A New Candidate for President?….GloRilla
Insights into the movement sparked by Memphis-bred female rapper inspiring innumerable women across age, race and class.
As a critical and quite historic election looms immediately near in the United Statea, I’ve been thinking — what do most people really want in a President?
And I’ve concluded, that no matter if it’s of a company, a country, condo board, union or trade organization, people want to be represented, heard, seen and trust that their opinions will be represented by their chosen presidents.
And while there are infinite opinions about Trump and Harris, in the streets, there’s another contender for women’s hearts & minds that has completely taken over. GloRilla!
In full disclosure, I’m from Memphis. Born & bred. Yet even with this unifying similarity amongst us girls (me & Glo), my journey to embrace GloRilla has been slow, quite unexpected, but also very fun too. You see, my cousin Tiffany (Memphis-based) shared Glo’Rilla’s music with me (F.N.F.) a few years ago, strongly advocating for Glo’s flow & potential, but it took the explosion of Whatchu Kno Bout Me and Let Her Cook, for me to truly pause and pay attention. (Tiffany now says I told you so).
The legions of TikTok videos flooding my feed proclaiming #AuntiesForGloRilla, #WhiteGirlsForGloRilla, #50+forGloRilla, amongst other tribes and hashtags allured me to come hither and give this 25-year old female rapper hailing from my hometown a chance.
With what felt like no other choice, I played her new album, Glorious. And my, my, my, her beats, her flow, her lyrics, her confident and brash delivery compelled me to join the #AuntiesForGlorilla and #50+forGlorilla tribes.
Glo (my…ahem “our” nickname for our little baby girl niece) is selling women realness, authenticity, dope beats and female empowerment. She invites every woman under the sound of her raspy, southern-tilted voice to take her power back. She invites us to put ourselves first, over inauthentic friends, over men who don’t treat us well, over hurt, and over lives that are going nowhere.
You see, a president is one who leads, who inspires and who who shares his/her life plainly for us to see how they’ve gotten to where they are, and their hopes for us, with a plan.
Glo shares that her goal is to be from Memphis, support Memphis, but to leave Memphis. And I think any and everyone who has ever lived in a downtrodden community feels the same way. She finished high school, worked jobs available to her in our city, but dreamed a bigger dream, and nurtured relationships and made the moves to go get that life. She hasn’t forgotten who she is at her core. Is strong enough to not be influenced by others telling her to change, and is empowering women of all ages, ethnicities and socioeconomic classes to do the same.
So, if Kamala doesn’t win, I think a contingent of us would support GloRilla to be President, of something at least. We all simply love her.
If I could have only one wish it would be if she would lower the vulgarity and replace n word with ninja so everyone can sing along!
Sharing a few links to favorite TikToks below from the Glorilla fans. Long live Glo!
Olivia is a C-Suite Marketing Exec & Founder of Omerge Alliances & Freedom at The Mat. An NYU & Loyola Professor, she has led mktg at influential organizations such as Carol’s Daughter, VIBE, Live Nation, Ogilvy & more for 25+ years. A Native Memphian, now based in New Orleans, is a forever Harlemite who travels extensively and blooms where she is planted.
