One reason for this as proposed by Brown is that the integration and reception of the specific phrase no homo into the conversational dialect of North American English was simple and due in part to its phonetic resonance. Use of the phrase Īs with many attributes of hip hop culture, the use of no homo has become integrated into the mainstream North American vernacular. In an attempt to divert their own de-masculinization, musicians presuppose those attacks at their masculinity'. realize that a lyric, which is 'inadvertently gay,' is fodder for another's verbal attack on their masculinity within hip-hop culture.
Within this context, ' No homo is not necessarily addressing homosexuality, but creating a verbal defensive in the musical battlefield that is wrought with signifyn' and bustin'. The phrase no homo used in a lyrical context comes as a pre-emptive maneuver to deflect any attacks on the artist's masculinity or heterosexual status. Joshua Brown in the Journal of Homosexuality, states 'the phrase no homo arose in Hip-Hop lyrics of the 1990s as a discourse interjection to negate supposed sexual and gender transgressions'. The phrase was originated by Harlem, New York City, natives and made famous by the Harlem rapper Cam'ron as a way to quash any sexual and gender error or overstep within lyrics.