I started The Grapevine to provide a platform for millennials, in particular black millennials, to discuss the issues that mattered to us in a raw and candid format. After years of false starts, I premiered my show to the world via YouTube in 2014. Since then, we have covered a multitude of topics from colorism, the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election, slavery in Libya, Hotepism, to Colin Kaepernick kneeling down to protest the unjust treatment of black people in the U.S. I watched as my platform grew from 300 subscribers to 50,000 subscribers on YouTube. However, nothing prepared me for what would happen when we released our episode on Bruno Mars. A viral, two minute clip, of longtime panelist and friend to the show, Seren aka Sensei Aishitemasu, reignited the conversation on whether or not Bruno Mars is guilty of the crime of cultural appropriation — and that clip shook the entire internet. (You can watch the video in full at the end of this piece.)

Let me start by saying, no we do not hate Bruno Mars. I actually really enjoy Bruno Mars as a performer, and no one can take away his undeniable talent. That was never the intent of the conversation. The Grapevine is a platform for young people to speak truthfully from their lens. We pride ourselves on creating a space where everyone has a seat at the table. Sitting next to someone with a different viewpoint often times helps you question staunch held beliefs and prejudices you may not know you carry. There are many times that I have sat on my own show and have been proven wrong. And I’ve had to accept that humbly. It’s in this spirit of passion and openness that this show was created, and that is what we brought to the Bruno Mars conversation.

Speaking for myself, I do not yet know if I believe Bruno Mars is a cultural appropriator. I think both sides of the argument have extremely valid points. My biggest concern is the response this clip drew. Usually when I see a viral clip, my first instinct is to find out if there is more to the conversation. The clip heard around the world was part of an hour long conversation that included Bruno Mars supporters as well as people like Seren, who think Bruno is benefitting from a system of white supremacy, even as a non-black POC. The barrage of commentary, both positive and negative, towards my platform left me questioning whether or not people do their research and if we still live in a society where healthy debate is encouraged and promoted.

I get it. I once kicked a man out of my apartment because I wouldn’t sit through his Beyoncé slander. I know what it means to stan. And I know what it means to remove reason from my thought process due to the love of a fave. However, just because we love someone does not mean they are above critique.

Whether or not you agree with Seren, there is a passion and eloquence in her delivery that resonated with over three million people. It caused publications like The Washington Post and Complex, just to name a few, to repost our video and further a conversation that The Grapevine ignited. Her POV represents a perspective many black people understand and agree with. It is a justified anger that many feel about the genre of music they created being ripped from their hands and hearts because they will never be accepted by the mainstream, never get the accolades and never receive the recognition they deserve. And that is what the conversation is really about.

Sure, Bruno Mars was the catalyst of our conversation. However, our focus was really about dissecting an industry that is increasingly telling us that they love our black music from non-black bodies. Hot takes are great. However, so much nuance is left out of the conversation when you do not do the work of going to the source of the conversation and understanding the argument fully. We reduce critical conversations when we relegate people to the silos of haters and bitterness due to defensiveness.

So many people have messaged me, praising the show because of the depth of the conversation we were able to have regarding cultural appropriation. Many were surprised that there were people on the show who vehemently disagreed with Seren. I want to thank them for taking out the time to watch our episode in its entirety. I also want to thank our day-one fans for swooping in to correct people who lamented we as a community have bigger fish to fry, by letting them know The Grapevine has been having fish frys every Thursday at 9 a.m. EST. Come get you some!

As a black women, as a creator and as someone who is always questioning what is “right” and “wrong,” it is my belief that encouraging real conversations and listening to arguments in their entirety is super important and quickly becoming a lost form of discourse. However, now more than ever, I am dedicated to providing a space to have these hard conversations on my platform.

— Ashley Akunna

Some false reporting to clear up: We are not owned by The Root. The Grapevine TV is fully owned and operated by Ashley Akunna.

Ashley Akunna

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