Gone Girl: Iggy Azalea Is The Richard Nixon Of Social Media
Who would have pegged Iggy Azalea as an astute student of history? In 1962, Richard Nixon gave a legendary press conference following his loss in the California gubernatorial election, telling reporters he was finished in politics and that they wouldn’t have him “to kick around anymore.” Following suit, just a few days ago Ms. Amethyst Amelia Kelly — known by her fans as Iggy Azalea — came to the same crossroads as Mr. Nixon, advising the Associated Press that she is off social media, possibly for good. Simply put, they won’t have Iggy to kick around anymore.
The AP report, which was republished by CBS News, indicates Azalea’s management team will maintain her social media accounts for the foreseeable future.
“Yeah, so nice not to be on social media,” Azalea told the AP. “So I’m kind of going to continue that until, maybe forever.”
To be sure, the Aussie rapper has received an up close and personal look at the seamy underbelly of internet humor over the course of recent weeks. She was recently ridiculed via a series of viral Vines poking fun at an unintelligible live performance of her song “D.R.U.G.S.” Net-based jokesters have had a field day with the clip, marrying the footage to scenes from Pulp Fiction and Spongebob SquarePants.
Hilarious. #IggyAzalea #Spongebob https://t.co/p8iXrs3SRV
— Brad Davis (@Bgamer90) March 20, 2015
Iggy Azalea also took some ribbing online when a stealthy paparazzo scored some unflattering pics of Izzy’s posterior through a fence at her home. MTV News referred to the ensuing onslaught of ridicule over the pics as “body shaming.” Azalea expressed her frustration with the situation during her AP interview.
“I think it’s disgusting,” said Azalea. “I don’t think it’s nice to stick your camera through somebody’s fence and hedge and take a picture of them in their yard and think that’s okay at all.”
Azalea recently deleted her Instagram account, but it later reappeared. The recent tweets from her official account, which seem rather general and impersonal, appear to be authored by a third party. Devout “Azaleans” have taken to Twitter en masse to call for the return of their heroine.
But a prominent contingent of music enthusiasts and celebrity watchers likely see Iggy Azalea’s struggles as a comeuppance of sorts. As the Huffington Post reports, Azalea has been the subject of repeated criticism over racially charged and culturally intensive comments. Moreover, she has publicly lamented that the hip-hop community does not fully recognize her talent. For her part, Azalea attributes her struggles in the industry to overt sexism and jealousy.
Despite the myriad of possible explanations for her self-imposed exile from sites like Twitter and Instagram, it’s hard to imagine that Azalea can totally withdraw from social media in this day and age, as self-promotion and direct interaction with fans are among the most vital components of effective marketing in the entertainment industry.
If Iggy Azalea really does know her history, she’s aware that Richard Nixon eventually returned to the limelight, albeit with varying degrees of success with regard this future endeavors. Of course, at the end of the day, there’s a huge difference between winning an election and being a celebrity. Political campaigns only happen every few years. But if your name is Iggy Azalea, every day is a new popularity contest.
[Photo by Christopher Polk/Getty Images for NARAS]
