pussycat dolls and that kate girl
I listen to the radio at work - unless it's Friday, then I turn both phones down - and I hear a lot of popular secular music. Some of which I learn to like, some that I like instantly, others that I don't even notice, some that make me cringe and some like these. I don't notice them until somebody else points them out. But once I've heard them and know what they say...and I don't like it...it sticks and everytime I hear them I just get more 'grrr' about them having air time.
I was considering making a big deal out of this and actually doing some research - like it was an issue for year 12 English...but I don't really have the time and I've lost the article that I wanted about Tweens from the Weekend Magazine. But perhaps if I have time one day, I'll actually try and put something together. I had these ideas that I'd grab a bunch of girls between the ages of say 11 and 15 and see what they're thinking about these kinda things. And I'd still really like to...but I'd also like to get some thoughts and comments on a few snippets of these songs lyrics.
Okay, so I just watched the clip to 'When I Grow Up' by the Pussycat Dolls...or should I say the lead singer and her 'hot, barely clothes and seductive so called back-up singers'?
Okay, so girls want to be wanted. Girls can win a guy over with their bodies. Girls can tease, manipulate and fool guys into thinking they've got something then just ditch them because they have the satisfaction that they can 'get any guy to want them'. But what does that mean? So a guy wants you. Does he want you for who you are? Or does he want you because you've got curves in all the right places, your skin is silky smooth, your face is spot clean, you don't have a hair out of place...and you're barely wearing any clothes? Which one actually makes you feel worth something? I wonder how many girls would rather have one guy that cares about them, respects them and wants the best for them....instead of having numerous guys that lust over their bodies and their looks...that in 20 years won't be there anyway. You can't stay hot forever, and if you do...you better hook yourself up with a rich hottie 'cause you're guna have to be payin' a lot of dosh to upgrade your thighs, nose and boobs every couple of years.
These music videos are so degrading. I have just YouTube'd 'I Kissed a Girl' by Kate Perry and watched the clip. And although there isn't anything suggestive (other than she wakes up next to a guy? Explain that in relation to the song title...) in this clip, other than the, I hate to say, 'normal' skin exposure...the message in the song isn't so crash hot.
'...I got so brave drink in hand/Lost my discretion...I kissed a girl and I liked it...I kissed a girl just to try it/I hope my boyfriend don't mind it/It felt so wrong/It felt so right...No I don't even know your name/You're just my experimental game...'
What do these songs say to girls that are 10, 11 and 12...trying to grow up and be a teenager in this world. Who do they have to look up to? The lead singer from Pussycat Dolls, Paris Hilton and Christina Aguilira. I hate to say it, but even girls like Krystal Myers and BarlowGirl are glossing themselves up to fit into the 'hot' category. While their songs still mean something of good value, their images slowly fade. However, girls like BarlowGirl and Krystal Myers have the hope of something that most girls don't have. Fashion is a killer for girls, and I'm not disconnected from that. We all want to look good, be unique and have other girls comment on our funky sense of clothing...but we can do this modestly and economically. Girls might not think that skin is tempting to a guy's eye...but it's just something that draws them closer...each more inch of skin they see, more their imaginations wander astray from what they should be thinking.
So many things going wrong. There is so no structure to this blog. Clothing, accessories and more that plaster 'I LOVE ME' across them, 'YOUR BOYFRIEND THINKS I'M HOT', 'IF YOU'RE RICH, I'M SINGLE'....What is this? Then in the same store you've got 'HUGS NOT DRUGS' and 'JESUS IS THE NEW PINK'...Nothing is meaniful! Everything is just used as a slogan. You know, sex sells, so use it. 80's are back so crank up the fashion and make bug bucks. Wow, wait up a minute, a week has gone by and we're back to the 70's. It's just stupid. Everyone is so focused around money and status. Bigger and better. A new phone, the latest sound system, those new boots, a better lounge suite. It's so easy to get caught up in all of this. Where do we fit?
Back to the PC-Dolls. Search 'When I Grow Up' on YouTube. Yeah sure, many results come up as the PussyCat Dolls videoclip...I was actually trying to find young girls imitating the PussyCat Dolls (like I found many imitating 'I Kissed A Girl')...but instead I came across Shirley Temple, 'When I Grow Up'. Oh. My. Golly. WHAT! A contrast! I guess that's what happens in 60 years or whatever...society changes. War erupts, hippies evolve, divorce becomes more prominent, defacto relationships are the way to go - no strings attached, homosexuality is okay, under age drinking and clubbing is not even manned. YouTube doesn't allow 'sexually explicit content' (as per the YouTube Community Guidelines 'Don't Cross The Line') but who is really the judge of sexually explicit? Does that mean no nudity? So we can see any amount of skin on a person, guy or girl....as long as their 'bits' are covered by cloth - as small as it may be? Does it matter what they're doing?
Anyway...there isn't much structure to this blog. They're just some thoughts. And as I said, I'll try and structure something later. Imagine if I was a journalist with a deadline. Don't think I could hack that at the moment hey!
I was considering making a big deal out of this and actually doing some research - like it was an issue for year 12 English...but I don't really have the time and I've lost the article that I wanted about Tweens from the Weekend Magazine. But perhaps if I have time one day, I'll actually try and put something together. I had these ideas that I'd grab a bunch of girls between the ages of say 11 and 15 and see what they're thinking about these kinda things. And I'd still really like to...but I'd also like to get some thoughts and comments on a few snippets of these songs lyrics.
Okay, so I just watched the clip to 'When I Grow Up' by the Pussycat Dolls...or should I say the lead singer and her 'hot, barely clothes and seductive so called back-up singers'?
