Michelle Williams is reacting to news that Black Twitter wants to cancel Destiny’s Child “Cater 2 U” after some Twitter users declared that the song does not align with modern times, insinuating that it has some sort of slave connotations on how women and men relate per the song.
The alleged offending part of the song, which was released in 2004, goes: “Baby I see you working hard / I want to let you know I’m proud / Let you know that I admire what you do / The more if I need to reassure you / My life would be purposeless without you (Yeah) / If I want it (Got it) / When I ask you (You provide it).”
Black Twitter users quickly pointed out the problems they had with the parts of the song, particularly Beyoncé‘s verse where she said, “my life would be purposeless without you.”
Others dissected the song and interpreted it as the woman having no autonomy of her body and mind as her goal in life was the fulfillment of her partner’s wants and needs, with hers coming last, which was analyzed in the following verse.
“When you come home late, tap me on my shoulder, I’ll roll over / Baby I heard you / I’m here to serve you / If it’s love you need, to give it is my joy / All I wanna do, is cater to you boy.”
In spite of the pushback, none other than Michelle Williams came to the defense of the song. In a video posted on her social media account, she accused those who had a problem with the song of making bad choices when it comes to choosing the right man.
“My name is Merlene and I just heard y’all want to cancel the song ‘Cater 2 U’,” she says. “Oh honey, you didn’t discern who you were catering to, you just gave your pearls to swine don’t be mad at Destiny’s Child,” she said with a filter from the emoji app Viola.
Meanwhile, some online users had receipts as they further attacked the response from Williams, who herself had reacted to concerns raised about the song a few years back.
In 2018, Williams admitted that the lyrics were “unrealistic” and said this struck her while she was out on a date with her former Fiance Chad Johnson and she heard the song playing.
“Cater to You comes on and I made this face, [rolling eyes emoji]” she said in her Instagram stories. “Because he’s waiting on the first and second verse to be fulfilled one day. I wrote my verse about empowering and uplifting the man. I wish you would tap me on my shoulder while I’m sleep,” she said with the laughing and angry face emojis. “That was Kelly’s promise not mine.”
She quickly covered herself though and said, “I know that I NOW have a man worthy of those first two verses. I was so over the foolishness back then and I was like, ‘I’ll just let you know you’re a good man without all the extra and I’ll always have your back.'”
She and Johnson, who were engaged in 2018, called it quits months after.
