LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 26: Erica Banks attends the 2022 BET Awards at Microsoft Theater on June 26, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images for BET)
A few weeks after backlash for twerking at a high school event, Erica Banks was again a trending topic on social media this week. Someone seemingly leaked a video the rapper posted to her close friends on Instagram. In it, Erica described the physical traits her friends must possess to go clubbing with her. So naturally, folks either tore Erica up or stood in solidarity. Still, by early Tuesday (September 20), Erica was clapping back and doubling down on what she said in the leaked video.
“Everybody’s entitled to their own opinion & I’ve never been one to convince people of liking mine,” Erica tweeted. “My preference of who I club with when it comes to my brand has nothing to do with y’all. Y’all never liked me anyway so why would I care about what y’all think about anything I say?”
The rapper’s tweet above came after the leaked clip made its rounds online. The viral video is less than a minute long. Erica primarily spoke about the aesthetic her friends must meet for a night on the town with her.
“If she don’t look how I want her to look physically, I don’t want her to come,” Erica said. “Because the look of everything is so important to me. Like, if she ain’t thick enough, nope. Hair not did good enough? Nope. Can’t dress? Nope. Skinny? Nope.”
Erica explained that her intent isn’t discrimination against anyone but the maintenance of her brand.
“And it’s like I don’t feel like I’m discriminating, I just want a certain type of look,” Erica said. “She could be the sweetest girl I ever met in my life, but if she don’t look the part, I don’t want her to come. Like that’s just not the vibe I’m on. Now she can come to the cookout. She can come to a listening party. But the club? I feel like b–s gotta look a certain way to come.”
After Erica’s initial tweet doubling down on her preferences, the rapper returned with more explanations. She redirected some energy towards showing love to the “skinny/smaller” women she might’ve offended.
“Lastly, I love my skinny/smaller women with a passion. Let’s not get it misconstrued,” Erica tweeted. “However, when I go to the CLUB , I want thick b–s shakin a** everywhere! That’s my vibe. There are even skinny women in my music videos, most hand-picked by me, so stop it.”
As mentioned, social media users either agreed or blasted Erica’s list. Others pointed out the hypocrisy in Erica’s statements given that she announced surgical enhancements to her body in April of this year. For example, Twitter user @_BriBri_DatsME tweeted at Erica, “but before you became a rapper with money and your body done who tf were you before,” adding that Erica “better humble” herself.
“I was still Erica Banks, dumb b–t,” Erica tweeted in response. “A BBL doesn’t solidify who I am & I can hangout with who I choose.”
Keep scrolling to see what conversations Erica’s video and tweets inspired.
