Documentary Review: Megan Thee Stallion, 'In Her Words'

Last night, I decided to sit down and watch the In Her Words documentary by Megan Thee Stallion, also known as Megan Jovon Ruth Pete. If you haven’t seen the documentary, please go watch it because there will be spoilers ahead. Up until yesterday, I didn’t know much about Megan the person, only Megan the performer and musician: a hypersexual lush.

She raps about sex in almost every one of her songs; she’s often seen on video downing a bottle of alcohol or taking shots with friends. While there’s nothing wrong with being a fun and active person, there does come a time when you want to be mindful of how you’re presenting yourself to the outside world—especially as an artist. I think Megan is being managed exceptionally well, but the dislike for her comes from a place of confusion—is she this strong, independent woman who works hard and advocates for women, or is she someone who cannot take accountability for her actions and is constantly seeking sympathy for outcomes she’s responsible for?

The documentary is well-produced, but there were a lot of dramatizations that I could have done without, such as her dragging her body across the concrete after being shot and the courtroom scene of her drowning. The former mainly because I am sick and tired of seeing this woman’s backside. I understand her butt is essentially part of her brand at this point, but for a documentary where the main focus is to see her life as it is and to tell her truth since she’s been depicted in a negative light and incorrectly by media outlets for years, she could have put the butt away at least for an hour. Even in her leisure time, her outfits are revealing, and that butt is just hanging out of everything.

The shooting for Megan was obviously a very serious, life-changing, traumatic event for her, and her wish is that more people would see it as just that. But the question is, how can we? We see that she was having relations with this man behind her best friend’s back, and we see that even in her attempt to emphasize the importance of this event, its risks, and the consequences, she still took no accountability.

To Megan, her being shot trumps the fact that she betrayed her best friend, which was more than likely the foundation for their altercation in the first place. I think that for the general public to have sympathy for Megan, she has to tone down her antics and be more conscious of her own behavior and how it can contribute to the damage happening around her.

Needless to say, the portion of the documentary that discusses her time spent with her mother and gives viewers a behind-the-scenes look into their relationship was deeply thought-provoking and provided the balance this recorded media needed. Megan’s reaction to the loss of her mother, manager, and best friend will no doubt help people to see her as a struggling woman still dealing with grief to this day, and that is okay. We want to see this side of her, but no one wants to watch her spiral out of control, burying herself in work, drinking away her problems, engaging in sexual activity with her friend’s partners, and then doing interviews with tears in her eyes. Which person do you want to be, Megan? How are we supposed to receive you?

Not only that, but then she released her song Cobra, where she speaks openly about wanting to take her life and the depression she went into after losing her mother. I think that was a pivotal moment for her, and I believe that had she kept that theme throughout the self-titled album, Megan, the public would have been more receptive to her as an artist and as a person.

At this moment, Roc Nation is pumping some serious cash and resources into her career—we don’t blame them—but in the end, none of that will matter if she can’t do some soul-searching, take accountability for the things she is in fact responsible for, and change her image and the messages in her music. Additionally, Megan is being discussed as a one-flow artist. Again, she may not believe there is anything wrong with her flow, but if the fans are speaking on it, then maybe it’s something to address and change. Accountability is the message for today, ladies and gentlemen.

DEAR MEGAN,
The world didn’t take the shooting seriously—take accountability for the role you played leading up to that outcome. The world is complaining about the music—take accountability for not wanting to change your cadence and work harder at your craft. “The world complains that I rap about my pussy, but male rappers get to rap about women being bitches, etc.”—take accountability for focusing on everyone but yourself. Those male rappers are not you, and you are not them.

by Diamond Brown