During my daily morning scroll on social media, I learned that Cardi B announced her pregnancy on “Saturday Night Live” this weekend while performing her new song “Be Careful.” Cardi B, who rose to fame after releasing “Bodak Yellow,” has since been inspiring women everywhere. When the song came out, I honestly did not think that I would be sitting here writing an article about how empowering I think she is as an artist. However, in the last 10 months, Cardi’s career has skyrocketed, mostly because of her eccentric personality and her hustler female attitude.
Cardi, whose birth name is Belcalis Almanzar, is by no means conventional, but that doesn’t make her any less exceptional as an artist, and that’s really what makes her stand out amongst other artists in the hip-hop industry.
As a kid, Cardi B grew up in the Bronx and always had big dreams of being a rapper one day. When Cardi B was 19, she was a victim of domestic violence and turned to stripping as a means for her to make money to escape her traumatic situation. Soon after this, Cardi joined the cast of “Love and Hip Hop: New York” on VH1 before following her dreams and becoming the rapper she is today.
Cardi’s no-filter personality is empowering to young girls everywhere because she is unafraid to be exactly who she is. Unlike other celebrities, Cardi B does not have problems with talking about her plastic surgery and implants, and I think this mostly has to do with her overall image. In this day and age, a person should be allowed to be exactly who they want to be, and for Cardi, this is about her self-confidence and her dedication to shape her career in the direction that she wants to take it.
A few months ago, I watched a video that Cardi did for Elle magazine, where she talked about how she built her self-image and how Belcalis is very different from her alter ego, Cardi B. The video really changed my perspective on her because I had originally thought that she was just going to produce the same type of music I had seen from other artists. But after understanding that she didn’t have it easy in life, I realized there’s much more to Cardi B than just her humor or her song lyrics. I always wish that I had someone as strong and fearless to look up to when I was younger, like young girls having Cardi B now.
A lot of rap and R&B music is based on the artists’ real life, but I think what sets Cardi B apart from other artists is how she left reality TV without the diva mindset, and still carried on to follow her dreams and make them all come true in less than a year. In addition, her collaborations with other established artists, as well as her ability to top the charts for weeks at a time, along with the recent release of her first album are really unlike any other artist in the game.
Moreover, because Cardi is a woman of color, she has shown that if she can build up her career, then anyone from anywhere can do it too. Cardi B has been able to show her haters the door and empower girls everywhere to be comfortable in their own skin, regardless of what they want to do or who they want to be. She delivers important messages, and that’s what makes her a real icon of this generation.
