"Norf Norf" Rant

Overview

"Norf Norf" Rant refers to a video recording of a Christian mother tearfully condemning the lyrics heard in the 2015 rap song "Norf Norf" by Vince Staples, which she criticizes for being offensive after hearing a censored version of the song on a local radio station. The video was widely mocked after circulating online in early October 2016, spawning numerous remix variations.

Background

On September 6th, 2016, YouTuber Twoevils Lesser uploaded a video titled "Norf Norf Rant," in which a woman laments hearing an offensive rap song on a local radio station while in the company of her young daughter. In the video, she tearfully recites portions of the song's lyrics and condemns the messages contained within. The original video was removed, but was reuploaded a month later by YouTuber Fernando Montenegro (shown below).

Developments

Online Reaction

Remixes

On October 4th, Redditor StuntingOnAJumbotron submitted the video to the /r/hiphopheads^[1] subreddit, where it gathered upwards of 3,700 votes (98% upvoted) and 1,000 comments. In the comment section, Redditor Shaliek LaFlare Jenkins linked his remix of the song, setting portions of her reciting the song's lyrics to a rap beat (shown below). Shortly after, the remix reached the front page of /r/videos,^[2] garnering more than 7,500 votes (79% upvoted) and 1,100 comments that day.

Hours later, Jenkins posted an extended remix on Facebook,^[3] while the original remix was featured on the /r/bestof subreddit.^[4] Within 48 hours, the extended remix gained over 7,200 views and the /r/bestof post received more than 4,100 votes (84% upvoted). Also on October 4th, YouTuber needlessnoise posted a similar remix (shown below).

YouTuber Reactions

On October 5th, YouTuber Anthony Fantano posted a reaction to the rant video on his channel TheNeedleDrop, in which he expresses skepticism that she heard the song on a local radio station (shown below, left). Meanwhile, The Young Turks YouTube channel released an episode about the online reaction to the rant video (shown below, right).

Vince Staples' Reaction

Also on October 5th, The Independent^[5] published an interview with Staples, in which he defended the woman in the rant video and criticized those who were attacking her online:

"It’s not right to attack someone over their stance, their opinions, and their religion. I think that’s very immature."

Additionally, Staples claimed the woman had misunderstood the song's lyrics, lameting that there were many "issues between black and white relations in this country based on misunderstandings."

Search Interest

External References