Ari Lennox's Substantial Compromise Backfires in "Whipped Cream"

    Courtesy: Hunnid Grind

Ari Lennox and her debut album Shea Butter Baby has been regularly in rotation for many of us as of late. For me, it's an easy listen. I know for the ladies, it's simply relatable music. I would say that my favorite track thus far is "Facetime." The album is filled with a lot of odes to Ari's assertiveness as a woman and the confidence she has in her sexuality. That feel adds a ton of legitimacy to the music. It has you saying "I know that's right!" during the car test.

One set of lyrics that really stood out to me came at the end of "Whipped Cream." It's a song about a breakup and the aftermath. You can tell that it speaks to that period of time after a breakup where you begin going through the phases. You go through the anger, the sadness, and the anger of still having said person on your mind through it all. In this sense it seems like Ari wants to hate dude, but she really doesn't.

However, at the end of this joint she alludes to him saying "You're deceiving, receiving, non-giving headass." The play on words here led me to believe that she felt that some aspects of her relationship were one-sided. Apparently he enjoyed receiving head, but he did not reciprocate. That's certainly a cause to be annoyed when a relationship doesn't pan out favorably.

    Courtesy: VIBE

I began to wonder what other sorts of compromises do women make in relationships(or anyone for that matter)? Why was she okay with this concession when it obviously seems it would be something she would've enjoyed? Ari seems to feel that she "got got." He's on her mind while seemingly she may think she isn't on his. It's evident when she adds "and I wish I didn't care.

Maybe ultimately she saw tons of more potential and she just didn't put receiving oral on any pedestal in this case. What I am almost sure of is that this whole song is about coping in some unhealthy ways. You can pretty much feel that after this experience she will never concede her pleasure ever again. Whipped Cream is about becoming honest with yourself and just going through it. You do this knowing that you refuse to have things ever go down the same way again. It's a self realization that we were able to be let in on. The next time Ari does  settle with someone, whipped cream will be the last thing on the menu.

These are my words and I make no apologies.

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