Maybelline Gets Called Out Trying To Co-Opt "Hot Girl Summer"

Source: Roy Rochlin / Getty

In case you haven’t noticed, Black people and Black women specifically, are the creators and pushers of culture. We create catchphrases, determine what’s cool and set trends. Whether it’s beauty, fashion or the bodies we’re naturally born with, you can rest assured that White folks and mainstream are always watching, ready and waiting to use it for their gain. And, since we’re in living in America, the land of capitalism, that gain is usually financial.

Back in the day, before social media and fast communication these examples of thievery went publicly unchecked. But thankfully today, with the advent of social media and more activism, folks aren’t having it. It happened recently when makeup brand Maybelline tweeted this:

Not only was the phraseology corny, Maybelline is a corporation servicing the beauty wants of women. Unless, this is a prequel to a yet-announced partnership, it doesn’t seem that the City Girls or Megan the Stallion, the women responsible for creating the phrase and defining the terms and conditions of Hot Girl Summer, stand to benefit financially from Maybelline an older, richer, Whiter and established brand using the phrase.

And the good people of Twitter let them know this. Check out the responses on the following pages.