The year is 2021 and for some time now, women have been reclaiming control of their narratives, through the music through contemporary music, especially rap. Prominent women in rap such as Cardi B, Megan Thee Stallion, Lizzo, City Girls, Rico Nasty, Flo Milli, just to name a few, are championing stories of women told by women and being unapologetic of their truths. The more women’s truths are amplified, the closer we get to a fuller, better understanding of the world around us today.
In Lagos, Nigeria, Adetutu Aderogba, better known as ytboutthataction, is a 22-year-old who raps about sex-positive themes, mental health, and freedom for young women from society’s antiquated standards. She’s a refreshing female rapper on the cyber block who should definitely be on your radar.
Get to know ytboutthataction through our chat below
How long have you wanted to rap, and what motivated you to start rapping?
ytboutthataction: I’ve always made playlists and curated playlists for people and special occasions. I was always the one on the aux, but for some reason, I never actually considered rapping until one of my friends played me a song she wrote and I was like wait I wanna see if I can do this too! So I started recording stuff on my voice notes. I did a “We paid” (by Lil baby and 42 Dugg) verse and I loved it and I played it for everyone who cared to listen. once I entered the studio, the rest, as they say, is history.
Who are some of biggest your inspirations?
ytboutthataction: Growing up, music was always a part of our everyday routine. you couldn’t walk into my house without seeing MTV Base playing in the background. I pretty much grew up listening to everything you can think of and I think my sound is a reflection of that. I’ve always said I sound like a weird hybrid of all my favourite artists, my favourite artists being Sahbabii, SZA, Young Thug, Gunna, to name a few.
In some songs, you talk about uni and lecturers who were trying to hold you back, do your uni experiences influence your music? If Yes, how so?
ytboutthataction: 100%. Not even necessarily the experiences, but more so the anger and frustration that I was holding in for so long are being released through my music. I really had a terrible experience and it was mainly because of the lack of support we were getting as students. Because of that, it made me doubt my intelligence because it was very difficult to get through the course with the little resources that they provided to us. It just felt like they threw us into the deep end with no life jacket and we’re just supposed to figure it out. and so now that I feel like I’ve got my self-confidence back, I’m so angry at the school for even making me doubt myself in the first place. There’s definitely a lot of anger and emotion in my music and that’s just a reflection of how ready I am to take total control of my life.
Your rap is sex-positive, when did you know you wanted to explore these themes in your music?
ytboutthataction: Believe it or not, I’m a bit of a late bloomer, I only really properly started getting sexually active in 2019, and even with that, the number of people I have had sexual relations with is really not that much. I talk about sex a lot in my songs to remove the stigma. I know people don’t look at me as a “hoe,” so I want people to know that it’s not only “hoes” that think about sex. everyone has sex, let’s just stop pretending. the ones who judge, the ones who don’t, we all do it so why can’t we talk about it? I’m a very sexual person and I’m also very intelligent. I’m also very passionate about a lot of things. I can be all of these things at once and still be valid in my femininity and my humanity.
In “Pill Head” you rapped about “Aunties on your dick,” how do you feel about the pressures young women feel from different people trying to control their lives?
ytboutthataction: Honestly, the response I’ve gotten from that song has really been crazy. People have been thanking me for being their voice, but when I made that song I really was just angry at a situation that had just happened whereby they were circulating my Instagram photos. The song was about my life, now it’s an anthem. an ode to all the young girls who have been personally victimised by these bitter old hypocritical ladies. I don’t feel anything about the pressures because at the end of the day I don’t think any young lady should be listening to these women. what are they gonna do at the end of the day? All they’re doing is sitting behind their screen bitter as fuck because they couldn’t be as free as we are. one thing I will say is that it’s actually painful that it’s coming from older women. And painful for them (not me) because it’s sad how y’all can’t see how much misogyny you’ve internalised. Like you don’t know yourself, all you know how to be is someone’s property.
