The other day my husband sends me an email with a link to Nas’ new single, Daughter’s. He later follows up with this text: “I can’t stop thinking about this song. You gotta listen to it.”
As parents, we like to think that our kids can do no wrong. If and when they do, we often ask ourselves “where did I go wrong?” In Nas’ new single, “Daughter’s,” he admits to being a bad parent.
In the track Nas talks about poor choices his 17 year-old daughter, Destiny, makes. He also mentions her promiscuity in his lyrics,
“she planted a box of condoms on her dresser then she instagrammed it
at this point I realized I ain’t the strictest parent. I’m too loose, I’m too
cool with her.”
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| Nas and a young Destiny, courtesy of sohh.com |
After hearing this song, I am left thinking of my own style of parenting. I am told by some that I am a strict. But, I don’t care. I wouldn’t want Princess to go down the wrong path when she gets older. My hubby and I will do our best to prevent that from happening. But, the reality is that parenting isn’t easy. I’m sure there will be tough times. We all know that kids don’t come with manuals. But, we do the best we can. In Nas’ case, he became a father at a young age. While he admits to making wrong choices in life, he doesn’t want other men to make the same mistakes.
A girl’s father is the first male figure in her life, which sets the tone for the other men who come into her life. Women often end up with guys who are like their dads. If there’s no positive male influence in her life, she could end up looking for love in all the wrong places. I wouldn’t want the same for my daughter. Some people say you can’t plan to have kids, but I beg to differ. A situation like Nas and Destiny is one that I’ve always tried so hard to avoid. I’m grateful that I have a wonderful husband, who’s also a great father. Unfortunately, some females are so lucky.
Some may feel that Nas’ is putting is entire family on blast. But, I don’t see it that way at all. I give props to him for admitting fault. He’s speaking out to all men to be positive role models in the daughter’s lives. It’s obviously made an impact on my husband.
Having a great father-daughter relationship will likely lead to girls making better decisions in life. I’ve seen too many go down the wrong path because of the lack of a positive male figure in their lives. I almost became one of those girls. But, I’ll tell that story at a later time. The message I wish to deliver right now in this post is one to my daughter.
To my baby girl:
You have a great daddy, who loves you and will always be there for you.
I also hope that men listen to this song, and feel inspired to make better decision for the sake of their daughters.
