The Brief: Lana Del Rey controversy memes began trending after the artist compared her criticism in the music industry to that of Doja Cat, Beyoncé, Nicki Minaj, Cardi B, Kehlani, Ariana Grande, and Camilla Cabello.

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On May 21, singer Lana Del Rey took to Instagram to defend critiques from female writers and ALT singers that said her music glamourizes abuse and is anti-feminist at its core. She called out a double-standard in the industry, saying that that artists like Doja Cat, Beyoncé, Nicki Minaj, Cardi B, Kehlani, Ariana Grande, and Camilla Cabello are chart-toppers while singing about “being sexy, wearing no clothes, f*cking, cheating, etc.” In her post, she goes on to ask: “Can I please go back to singing about being embodied, feeling beautiful by being in love even in the relationship is not perfect, or dancing for money  — or whatever I want — without being crucified or saying that I’m glamorizing abuse?”

Her argument did not sit well with music fans in various standoms. Many who found her argument pointed at a time when the top spots on the Billboard charts are occupied — for the first time ever — by four Black Women (Doja Cat, Beyoncé, Nicki Minaj, and Megan Thee Stallion).

The BeyHive was quick to illustrate Del Rey has never reached Beyoncé’s numbers.

She also hasn’t dealt with the same struggle female artists of color have.

Del Rey has had previous run-ins with other artists, notably her beef with rapper Azealia Banks. Subsequently, memes about Banks hearing the news began circulating online, with Azealia Banks’ name trending on Twitter.

 

The backlash is also being compared to food columnist and cook Alison Roman’s controversy with Chrissy Teigen and Marie Kondo. Roman criticized Teigen and Kondo in The New Consumer for selling products and merchandise, which she deemed antithetical to what they’ve promoted in the past.