Is Megan Thee Stallion Going Pop? An Exploration of "Suga"
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via Instagram/@theestallion
Megan’s latest album “Suga” was a surprise to me - there were more influences of pop and mainstream, bubblegum hip hop than her past works. The sassy H-town hottie used to be an emblem of Texas, body positivity, and hip hop realness that we haven’t seen since the likes of Lil’ Kim and Remy Ma.
However, since being signed to Roc Nation and having Nicki Minaj as a more present mentor, it all started changing direction. I won’t say “going downhill” because I respect Megan and all her musical decisions. Rather, it was a conscious decision to include more demographics rather than the niche one she had previously appealed to.
“Hot Girl Summer” was undeniably catchy, but quickly turned into the basic white girl anthem of the summer. It gained Megan significantly more radio traction, but the ruthless and domineering personality we got to know and love started to dwindle slightly.
Fast forward to 2020 and the release of “Suga”. We saw hints of old Megan when she paid homage to Tupac with the feminist track “B.I.T.C.H,” and a few other other tracks stood out to me, including “Captain Hook,” a slicing and coy chat about her preferred phallic shape, “Savage”, an exploration of all the complexities we carry as women: Other goodies include “Rich” and “Ain’t Equals.” Those songs are dripping with Megan’s bravado, and her signature sensual-but-always-playful vibe, while indicating her evolution as an artist.
“Ain’t Equal” is probably our favorite track on the album, lacing vulnerable subject matter with furious energy. The Kehlani feature “Hit My Phone” was an abrupt departure, and resembled more of a Kehlani track than a Megan one - the same issue that Cardi ran into with “Ring.”
After all those frustrating problems with her previous label, 1501 Entertainment, it makes sense that this album would be a little less hard-hitting than the last one. Even if Nicki isn’t our sonic preference, she’s a wise and experienced female guide to have in the cutthroat territory that Megan is now in with her greater popularity. We can only hope that Jay Z helps her foster that originality - we all remember how Bey went from authentic R&B to more digestible pop tracks, and while it skyrocketed her to fame, her current sound is pretty different from those “Destiny’s Child” days.
While we want her to get her bag, we still hope that Meg doesn’t sell out, and that she uses her new freedom to fully express herself on the next album, rather than the desires of what others want to mold her into.