Is it socially acceptable to pour liquor on a loved one’s grave? Well, according to X users, it’s not!
In a recent viral video posted by @Hazel_Mahazzy, a group of men are seen pouring bottles of cognac on their loved one’s grave.
Captioning the post, “One bottle was enough”, it caused quite a stir among viewers.
One user wrote: “I think I'd wake up from the dead, what is this?”
A second user wrote: “Ya that's a lot, the after-tears must have been something else.”
A third commented: “I really don't understand this.” While a fourth questioned: “Why is this even done though? What happens if you don't do it?”
One bottle was enough..😫 pic.twitter.com/uBfUb8Nanu
— Hazel🌼 (@Hazel_Mahazzy) September 17, 2024
Earlier this year hip-hop artist L-Tido was also criticised for pouring vodka on AKA’s grave in celebration of his 36th birthday.
Some people deemed the act inappropriate, while others defended the gesture, finding solace in the unique way he chose to remember his departed friend.
This was because the alcohol in question was Cruz Vodka, a brand the late rapper had collaborated with in the past. The partnership involved him being an ambassador for the brand and participating in promotional activities.
Happy birthday Kiernan 🎂we miss you bro 🕊️ they’ll never be another ❤️ pic.twitter.com/c8vRg9X6Cf
Pouring alcohol on someone’s grave is not something new. It even has a term, to “pour one out".
The tradition of pouring one out refers to the act of pouring a liquid, usually alcohol, on the ground as a symbol of reverence for a friend or relative who has passed away.
While the display brings to mind the life of the individual that was poured out, the gesture is actually to represent the sip that the friend would have taken had they still been alive.
Pouring alcohol on the ground to honour the dead has been part of the common modern everyday language since Tupac Shakur rapped about it in the mid-‘90s.
And if you were a hip-hop fan in the 1990s, you probably remember the act of artists “pouring one out” for a good friend in various songs and movies.
Doughboy, played by rapper-turned-actor Ice Cube, famously spilled some of his malt liquor on the ground to honour a dead friend in John Singleton’s 1991 film “Boyz n the Hood” and this ritual was referred to in 2Pac’s 1994 song “Pour Out a Little Liquor” as well.
The gesture of pouring one out is a tradition with a lot more history behind it than most people understand.