“Just as a snake sheds its skin, we must shed our past over and over again.” These are Megan Thee Stallion’s opening words in her latest and first single of 2023, “Cobra.” And while her past encompasses everything from the death of family members to a traumatic shooting, its her old relationship with ex Pardison Fontaine that has people talking the most.
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Dropping at midnight on Friday, the nearly four-minute songs sees Thee Stallion talking about everything from her depression, how she turned to drinking to mask her problems, but the line that got folks talking the most was when she alluded to a past lover cheating on her:
“Pulled up, caught him cheating. Getting his dick sucked in the same spot I’m sleeping. Lord, give me a break, I don’t know how much more of this shit I can take.”
If we do the math correctly, the “Anxiety” rapper was dating fellow rapper and songwriter Pardison Fontaine during the time she was going through all the emotional trauma stemming from the Tory Lanez shooting case and was gearing up to go to trial soon. The two even celebrated their two-year anniversary in October 2022, just two months before the tumultuous trial began. Given those facts, one could only surmise that she was referencing Pardi’s infidelity in her new song.
When folks online started to put pieces together together, many of the “Hotties” were pissed at Pardi and took to X/Twitter to express it:
Additionally, “Cobra” sends as deep of a visual message as it does in its lyrics. In the video, you see Meg shedding her skin as a cobra does in real life—a time that’s vulnerable and pertinent to remove parasites and other harmful things that may have attached itself to the snake, according to animal experts. And while those same experts say that for most snakes, they usually find somewhere safe and secure to shed their skin as their defenses are down, in “Cobra,” Megan is instead shedding in a clear glass box with cameras snapping pictures all around her. This is clear symbolism to the way she was essentially forced to endure her most vulnerable moments in the spotlight without the shield of privacy and respect.
This sentiment can also be heard through her words as she details her mental health struggles, her depression, how she turned to drinking to mask her pain, how she “hit rock bottom” and how she wanted to even unalive herself due to the pain.
I can’t imagine what it must feel like to lose you parents, grandparents, experience getting shot, losing friends and then being betrayed by someone you loved. Prayers and positive vibes go to Megan, may this next chapter be the rebirth and reprieve she needs.
Straight From 
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