Cardi B has offered her friends some unconventional dating advice, joking that women should be especially careful about what they eat and how comfortable they become during the first few months of seeing someone.
The rapper made the comments during an Instagram Live session on Monday, 7 September, shortly after making a surprise appearance at Don Toliver's Barclays Center concert in Brooklyn. While eating cow ears, Dominican fried cheese and fried pork during the livestream, Cardi turned her attention to the behaviour she believes women should adopt when beginning a new relationship.
'You Gotta Starve'
'I was talking to my friends, right? When you start dating a n***a, the first couple of months? Bitch, you gotta starve,' Cardi joked.
She went on to explain that her advice particularly applied to women spending time at a new partner's home. In Cardi's humorous telling, eating too much could create an awkward situation if nature eventually called.
'Ain't no taking a shit around a motherfucker, you understand?' she said, before joking about avoiding farting around a new partner during the early stages of dating.
Cardi's comments were delivered as part of the candid, often unfiltered conversation for which she is known, rather than as serious relationship guidance. She also joked about behaving differently around a romantic partner than at home, where she can eat considerably more freely.
The rapper's remarks have drawn attention because they turn a familiar part of early dating — trying to make a good impression — into an unusually literal set of rules. The idea of being more self-conscious around someone new is hardly unfamiliar, but Cardi's blunt description gave the subject a distinctly comedic twist.
The Early Stages in a Relationship
Her comments also touch on a common social dynamic in the early stages of relationships. People may be more conscious of their appearance, eating habits and personal routines while they are still getting to know a prospective partner.
Over time, however, those boundaries generally become less rigid as familiarity and comfort develop.
Cardi's version of that process is considerably more extreme. Her joking suggestion that women should 'starve' is not something that should be interpreted as genuine dietary advice, particularly because restricting food or deliberately avoiding normal bodily functions can have obvious drawbacks.
The timing of the livestream also added to the interest surrounding the comments. Cardi had appeared as a surprise guest during Don Toliver's Barclays Center show on 6 September, performing alongside the rapper before returning to her own social media audience the following day.
The Discussion on Dating
The dating discussion is another example of how Cardi frequently turns everyday experiences into outspoken, humorous commentary. Rather than presenting a carefully constructed relationship philosophy, she tends to discuss romance, sex, food and social expectations in an intentionally provocative way.
Cardi B's message about the first few months of dating appears to be less a serious rulebook than a joke about the lengths people can go to when trying to make a good impression.
For anyone navigating a new relationship, her advice may be memorable — but there is probably no need to take the 'don't be human' part too seriously.
