocolate 👍"

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REPLY
84. curlyheadcc_, 2017
"M. R. rasis ni&&a* I mixed with African American and white and look at me im beautiful chocolate"
-snip-
*This word is fully spelled out in this comment.

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85. TheIrbe, 2018
"He shouldn’t have used a mixed girl.... Black people are the only people who will protray the beauty of other women then their own."

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REPLY
86. MIDDLE east, 2019
"What black are you talking about.."

Is she not dark enough?

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REPLY
87. Ziko Alejandro Ramos, 2019
"Every video must have dark skinned women?"

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REPLY
88. Royalty Jackson, 2019
"You people need to stop this thing with the colour of our skin colour this song is out here for every body to love"

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82. Detroit Skippy, 2019
"Why a pale face girl model????"

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89. Luxury Consignment, 2019
"What does this blonde girl know about “bend like say you want to pack your money?” 😒

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