Pretty Fly For a White Guy

The song Pretty Fly by Offspring as well as its music video both contain a great deal of stereotypical racist remarks.The song is about a white guy acting, and trying to be black. The guy is embarrassing African Americans by over exaggerating the stereotypical "gangster" style, as well as embarrassing himself, in the music video, by not being able to "fit in" in to the black society.

The stereotypical gangster is represented in the music video, with sagging pants, chains, loose clothing, and listening to loud music, driving around in "pimped out" cars, and dancing on the streets. There is also the black guy wannabe, who in this case, is a white guy, who is attempting to be "fly".The video seems to send out a message that all black guys do is get ink done, ride around in "pimped out rides" and many other things shown.

 

Comments

[Alexa R.]

I agree with you, on how this video depicts the stereotypes of African-Americans being gangsters. This kind-of reminds me of the video we watched in class, how a "coon" is a black person trying and failing to be black. This is quite the opposite with a white person failing to try to act black.

[Ben Miller]

I really like the connection that Alexa made in her comment because this video not only addresses a stereotype, it makes fun of it as well. That way of analyzing stereotypes is very similar to the way that i wrote my post.

[John Clay]

I agree with you that blacks were looked at like being uncivilized gansters and almost savage like.

[audrey]

I made a similar connection to the one Alexa made in my post and I totally see it here too. The Zip Coon aspect definitely shows here.

[Johnny G.]

I like this arguement. The video definately sends a message of African Americans being very gangster and thug. It also has a connection to the "zip coon" stereotype but for a white guy trying to act black. This is a parody but it is not random because some people actually act like the people depicted in the video and it is embarrassing.

[Retro Jordan Shoes]

you, on how this video depicts the stereotypes of African-Americans being gangsters. This kind-of reminds me of the video we watched in class, how a "coon" is a black person trying and failing to be black. This is quite the opposite with a white person failing to try to act black