Jack harlow3/23/2023 “All the decisions are made for me right now.” “You can decide what’s written later,” he tells me. Each word sounds painstakingly intentional. Such pauses are a recurring theme in this conversation. When I ask about Harlow's favorite moment on the album, he shifts in his chair, deep in thought. “My parents have let go of that," he says. Even my mom likes the song, I tell Harlow, though she isn’t fond of the line in which he raps about drinking pineapple juice to “give her sweet, sweet, sweet semen.” He laughs. It’s fashion.”īut critics can’t deny the success of the Fergie-sampling single “First Class,” which exploded at number one on the Billboard charts. Some of my earlier stuff, since I wasn’t in the position that I’m in, it was easier to be like, ‘Yeah, slide him his props.’ But once you’re up there, it’s a saltier feeling in your mouth. My music, to me, is without a doubt getting better. “I haven’t seen a lot of good points because, you know, most of the noise isn’t written eloquently. After a beat, he sounds notably more passionate. I ask if he’s seen any valid points in the criticism. ![]() I’ve been able to do a good job of stepping away.” A lot of it has been a big surprise to me, after I caught wind of some of it. But I’m proud to say my confidence and my thoughts on my trajectory haven’t been shaken. “It teaches you not to put too much stock in either because the world is finicky. To experience a taste of the opposite, I think it’s good for my growth,” Harlow says. “I’ve been so validated by the world over the last year and just put on a pedestal and loved. The toughest blow came from Pitchfork, which rated the album a 2.9 and delivered such digs as “without much to grasp with music, it’s easiest just to stare.” The author gets personal, referring to the rapper’s “honking diamond earrings” with disdain - though, in person, they look pretty normal-size to me. It’s one thing when you see the memes and you hear people talking about it, but it’s another when you travel the country and you see them all over the place. I mean, I look out at my shows and I see them. “They’ll never have to worry about not being credited by me…. “I was telling The New York Times how it’s not a massive phenomenon to me because it’s just a continuation of how my life was before I was famous,” he explains. Thankfully, Harlow doesn’t see himself as any kind of savior. That behavior shouldn’t be unusual for a man in hip-hop, but unfortunately, it is. “I want you to be protected.” (Harlow reached out to the victim privately to offer his support, Teen Vogue confirmed.) “I want this woman, and every Black woman that supports me, to know - I am so sorry,” he wrote on Instagram. When a Black woman was harassed by a police officer at his concert last year, Harlow publicly admonished the situation. Harlow's advocacy for those fans plays a critical role in his appeal. ![]() “Black women are such a massive part of my career,” he says. Perhaps it’s also because I was introduced to his music by Black women, the fanbase he most directly credits with his success. Perhaps I view him with empathy because I, too, am a 24-year-old white person. It’s a stark contrast from his usual on-camera persona, which seems to be all self-assured smiles and witty, often suggestive, jokes. When I look at the Jack Harlow sitting across from me, I see a mildly nervous, soft-spoken young man who knows he’s bound to mess up. “I feel a responsibility to make sure people don’t think of Louisville hip-hop and only think of one white guy.” Hometown pride, tinged with self-awareness, swells in his voice. “I don’t know if anyone from Louisville could say that I’m not doing my part to lift the city up,” Harlow says.
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