Never one for being subtle, Carid B’s latest single, “Up,” seems determined to assure us that things have just got to get better now that we’ve exited 2020. Even if far more fucked up shit has happened in the first month of ‘21 than even in ‘20 (which didn’t really start to hit its stride until the end of February despite that whole World War III postulation with Iran in January). Thus, she wants to drive home that point with the purported power of positivity by opening her new video at… a gravesite.
It’s not just any gravesite, however. The headstone belongs to 2020, and so we are supposed to be influenced in believing that all the worst is behind us–dead and buried. This sort of sentiment is a bit ironic coming from someone who had a better 2020 than anyone (probably only topped in success by Taylor Swift with her folklore and evermore releases). And what’s more, does she really think that mounting a male effigy on a grave hasn’t been done before? Shit, it’s not like Victor Noir’s erotic shrine is a secret.
With some wanting one specific definition of what “up” infers here, when it comes to Cardi songs, there’s so often multiple meanings (particularly since meaning is whatever the public makes of it), and “Up” doesn’t just pertain to a belief that things will be better in ‘21, but also the notion that something is suspended in midair, stuck, until somehow “fixed” (like a virus with a vaccine, we’re told). Whether this relates to a conflict between people or the specific sort of “stuckness” that happened in 2020 is left to one’s discretion.
Knowing Cardi’s penchant for innuendo, the chorus, “If it’s up, then it’s up, then it’s up, then it’s stuck,” could also easily refer to an erection (especially since she’s known to deliver over flattering compliments to Offset’s stamina and skills in the boudoir). Not to mention Cardi’s self-assurance in her status as being permanently stuck “on the up.” Though she needs only to look to discarded female rappers past to remind her that everything is ephemeral (unless you’re Rihanna).
Directed by Tanu Muino, who got flewed out from the Ukraine by Cardi for the occasion, the aesthetic style of the video is decidedly David LaChapelle, with colors that pop and a vibrant presentation of an almost otherworldly realm (called opulence, a realm the rich see as normal). While the same was largely true of “WAP” (and there are certainly elements of those visuals re-explored here), “Up” (another one-word monosyllable ending in “p”) is surprisingly more playful. And even more sexual, if you can believe it.
Cardi also calls out the double standard of being a successful (and unapologetic) woman as she notes, “If I had a dick, you’d prolly lick it like a lollipop” while holding Vush’s Majesty 2 vibrator (Cardi never met a cross-promotional opportunity she didn’t like). With this in mind, she acts like a pimp surrounded by a harem better than any man we saw in a 90s and 00s rap video–though Madonna might still have done it better in the “Music” video.
And, because Madonna continues to prove her cultural relevance no matter what people say, Cardi also takes a cue from la reine with segments of her and her dancers wearing the unmistakable silhouette of the cone bra. Taking into account that Madonna and Cardi have not only collaborated together before (on “Champagne Rosé”), but also subscribe to being part of the “Met Gala gang,” it’s unmistakable that Cardi is paying homage here (though, of course, most of her fans won’t see that).
“Broke boys don’t deserve no pussy,” Cardi asserts while wearing a wig filled with Barbie heads that call back to her, “I know that’s right!” It’s quite a change from the days when she was willing to flash hers to those in the strip club who might not actually tip. But how quickly we change our tune when free-flowing money becomes the norm. Soon, Muino is taking an Alfred Hitchcock approach in wielding a spiral staircase that she pans back from to show Cardi framed in the center at the bottom. Wearing some clear plastic “pieces,” Cardi does more promo with some Armand de Brignac Brut champagne.
We then cut to another overhead shot where she’s looking a lot like a bondage-clad Left-Eye in the “No Scrubs” video with her tassel-inspired hair look. The aim of the video is, as usual, to show as many “haute couture” permutations as possible. And, like her 2018 single “Money” before it, the subject matter continues to be all about Cardi’s bag. But continuing to address this same topic might not always help in securing it. Because at this point in time especially, the plebes really don’t want to hear about your wealth. Even Ariana knew when to quit with “7 Rings.” And if ’21 really is meant to be better, perhaps celebrities ought to learn from the mistakes of flaunting wealth and privilege that we thought they might have learned from in 2020.
