Review: ‘The Divine Feminine’

Rap music typically has a negative connotation when it comes to women. Misogynistic lyrics remain at the top of the complaint list. Mac Miller’s latest album, The Divine Feminine, challenges this stereotype.

Of course, Mac Miller is not the first artist to celebrate women and femininity in rap music; however, his dedication to feminine energy in an entire album should be recognized. This is an ideal time to recognize this celebration of the female spirit, considering the recent election of Donald Trump, which exposed the fragility of intersectional feminism in America.

Ironically, Mac Miller released a song titled, ‘Donald Trump’ in 2011 in which he compared his lavish lifestyle to Donald Trump’s. In the song he uses many derogatory and offensive names to describe women. Since then, Miller has seemingly abandoned his disrespectful view of women and adopted a new way of thinking, which is reflected in each song on the album.

The album’s title gives an idea of the content of the songs. First, the word divine has two definitions. One defines it as of, from or like God or a god. The other definition describes divine as excellent or delightful. Whichever meaning you look at, both positively identify the “feminine” or the female sex.

The majority of the songs follow the same trend. They are all different displays of Mac Miller’s emotional and sexual relations with women, whether it’s the first track “Congratulations,” a love song about a woman he considers to be “too divine,” or “Cinderella,” which explores the sexual aspect of a relationship. He concludes the album with a song called “God Is Fair, Sexy Nasty,” which finishes with a widow talking about the love she shared with her late husband.

The album could be considered a love album and contained a lot of singing by Miller and  R&B artists like Ariana Grande and Cee Lo Green. These artists complemented the jazzy style of rap he employs throughout the album. He also included other rap artists like Ty Dolla $ign, who isn’t necessarily known for his respectful lyrics toward women, as well as popular artist Kendrick Lamar. Even though these rappers have different styles, it did not interfere with Miller’s message or musical theme. If anything, they enhanced the project.

By no means is Mac Miller breaking boundaries with this album. With the growing ideology of white male dominance in this nation, uplifting women in popular culture is not only refreshing, but completely necessary. Maybe other artists and Americans will follow his lead, viewing and discussing women as the godly creatures they have always been and will continue to be.

Jasmine Hardy writes about arts and entertainment for 101Magazine.net.