The ‘Queen of dancehall’ Spice is clearing the air on her verbal altercation with reality television personality Erica Mena, in which issues regarding parenting and racism unfolded when the episode of Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta aired last week.
Spice is adamant that despite having mentioned Mena’s son, the American had no right to racially attack her over her skin.
During the confrontation, which occurred during a sit-down between the former pals, Spice claimed that Mena’s oldest son hated her, and in response, Mena called Spice “a blue monkey” and imitated the sound monkeys make.
The term ‘monkey’ has long held racial connotations for those of African descent.
Due to the comment, Mena will not appear on future filming of ‘Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta’. Some social media users have blamed Spice for crossing the line by mentioning Mena’s son, which led to Mena’s heated reaction.
In an Instagram live on Tuesday night, Spice said there is no excuse for Mena using a racial slur, regardless of what she (Spice) had said.
In fact, Spice said other personalities have mentioned Mena’s son.
“Now let’s talk about what unuh say trigger her. This has been said to her before… Somebody bring up, ‘Oh, go take care of your son…’ We talk about this all the time… There’s videos out there when she is talking about what happened at the reunion…,” Spice recounted.
“This is not something new. So why now I become a monkey for repeating it?” she asked.
“Y’all don’t find it weird and funny? No, okay… because some black people is trying to justify it.”
Spice further questioned: “Does that mean it’s okay to experience racism as long as you were triggered, or as long as you are angry?”
The ‘Black Hypocrisy’ singer said she was just asking her questions not out of ignorance or playing the victim, but she wanted to know if it was “a new thing in 2023” where it was okay to receive racism as long as someone was triggered or made angry.
Spice then reflected on the painting of her face to white in the ‘Black Hypocrisy’ song some years ago.
She said this bold move came out of her realisation that “people preferred a lighter colour, and they would pick up for someone of a lighter colour… because there is colourism in our black community.”
Aside from the ‘blue monkey’ comment, Spice said Mena also made “monkey sounds” at her.
“Why are you acting like you didn’t see none of that or hear none of that? That’s really what gets me with some of our people, because unuh want act and see like unuh nuh see or hear anything else but the fact that I said something to trigger her (Mena).”
Meanwhile, Spice insisted that she never mentioned “anything bad” about Mena’s son.
She pointed out that it was Mena who initially brought up the child during their conversation about parenting.
“As I said, we went into the situation at the table (during the episode in question) knowing that we’re going to talk about the obvious,” Spice said, adding “You guys said I brought up someone’s kid, (and) that was not the case, as well.”
Spice said during the episode, she pointed out to Mena that she was a single mother.
“So, I was just trying to gather her (Erica Mena) together, rather than ridicule… (her). Remember unuh laugh after her enuh… degrade her, say all kind a bad things and say, how Erica this, and lawd Erica a bawl over dis and that.
“So why I couldn’t tell her how I feel to her face, but it is okay for you guys to do it behind her back? Like unuh have to make it make sense when unuh a split unuh justice, because at the end of the day like mi say, we go a the table and we know say, yea, we ago talk about dah situation yah, and it so happens that the child I spoke about offended her,” Spice explained.
See also
The Jamaican warned social media users to desist from implying that she had mentioned anything bad about the child, but to properly contextualise the manner in which the child was mentioned.
“She (Mena) was also the one who raised the issue and bring up her son. She say, ‘I have been doing it for 16 years’, and I replied say, ‘With the son that doesn’t like you’,” Spice said.
The ‘Go Down Deh’ singer reiterated: “I would never say anything bad about someone’s child. I have two kids, I have God kids, I love kids.”
Continuing, she said: “… I would never come for someone’s child how y’all making it seem.
“I came for Erica’s parenting, and I can take full accountability for that because that’s exactly where I was coming from, because that’s what we were talking about,” said Spice.
Mena is set to appear in the last three episodes of season 11 but will not return for the next season.
Last Saturday, Love & Hip Hop issued a response to the airing of Mena’s racial slurs regarding Spice.
“The Love & Hip Hop franchise has never shied away from hard conversations in our community,” read a statement posted to the franchise’s official Instagram page.
“Working hand-in-hand with our partners, viewers will see the impact of Erica Mena’s remarks play out in the final three episodes of the season. Effective immediately, she will not appear in the next season of Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta,” said the release.