You touched on mental health on “sleepless nights” & “geeked up!” is this an important topic for you to express?
ytboutthataction: For sure! we’re literally in a whole pandemic, too many young people committing suicide, too many young people going down dangerous paths. I know my life looks glamorous and I know I always look like I’m happy, but I thought starting the conversation would let people know that everyone goes through this. There are good days and bad days and life is actually worth living, despite having to struggle with these things. “sleepless nights” was more so a recollection of the times where I was down bad, I’m actually okay now. I’m very happy and I never thought I’d be, and so I want people to know there’s light at the end of the tunnel, and to encourage people to be more open with their mental health struggles. People need to know their thoughts are not facts, and being stuck in your head all day and not expressing how you feel can lead to a downward spiral of self-destruction.
You mentioned racism, bad governance in Nigeria, and chasing dreams on (dreams), how were you feeling when you made this song?
ytboutthataction: As far as I’m concerned, I have a personal vendetta with b*hari. that man is my arch-nemesis lmao. It’s almost like his sole mission is to make life as difficult for Nigerians as humanely possible. not only is it evil, but it just doesn’t even make any sense in my brain. And I genuinely don’t understand how he and his administration are getting away with this. the way I see it, we are being governed by neanderthals. Whenever I go from London to Lagos, it feels like I’m going from the future to the past. These people are not equipped and they are not advanced enough for modern-day society. they are seriously holding us back for real for real. I believe the average citizen is smarter than anyone in the government and I mean that with every fibre of my being. they are genuinely just dumb in my opinion and I just don’t know how we got stuck with dumbasses. and that’s how I feel.
About racism, I think my brand is my zero tolerance for caucasian shenanigans. I just feel like the world has celebrated their kind for long enough, they don’t need me to celebrate them too. I use my platform to uplift black people, mainly black girls because we don’t see enough of that in the world
You mentioned you’re a Scorpio, does your star sign come into play when thinking about and creating music?
ytboutthataction: Yup for sure. Everyone who knows me knows that me being a Scorpio is my favourite thing about myself and I wouldn’t want to be any other sign. I’m very proud of being a Scorpio because I low-key love the stereotypes associated with us ’cause they are all factual, except the one where they say we’re pathological liars just because of one person!! *cough cough SZA cough cough*. I’m probably the most truthful person you’d ever come across. I’m as Scorpio as they come and honestly getting more in tune with astrology has really changed my life and the way I navigate my relationships with others. I encourage everybody to read more about their birth charts, it’s better than all the therapy I’ve done in my life combined. People who say they don’t believe in astrology usually lack self-awareness so it makes sense why they don’t believe in it lmao.
You made some Anime references on “Sage Mode,” are you a big fan of anime? and if so, can you tell me some of your favorites?
ytboutthataction: Yesss. anime is my entire life!! anime is the largest contribution to why I am the way I am and where I get all my inspiration from. In fact, it was when I watched Naruto that is when I got a whole different outlook on life, there’s honestly a way they capture storytelling and character development that I’ve never seen in any other genre of film or TV. Watching anime has taught me so many life lessons, people think it’s just a cartoon but it really is a lifestyle. that’s why I got that nigga tatted on me! not even just the storytelling but also the graphics are so inspiring. the colour coordination and the different patterns of design, the retro buildings. it’s really crazy. In terms of the story, my favourite anime are Hunter x Hunter, Naruto and Death Note. In terms of the graphics, there’s this new Netflix anime called The Great Pretender that has the most insane colourways I’ve ever seen. I honestly need to meet whoever illustrates the show because it is pure genius.
Dream collabs?
I would love to collab with Sahbabii honestly. that’s really the only person I care about atm. that is my dream collab. I would also love to collab with Lancey Foux, SZA, Summer Walker, Gunna, Young Thug, Ken Car$on. All very well established people lmao but go big or go home right?
Visions for the future of your music career?
I’m just taking each day as it goes really. I never expected this outcome ever so I’m just really happy to be speaking for people and people to be relating and fucking with the stuff I’m saying. I just want to keep talking my shit and standing up for myself through music and touch as many people as I can. this is bigger than just the music fr, I’ve had people come to me for advice and it’s crazy that I’m actually speaking on behalf of others as well. My music is mainly an outlet, and I’m not a very vengeful person but you’ll also regret ever crossing me. my form of revenge is my voice, ’cause at the end of the day, that’s all I have. ytboutthataction and I live up to my name!