The mami shares qualities with the hyper-sexualized black woman, but her skin color and hair type put her in a higher position in the Eurocentric desired hierarchy. The mami that appears in mainstream rappers videos are specifically referred to by origin, which was generally Puerto Rican (but now also refers to women of Dominican descent), when the mami fetish of the 1990s took off. The term is not only used in hip hop but in general conversation by the general population. The dictionary maintained by the Academy of Puerto Rican Spanish () states that the term is used to refer to one's mother, one's girlfriend or concubine, a beautiful woman, or even to a young girl.
