Jack Harlow’s ‘ABG’ lyric in new single causes debate on TikTok
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Jack Harlow’s latest feature verse has stirred up controversy on TikTok after he used the acronym ABG to refer to Asian women.
Harlow appeared on BTS member JungKook’s latest single “3D” and rapped, “Now when I hold somebody’s hand, it’s a new story/All my ABGs get cute for me.” The song was released on Sept. 28 and is on pace to be atop several Billboard charts.
Yet since hearing his line on the song, some TikTokers have felt included by Harlow’s lyric, while others have been less enthusiastic about Harlow’s word choice.
On Sept. 29, TikToker Geneva Lexine (@genevalexine) posted a video of her meeting Harlow. In the video, Harlow asks her what ABG means and she defines it for him.
In the post, she tells Harlow to autograph the letters “ABG,” to which he asks what does it mean. Lexine told him it meant Asian baby girl.
Their interaction came prior to the song’s release, so Lexine is taking credit for Harlow’s new vocabulary.
“Ur what he thought about when he wrote those lyrics girl,” replied @sueengyuenn.
According to an article in Michigan Daily, the phrase ABG came about in the 1990s to describe Asian women that were involved in gangs and other criminal activity. However, the meaning of the word has evolved in recent years, as the archetype for the original ABGs have faded. Now, many people consider being an ABG linked to an aesthetic that is reminiscent of the original rather than women who are involved in gang or criminal activity.
“The ABG term, it’s become so muddied,” says Connie Cham (@c.onniecham) on the KreamTeamPodcast (@kreamteampodcast).
Several people were excited to see that Harlow knew the term and used it in a song. When searching for Jack Harlow’s part on “3D,” there are several videos of AAPI women exuberantly listening to the song.
“Whoever told Jack Harlow about ABGs deserves raise of the year,” @carolinemanning writes in her post.
“@Jack Harlow what you know about ABGs boy?” commented @telleycakez.
On the other hand, there’s a section of people that didn’t think what Harlow said was amusing.
“Idk how but Jack Harlow saying ABG feels racist,” @yvettemaec writes in her post.
Several of her viewers agreed with the sentiment that something was off with the lyric.
“Ya, because the music video has literally no asian women,” replied @feralratqu33n.
“The (very white) rapper seemingly picked up the term ABG from a fan, but his understanding of its connotations appears incomplete,” Daniel Anderson wrote for Joy Sauce. “Rather, it centers on Harlow’s specific act of sexualizing and objectifying a particular group of people within a broader culture that has historically been fetishized.”
With the terms’ definition changing across definitions and several factions feeling differently about Harlow’s use of the word, TikTokers may be unsure about how to process the lyric.
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