Cardi B’s Ethnicity Is Something She Doesn’t Mind Explaining When It Routinely Comes Up

When it comes to Cardi B, there isn't much the Grammy-winning rapper hasn't shared with the class. We know she's from the boogie-down Bronx, she's a history and political buff, and, despite her best efforts, she's never too far away from "the drama."

Although Cardi has given her fans sometimes too much information about her life, there are still some things fans have questioned throughout her career is her ethnicity. Here's what to know.

Details of Cardi's ethnicity have been discussed throughout her rise to fame. Many fans have said she's Black or African-American, while others have said she's Hispanic due to her being fluent in Spanish. According to OkayPlayer, Cardi, born Belcalis Marlenis Almánzar, identifies as Afro-Caribbean and has Trinidadian and Dominican roots. The rapper has set the record straight about her ethnicity on social media.

According to Afro.com, Cardi first defended her ethnicity in 2019 in an Instagram post after fans continued questioning her ethnicity, stating she should've defended Mexican people due to an incident in California. She shared in the post that, despite speaking Spanish, she's not Mexican. Cardi then spoke to the differences between race and ethnicity, which so many people often don't understand.

"A lot of people don’t know the difference between nationality, race, ethnicity and that’s not nobody’s fault,” she said on Instagram Live. “That’s actually the schools’ fault because schools don’t be teaching this s--t to people. I’m not Mexican at all. I’m West Indian, and I’m Dominican. I speak Spanish because I’m Dominican. And it’s like, so what’s the difference between Dominican and Mexican?’ And it’s like, everything!”

The "Outside" rapper added that the misconception that she's not Black comes from her being light skinned. However, Cardi said the idea that she's not Black because of her skin tone is a harmful stereotype she's received her entire life.

"People just don’t be understanding s--t,” Cardi said “It’s like, ‘Cardi’s Latin, she’s not Black.’ And it’s like, bro, my features don’t come from…White people f----ng, okay?’ And they always wanna race-bait when it comes to me…I have Afro features. ‘Oh, but your parents are light-skinned…all right, but my grandparents aren’t."

Years after Cardi set the record straight about her ethnicity again in 2021. After fans questioned her ethnicity again on social media, she decided to share receipts of her roots, writing on X (formerly Twitter), "Let me do this s--t again." Cardi then posted photos of her mother, maternal grandmother, aunts, her brother, and her uncle. She also shared images from a 2016 interview with Vibe Vita, where she discussed her ethnicity while being interviewed and photographed in her mom's Washington Heights apartment.

"Before I even got my teeth fix, I was talking about my roots," Cardi declared. "Not just cause of fame. Thank you, carry on."

Whether her naysayers agree or disagree with her stance on her ethnicity, the rapper has no problem correcting anyone about who she is, and we love her for it!