Grateful for the Girls Who Got Banned

Why this matters for Sweet·Raw·Sticky

As an erotic author, I know what it is to write desire in first person and wonder, "Is the world ready?" These women did that, in 1930 something with no IG and no content warnings.

When I talk about Sweet·Raw·Sticky, I'm not pulling a cute brand out of thin air. I'm naming an inheritance.

• Sweet → we deserve tenderness around sex. Our sexuality doesn't have to be hard, defensive or secret.
• Raw → we deserve the truth about what was done to our bodies, our music, and our stories.
• Sticky → we deserve to leave something behind that lingers, even if it makes people uncomfortable.

That's what those banned girls did. They left residue.

Lucille, Bessie, Ma, Dinah...they were sweet in tone, raw in message, and sticky in legacy.

So if you've ever been told you're "doing too much...

if somebody called your reels "too sexy" and they get reported...

if your erotic writing makes folks clutch their pearls...

if family told you "you don't have to show all that"...

congratulations...you're in the right lineage.

You're not wild. You're historic.

Because this is the pattern:

• They banned them.
• They Censored us.
• We created anyway.
• And we get to do it safer because they did it risky.

Why they got banned (and why we still get shadowbanned)

Black Women got banned for singing about sex, pleasure, queer love, mistresses, bodies, and desire. Today Black Women get shadowbanned, reported, or policed online for teaching sex education, posting boudoir, talking about kink, or just existing in a soft body. Different era, same anxiety:

"What happens if Black Women enjoy themselves too much in public?"

That's the real fear. Not the lyrics. Not the outfit. The joy.

Birthday month gratitude

Because it's my birthday month, I'm letting myself be loud about this.

I get to help women feel sexy on camera because somebody in 1935 decided to be "improper."

I get to coach people through pleasure shame because somebody before me sang about pleasure when it was risky.

I get to create Sweet·Raw·Sticky because they didn't let it dry up.

So yes. I celebrate them, even the "problematic" ones, even the "too vulgar" ones. They cracked the door. I'm just walking through it in heels and honey.

Drop one woman that's an artist, ancestor, aunty, creator, choir soloist, blues mama, TikTok storyteller, that you're grateful for. I want to add her name to this series and keep this lineage spoken. And if you haven't yet, go back and read Part 1 and Part 2 so you can see how deep this runs.