Does Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion’s new track ‘Bongos’ live up to ‘WAP’?

In 2020, Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion broke the internet with “WAP,” dropping a star-studded video and changing our vocabularies forever. Now, three years later, they’re back with new collaboration “Bongos,” a song critics have called “WAP part two.”

Is “Bongos” really as earth-shattering as “WAP”? Yes and no. Its lyrics are certainly nearly as raunchy, with Cardi telling her partner to “eat this a** like a plum” and Megan rapping that her “back shots sound like bongos.”

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“For anyone who has survived violence, please know your feelings are valid. You matter. You are not at fault.”

The music video is a celebration of summertime, with Cardi and Megan on the beach and by the pool in a variety of fabulous looks, including an homage to Lil’ Kim’s impossibly tall platform heels.

Observant fans might recognize the estate where Cardi and Megan are lounging. It’s the Beverly Estate, a famous mansion in Beverly Hills known for appearing in films including The Godfather and The Bodyguard, as well as Beyoncé’s Black Is King visual album.

The video’s tropical aesthetic doesn’t match the song’s cotton-candy-colored cover art — an intentional misdirect, Cardi teased ahead of the song’s release. 

“These covers — we tricked you b*tches,” Cardi said during an Instagram live on Wednesday, September 6, while holding up the covers. “Wanna know how we tricked ya? This is not the theme of the song or the video. We want y’all to believe that it’s giving something that it’s not. You can not outwork me, b*tches.”

Mission accomplished, Cardi.

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“Bongos” is a certified hit with fans, who are praising the flow switch-ups throughout the song and the clever lyricism both Cardi and Megan are known for.

Not everyone’s a fan of the track. Luxx Noir London, a finalist from Season 15 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, simply posted, “That song is…” with a GIF of Britney Spears cringing. It’s not hard to fill in the blanks.

But “Bongos” is leaving a cultural footprint regardless. Its music video has already racked up more than 1.7 million views only 12 hours after release, and the song is currently sitting at #2 on the iTunes US charts.

Will “Bongos” make it onto your post-summer playlists? Check out the video for yourself below.