Meaning of “Black Mirror” by Noname
“Black Mirror” is the opening song on the 11-track playlist of “Sundial”. Said project, which marks Noname’s second studio album, is a self-released effort that came out on 11 August 2023. As of this writing, that was less than a week ago, so we have to see how well the LP will perform chart-wise. But to note, it has thus far been applauded by Metacritic.
Going back to “Black Mirror”, this song was written by Noname, who hails from Chicago, and its producer is Daoud. Daoud has in the past worked with the likes of Kehlani and Lizzo.
Lyrics of “Black Mirror”
Noname can perhaps best be described, in this day and age, as an alternative rapper. This is because her style is reminiscent of the emcees of old whose lyrics were imbued with intellectual, political, religious and Afrocentric references.
As far as appealing to a general audience is concerned, there are a number of issues with this type of approach, particularly in the name of understandability. Indeed, even if you come from a similar background as the artist at hand, there may be something to be desired in terms of making sense of all that’s being in “Black Mirror”.
This piece is relatively-terse. However, there’s definitely a lot more being relayed than what you normally find in raps that are even two or three times its length.
With that being said, the first verse seems to serve the purpose of, most simply put, Noname touting her formidability. In doing so, she does allude to being a Black-oriented, well-read, a feminist and a “socialist”.
The second verse seems to start off with Noname alluding to her lesbian or perhaps even transsexual lover. It is possible that said individual is also referenced in the first verse, considering that therein the vocalist uses pronouns such as “we” and “us”.
The rest of the second verse, as in the parts that are readily discernible, are obviously designed to allow Noname to describe her various characteristics, such as being “cute and compassionate”, “flakey as a b*tch” and acknowledging that she is “a rapper too”. And to note, in the process she also sort of gives a shoutout to fellow rapper Benny the Butcher.
