For the Love of Black Gay Twitter

February 24, 2023
CASTEL

As the weekend beckons, take a scroll with me down the timelines of Black Gay Twitter and what had us laughing our asses off. In case you didn't know, Angela Bassett did the thing.

On Sunday, February 19th, the BAFTAs aired. For those who care, that is the British Academy Film Awards. We are not here to talk about the wins or losses, but the internet winner this week, Ariana DeBose, and her Hamilton-inspired rap to open the show. To preface, it wasn't just a rap; it was a medley / mash-up (thank you, Glee) of "Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves" by Aretha Franklin and Eurythmics and "We Are Family" by Sister Sledge. The performance started and ended well enough; it was the middle, that infamous middle, that has had the internet gays in shambles. DeBose got us ready for camp and pitched a damn tent. The rap was so earnest and with the best intentions, but it fell flat in its delivery and overall cringe factor. The internet has taken the clip and ran with it. Then came the jokes and even club mixes. It is only a matter of time until DJs start playing it in the clubs, and the world will begin healing itself.

Here is the full performance:

People need to witness Ariana DeBose’s evil BAFTA performance in full for context pic.twitter.com/1zAtYgz5fv

— Shirley Carter’s Pussy (@shirlpuzz) February 21, 2023

And just when we couldn't believe it was supposed to go down like that, we were blessed with BTS:

The gay at the end of this video, disingenuously saying “slay,” needs to be arrested pic.twitter.com/tih59UvLxY

— Tranna Wintour (@TrannaWintour) February 23, 2023

@tkylemac on Twitter took us to the club:

angela bassett did the thing pic.twitter.com/ITZ2S16Wto

— T. Kyle (@tkylemac) February 23, 2023

Resident Drag Race DJ Mitch Ferrino took us to the Ball:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mitch Ferrino (@mitchferrino)

God forbid:

The rap discourse has to end before Judd Apatow tweets that DeBose could’ve killed Angela Bassett

— Ira (@iramadisonthree) February 23, 2023

Top Tier Comedy:

What did Angela Bassett do? pic.twitter.com/41YMYthb9w

— Chris Cooper (@PirateCoop) February 23, 2023

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner:

Ariana DeBose, condragulations, you're the winner of this week's internet. pic.twitter.com/f9W0CPfusk

— Joe Hackman (@joethehack) February 22, 2023

Later in the week, "healer, podcaster, writer, actor" Tarek Ali went viral sharing discourse about his blonde hair/bleach era. In the video, he talks about bleaching gone wrong and losing his hair. The part of the video that the internet, Black Gay Twitter specifically, ran with is his claim to have been seen as "racially ambiguous" after bleaching his hair. To help us, he provided a side-by-side of his transformation... he looks the same. The whole thing brought me joy because it promoted a trend of the cute bleached and blonde gays, and theys comically post their "racially ambiguous eras," and lemme tell y'all, Black people and the blonde goes so well together!

Tarek in all his "racially ambiguous glory"

The REAL reason I stopped bleaching my hair pic.twitter.com/8sSAPkOlpj

— Tarek Ali (@itstarekali) February 22, 2023

These next series of tweets will be funny / cute Black people showing off:

Don’t. Touch. My. Racial. Ambiguity. pic.twitter.com/X5HE4RqKv0

— The Moment. (@itsKARY_) February 24, 2023

people would simply not stop asking me what my race was at work today .
just another day in the life being racially ambiguous pic.twitter.com/QNR7y5RQ1y

— • • • (@nollywoodstemme) February 24, 2023

Me when people ask my ethnicity when I bleach my hair pic.twitter.com/578bxeXchA

— Ichigo Niggasake (@SomaKazima) February 23, 2023

Who could forget:

thee original, racially ambiguous butterfly. miss jade. pic.twitter.com/GQFuWINccV

— mallewi.  ⛔️ (@mallewi) February 23, 2023

When the jokes stop coming:

Y’all focusing too much on the racially ambiguous part and not enough on the fact that this video is his rebrand after being called out for colorism and not taking accountability. https://t.co/aEvYKUi96S

— Mayowa (@mayowasworld) February 23, 2023

Who (but himself) though he was racially ambiguous? I’m dying my hair blonde on the 18th and it’s still going to give very much black. pic.twitter.com/SrzYsQSqcR

— Ian J (@_IanJ) February 23, 2023

I will leave you all with these: log off sometimes, learn to laugh, Angela Bassett did the thing, remember dying your hair doesn't change your race, and let's hear it one time for my racially ambiguous era...