Music

Twerking queen Big Freedia triumphs after concert cancelled for "gyrating"

by Jeremy Mersereau

At a long-awaited show in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, New Orleans bounce queen and Beyoncé collaborator Big Freedia struck a decisive blow for butt freedoms, declaring Mississippi a “Right to Twerk” state. That’s right: Mississippians now officially have both the right to work (bummer!) and twerk (bum ‘er!). Maybe they cancel each other out?

Freedia’s show was originally scheduled for February 12th, but was cancelled through the intervention of a Mississippi State Alcohol Control officer, who called the venue owner and told him he felt that Freedia’s “gyrating” would be in violation of state codes. I’m sure that officer only needed to see one YouTube video of twerking to make that judgement call, and not say, 40. The chief of enforcement for the state office later said that they “did not cancel” the show, and that it was the venue owner’s “own decision” to put a halt to the performance. What is it with Mississippi and dangerous hips?

Regardless of any suspicious shaking, the rescheduled concert went off without a hitch, with Freedia and her coterie of vigorous dancers performing under a projection displaying the message “Mississippi is a right to twerk state”:

A TV crew was also present, presumably getting material for Freedia’s reality show, Big Freedia: Queen of Bounce. At one point, Freedia invited the audience onstage for a massive twerk-off, which hopefully involved the state officer who made the original phone call but subsequently fell in love with both Freedia and bounce music culture.

[h/t Nola.com]