Ashnikko - Invitation (Lyrical Breakdown)

 I broke these lyrics down 2 years ago on SongMeanings.com (their website not working properly was one of the reasons I started this blog).
Here's a link to it: Invitation Meanings & Lyrics Discussion by Zinetha | SongMeanings
And here's a copy of what I wrote:

The song is an empowering anthem against sexual assault and objectification of the female body.

Here's my interpretation on the lyrics:

"He said he needs it or he'll die / Touching on my inner thigh" This is about how some men try to guilt women into sleeping with them. Claiming it's a need instead of a want. Some even go as far as saying men have the right to have sex and therefore women should give them sex. Those people are called (and they call themselves) incels, or involuntary celibatists.

"Dirty seedy kinda guy / His castration would be nice" Castration is the medical procedure of removing the testicles. The narrator is being sexually assaulted and coerced (says he needs it or he'll die, touching on her inner thigh) and has a brief thought that men like these should be castrated (so they can't use their penis in the assault) and that she feels so much anger towards him she would enjoy castrating him.

"And I'm just cruising on my bike / Summertime, my T-shirt tight" Some men (and some women) blame the sexual comments/assault a girl or a woman receives on what she was wearing. In reality, what they wear has nothing to do with it. 100% of sexual assault is the assaulter's fault. It is perfectly normal to wear thinner and smaller clothing when it's hot outside. Also, even if she was naked, it would not be an invitation for sexual comments or assault. I would also like to point out her word choices. She's cruising on the bike instead of driving. She's on a bike rather than on a car, or jogging. My first thought is a pre-teen girl. I think it's intentional. It's supposed to make you feel grossed out by these kinds of men, to emphasize the message this song has. Also, sexual assault is rarely about sex, it's usually about control. These men want to control what a girl or a woman can or cannot wear, and if she doesn't, she "deserves" to be assaulted. Even if his clothing choices for her would make her uncomfortable (like warm, covering clothing when it's hot outside).

"He say I'm the type he like / Like I'm a biscuit he could bite" These kinds of men also often objectify women - they either directly compare women to inanimate objects or indirectly talk about them like they're objects.

-- Side note in 2024: Also, the expression "I could just eat you up!" or whatever. When you think someone is cute, like a small child or an animal is. But in this context, it has a sinister undertone to it. He literally wants to taste her, in a sexual way. Even though he thinks she's cute like a child is.

"I can't even wear my skin / Without them asking where I've been / Without them asking for a spin / This is not an invitation" Like I said, it doesn't matter what she's wearing. A woman cannot even exist in her own body and not get comments about it. They ask her "where she's been", like has she been in a bar, drinking, which is another not-invitation to assault her, or has she been sleeping in a stranger's apartment after a one-night stand - this means she's "a slut" or "a whore" and again, this is used as an excuse to "ask her for a spin" aka ask her for sex. But even a girl or a woman existing in her own body is not an invitation.

"This is not an invitation / Fuck you mean you need it? / Fuck you mean you RSVPed? / I don't need a reason / This is not an invitation / Fuck you mean you need it?/ Fuck you mean you need it?" The same message as previously, but also stating that she doesn't need a reason to say no to you.

"I could be lickin' on a lolly / Dolled up like a dolly / Short skirt, lil' hottie / Don't you comment on my body" A girl or a woman can eat whatever she wants, even things shaped like a penis or things that when eaten, can resemble giving a blowjob, like bananas and lollypops. She can wear as much makeup as she wants - "dolled up" or "dolly" means that someone has a ton of makeup on, to the point they kinda look like a doll. She can wear however skimpy clothing she wants, and this is still not an invitation to comment on her body.

-- Side note in 2024: She could be naked and that's not an invitation to comment or touch.

"Put a jiggle in my titties / I can giggle like I'm silly" Breasts don't have bones or muscle in them, they jiggle when a woman moves around, when gravity affects them. A woman can also move the rest of her body in a way that she makes her boobs jiggle. Neither of these is an invitation. A girl of a woman can laugh at your jokes and it's not an invitation.

"Call me prudish, call me bitchy Knock you out with all that's in me" These kinds of men call women "prudish" and "bitchy" if they refuse to have sex with them.

Kodie Shane: "This is not an invitation / She like to talk a lot, when I pull up, can't say shit / I don't want that girl because she can't be patient / Come with me right now, we about to switch locations / So fuck with me, you need it / I ain't fucking with these boys I got my reasons / Diamonds on me just like lights they change the seasons / I think you gotta do way more if you wanna please me / Diamonds look like water on my girl, it look like Fiji / Diamonds freeze me now forever diamonds 3D / She can see me, VVS just like the TV, just me and AZ / You know it's not debating, you can't replace me"

Kodie Shane's part of this song are the only ones I don't get. Lines 2-4 (She like to talk a lot --> switch locations) sound like they're a man talking. But I still don't understand anything except "switch locations", which is something rapists do - they kidnap a woman from location A but take her to a location B to rape her. This makes it harder for them to get caught.

Then she goes on about diamonds for the rest of the verse - Genius has pretty good explanations on them: https://genius.com/Ashnikko-invitation-lyrics
I think AZ = Ashnikko. I think she's trying to say women are as valuable as diamonds (comparing them to inanimate objects...) or that a man has to court a woman with riches to get her (which is also problematic - woman are not objects you can buy, with money or diamonds!) I hate her portion on this song and without it, this song would be perfect.

-- Note in 2024: Some men think women who are into men need men... They don't. Women can get off on their own just as well, and single unmarried women with no kids are the happiest demographic of people there is.
"I ain't fucking with these boys, I got my reasons" is a double - fuck with them like have sex with them (maybe Kodie's a lesbian?) and in slang "to fuck with someone" means to agree with them, to like them. She doesn't agree with them, doesn't like them.
She's rich on her own merit, you can't dazzle her by getting her diamonds or other expensive jewelry. In fact, Kodie's never gonna be your girl that you get diamonds to, BUT she's a girl getting diamonds to her girl instead.
I get her verse a lot more than I did 2 years ago, when I wasn't even into rap yet (I was getting there, but I wasn't there yet). I still think it doesn't fit the song, talking about being rich while the rest of the song is heart-felt and honest talk about consent.

[And then I commented under it:]

I forgot to mention, how the "I could be lickin' on a lolly / Dolled up like a dolly / Short skirt, lil' hottie" part could be about a woman or it could be about a pre-teen girl, just like the "cruising on my bike / summertime, my t-shirt tight" part. It even says "lil' hottie", like she's petite or young. Very gross, but that's how some men would see her. I.e. a thirteen year old could easily start to rebel against her parents with strong makeup and "skimpy" clothing and then pedophilic men (and others) would see that as an invitation and call her "jail bate" or groom her, or worse. The word choices on this song are just *chef's kiss*. Except Kodie Shane. Unless someone really cracks the code on her lyrics and explains them to the rest of the world.