BEST BBQ VIDEOS

Interview :: MIIKE SNOW

Michael Jackson Tributes

INTERVIEW: Amazing Baby

Yo Majesty: Ladies Rumble :: If 2 Live Crew was made up of some badass lesbians, they might be as hot as Yo Majesty.

By Daiana Feuer   Photography by Robert Yager

11/07/07 :: URB 150

Have you ever been to a show where they rock the same song three times by popular demand? Let’s call it an anthem – “Club Action” – welcoming you to the world of Yo Majesty, two poet-MC’s from the land of bug stings, Tampa Bay, Florida. Shunda K and Jwl B will not just handle your ass, but will hand you your ass if you disrespect. “You’re gonna treat me like a fucking lady,” booms Jwl B, “even though I’ll date your lady just to make her free. It’s not about sucking her pussy, G. It’s about respect now in my eye. Consideration, motherfucking respect and saving lives.”

That respect comes with the most unexpected of sounds. Booty dropping electro beats that, from “Me So Horny” to “Ass ‘N’ Titties,” have historically been the carrier of the the exact patriarchal and sexist message the feminist duo is trying to defeat.

“People know that music is the universal language and they just choose to use it the wrong way,” Shunda says. “Music is for the people.”

Yo Majesty is on a prophetic mission against “mother-fucking mental slavery, the Willian Lynch,” in Shunda’s words. And the people gather to be saved, whether on tour with the equally liberated Gossip-—whose singer Beth Ditto knows a thing or two about defying the straight and slender image we demand of our stars—or out headlining shows, where they “merkd it” (which means, to be left limp and dead in a good way) for all the hipster kids, many of whose own sexual identity is still a work in progress. But the positive response is far greater than one might expect when  witnessing three straight-laced teenage girls squeal with delight upon meeting the group outside of a gig. And having just remixed the Go! Team and signed with Domino Records, Yo Majesty should be having that effect in more places very soon.

What makes Yo Majesty tick? Working up a sweat in their sports bras and delivering lyrics that are controversial, absurd, humorous, clever and downright sexy all at once, so you may find yourself getting nasty to the tune of “I wanna choke you until you can’t breathe / Do you want to hit, hit me? / I don’t give a fuck, ‘cos I love you.” That’s the song, “Fucked Up,” a fun piece of work about loving someone so much you destroy their bathroom, among other creepy behavior. “Club Action” or “Kryptonite Pussy” express the central tenet of the Majesty philosophy a bit more literally—to dance your way to being stress-free—indicating the immediate benefits of dropping that “pussy” on the floor by supporting the commands with beats worthy of an aerobics class.

While your 11-year-old brother’s sophomoric sense of humor might not jive with Yo Majesty’s high-minded low-brow comedy, there is a noble purpose in going over-the-top in order to shake up minds, yet keeping the party so fly that everyone wants to join in.

Jwl B, whose tendency to get topless by the end of a good set rouses a mix of awe and titillation in a riled up audience, isn’t just trying to make a scene; she’s making a difference, breaking down barriers to put into question why something that fed you as a baby becomes taboo or offensive in adulthood. “I ain’t gonna let them paint my motherfucking face cause I’m a woman. 50 Cent takes his shirt off in a show, why can’t I?”

“Fuck him,” Shunda responds defiantly. “This ain’t no fairytale shit.”

Jwl offers a comparison: “What about these niggas talking about these women sucking their dicks all the time? What about if I say, ‘I make you suck your own dick, while your bitch is sucking my pussy?’ That’ll make me outrageous nasty. All slutty ass, hell-bound woman if I say that. But this nigga could talk about fucking me in my asshole? Killing me cause I’m gay?”

That’s not to say that Yo Majesty are a couple of man-haters. There’s a nice long waiting list of men lined up to collaborate with Yo Majesty, not the least of whom includes UK hit-makers Basement Jaxx. Shunda wants it clear, “It ain’t about we hating on all niggas and shit. Please. Please...We come for the world. Not just for a certain kind of people.

“Someone wants to say ‘Y’all ain’t handling the Lord’s business ‘cause y’all gay women.’ Fuck that shit. This is about being real. Straight up. We believe in what’s just, what’s right, what’s real, telling people we love you and we care about you…We come in so we can free y’all.”

Share with: . . .