Freaky Friday David Andrew Burd is a thirty year old Jewish man from an upper-middle class family who grew up outside of Philadelphia. In the last few years, David has changed his life into that of a rapper who goes by the name Lil Dicky. What initially started as a side hobby quickly became an entire life for David. As Lil Dicky, he moved from the world of advertising into a hybrid field that he sometimes called “comedy-rap.” When he initially started his artistic work, Lil Dicky wanted to become a comedian and only saw rap as a means to become famous enough to enter that field. However, after the initial success of his work, Lil Dicky dove headfirst into creating more music. His videos on YouTube quickly gained tens of millions of views.
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In an opening sequence, Lil Dicky as Chris Brown cherishes his nice tattoos, dance moves, singing ability, friendship with famous people, and internet fame. In an extremely controversial part, Lil Dicky wonders if he has gained the ability to say the n-word, and then proceeds to says it repeatedly to various people in the song. The music video then transitions to Lil Dicky waking up in his bed, except that Chris Brown now inhabits Lil Dicky’s body. After initially being unsatisfied with his new body, Chris Brown ventures outside where he starts to see the benefits of his newfound freedom. He says, “Walking down the street and ain't nobody know my name (whoa). Ain't no paparazzi flashing pictures, this is great (whoa). Ain't nobody judging 'cause I'm Black or my controversial past.” Through these lyrics, Chris Brown explores the simple aspects of his life that he misses because of his fame and race. However, he is concerned about what his actual body is doing, which is important because Lil Dicky is at this time in the video throwing around cash in the street and trending on twitter for posting a nude image online. During his search, Chris Brown says “I'm trying to find myself like an introspective monk.” This is not only a play on the Asian man that changed their bodies, but also a recognition that this body switch has opened both their minds to the …show more content…
While Lil Dicky himself did not put on a mask or paint his face, he assumed the body of Chris Brown and used Chris Brown’s voice. While in a slightly different context, Adam Clayton Powell III discussed the idea that sports video games are a hi-tech version of blackface because “the players become involved in the action … they become more aware of the moves that are programmed into the game.” With this framework, David Leonard writes that “sports games reflect a history of minstrelsy, providing its primarily White creators and players the opportunity to become Black. In doing so, these games elicit pleasure, playing on white fantasies as they simultaneously affirm white privilege through virtual play.” When Lil Dicky first wakes up as Chris Brown, the viewer enters into the vision of Chris Brown much like entering into a virtual reality headset. This view is similar to that of many first person shooter and sports video games that are popular with young people. When Lil Dicky starts playing his “new game”, he tries out all of the moves that he could not do in his real life: dancing, flaunting his money, and sitting in the VIP section of a club. Lil Dicky has these visions of a stereotypical Black rapper life that he wants to enjoy. Likewise in videos games, predominantly White gamers want to dribble
In an opening sequence, Lil Dicky as Chris Brown cherishes his nice tattoos, dance moves, singing ability, friendship with famous people, and internet fame. In an extremely controversial part, Lil Dicky wonders if he has gained the ability to say the n-word, and then proceeds to says it repeatedly to various people in the song. The music video then transitions to Lil Dicky waking up in his bed, except that Chris Brown now inhabits Lil Dicky’s body. After initially being unsatisfied with his new body, Chris Brown ventures outside where he starts to see the benefits of his newfound freedom. He says, “Walking down the street and ain't nobody know my name (whoa). Ain't no paparazzi flashing pictures, this is great (whoa). Ain't nobody judging 'cause I'm Black or my controversial past.” Through these lyrics, Chris Brown explores the simple aspects of his life that he misses because of his fame and race. However, he is concerned about what his actual body is doing, which is important because Lil Dicky is at this time in the video throwing around cash in the street and trending on twitter for posting a nude image online. During his search, Chris Brown says “I'm trying to find myself like an introspective monk.” This is not only a play on the Asian man that changed their bodies, but also a recognition that this body switch has opened both their minds to the …show more content…
While Lil Dicky himself did not put on a mask or paint his face, he assumed the body of Chris Brown and used Chris Brown’s voice. While in a slightly different context, Adam Clayton Powell III discussed the idea that sports video games are a hi-tech version of blackface because “the players become involved in the action … they become more aware of the moves that are programmed into the game.” With this framework, David Leonard writes that “sports games reflect a history of minstrelsy, providing its primarily White creators and players the opportunity to become Black. In doing so, these games elicit pleasure, playing on white fantasies as they simultaneously affirm white privilege through virtual play.” When Lil Dicky first wakes up as Chris Brown, the viewer enters into the vision of Chris Brown much like entering into a virtual reality headset. This view is similar to that of many first person shooter and sports video games that are popular with young people. When Lil Dicky starts playing his “new game”, he tries out all of the moves that he could not do in his real life: dancing, flaunting his money, and sitting in the VIP section of a club. Lil Dicky has these visions of a stereotypical Black rapper life that he wants to enjoy. Likewise in videos games, predominantly White gamers want to dribble