Okay, so girls want to be wanted. Girls can win a guy over with their bodies. Girls can tease, manipulate and fool guys into thinking they've got something then just ditch them because they have the satisfaction that they can 'get any guy to want them'. But what does that mean? So a guy wants you. Does he want you for who you are? Or does he want you because you've got curves in all the right places, your skin is silky smooth, your face is spot clean, you don't have a hair out of place...and you're barely wearing any clothes? Which one actually makes you feel worth something? I wonder how many girls would rather have one guy that cares about them, respects them and wants the best for them....instead of having numerous guys that lust over their bodies and their looks...that in 20 years won't be there anyway. You can't stay hot forever, and if you do...you better hook yourself up with a rich hottie 'cause you're guna have to be payin' a lot of dosh to upgrade your thighs, nose and boobs every couple of years.
These music videos are so degrading. I have just YouTube'd 'I Kissed a Girl' by Kate Perry and watched the clip. And although there isn't anything suggestive (other than she wakes up next to a guy? Explain that in relation to the song title...) in this clip, other than the, I hate to say, 'normal' skin exposure...the message in the song isn't so crash hot.
'...I got so brave drink in hand/Lost my discretion...I kissed a girl and I liked it...I kissed a girl just to try it/I hope my boyfriend don't mind it/It felt so wrong/It felt so right...No I don't even know your name/You're just my experimental game...'
What do these songs say to girls that are 10, 11 and 12...trying to grow up and be a teenager in this world. Who do they have to look up to? The lead singer from Pussycat Dolls, Paris Hilton and Christina Aguilira. I hate to say it, but even girls like Krystal Myers and BarlowGirl are glossing themselves up to fit into the 'hot' category. While their songs still mean something of good value, their images slowly fade. However, girls like BarlowGirl and Krystal Myers have the hope of something that most girls don't have. Fashion is a killer for girls, and I'm not disconnected from that. We all want to look good, be unique and have other girls comment on our funky sense of clothing...but we can do this modestly and economically. Girls might not think that skin is tempting to a guy's eye...but it's just something that draws them closer...each more inch of skin they see, more their imaginations wander astray from what they should be thinking.
So many things going wrong. There is so no structure to this blog. Clothing, accessories and more that plaster 'I LOVE ME' across them, 'YOUR BOYFRIEND THINKS I'M HOT', 'IF YOU'RE RICH, I'M SINGLE'....What is this? Then in the same store you've got 'HUGS NOT DRUGS' and 'JESUS IS THE NEW PINK'...Nothing is meaniful! Everything is just used as a slogan. You know, sex sells, so use it. 80's are back so crank up the fashion and make bug bucks. Wow, wait up a minute, a week has gone by and we're back to the 70's. It's just stupid. Everyone is so focused around money and status. Bigger and better. A new phone, the latest sound system, those new boots, a better lounge suite. It's so easy to get caught up in all of this. Where do we fit?
Back to the PC-Dolls. Search 'When I Grow Up' on YouTube. Yeah sure, many results come up as the PussyCat Dolls videoclip...I was actually trying to find young girls imitating the PussyCat Dolls (like I found many imitating 'I Kissed A Girl')...but instead I came across Shirley Temple, 'When I Grow Up'. Oh. My. Golly. WHAT! A contrast! I guess that's what happens in 60 years or whatever...society changes. War erupts, hippies evolve, divorce becomes more prominent, defacto relationships are the way to go - no strings attached, homosexuality is okay, under age drinking and clubbing is not even manned. YouTube doesn't allow 'sexually explicit content' (as per the YouTube Community Guidelines 'Don't Cross The Line') but who is really the judge of sexually explicit? Does that mean no nudity? So we can see any amount of skin on a person, guy or girl....as long as their 'bits' are covered by cloth - as small as it may be? Does it matter what they're doing?
Anyway...there isn't much structure to this blog. They're just some thoughts. And as I said, I'll try and structure something later. Imagine if I was a journalist with a deadline. Don't think I could hack that at the moment hey!
posted by charlotte @ 8:52 PM
3 Comments:
blunt is good! I like it and some fair points too. Too many girls don't know how us guys think and react, and some do and abuse it.
2 generations ago there was much more 'innocence' in peoples public appearance. early 1900's people went swimming in longs! Not even boardies, let alone bikini's/speedo's. Look how things have changed in 50 years or so, and this generation now, being educated by the world's 'standards' in this day and age, whats the upcoming generation going to be like? How much more can our self worth be stripped away to something even more degrading.
I appreciate a girl who speaks up about real self worth!
you make some good points. Working in a school I get to see the effect these things have on teenage girls (and boys), and some of the conversations etc make me feel sick to the stomach.
Kids are trying to grow up to quickly but are looking to the wrong role models to do this.
Let's get some more good role models out there for them - we can start by being that ourselves!
Yes.. so true, has long been a burden of my heart and the essence to the drive in my passion to work with young woman. While it can all seem overwhelming, we can make a difference in our small corners of the globe. We can speak encouragement into the lives of these young women and girls, we can support them as the struggle through and try to discover who they are... we can stick by them so that they'll have a positive voice in their ear. We can model healthy self- esteem and healthy relationships. We can speak wisely when talking of genders. We can make choices about the music we listen to and the footage we watch (as long as we stay in touch). We can pray... God has the ultimate wisdom in this, God is the one who can break into this system... We can pray that God uses us gives us wisdom.
Sorry bout the rant - you've tapped into one of my soapboxes!! ;)
By the way, I read a book, "female chauvinist pigs" once, I have it if you want to borrow... bit of swearing and she can be a bit crass and blunt... but her message and the issues she raises are good.
Melissa
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