Fragile Bird Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 Every year people try to find a 'song of the summer', a tune that usually has an infectious beat and some catchy words, maybe a bit of fantasy about it, maybe a cute video, and all of a sudden you hear it everywhere until you just hate the damn thing. Call Me, Maybe comes to mind.The song a lot of people are calling the song of the summer is one called Blurred Lines, written and sung by a fellow named Robin Thicke (the son of actor Alan Thicke, btw).This song has been a total non-entity in my life, until some university students I know were talking about it, and mentioned "iffy lyrics". Not to mention, "icky lyrics". Now, I realize there are always songs that show up with unfortunate language in them - many people don't or won't listen to rap for that very reason - but this sung has hit a nerve with a lot of people because of some of the imagery involved, as opposed to "just" the use of obscenities and degrading language directed at women or gays.Some of the lyrics:OK now he was close, tried to domesticate youBut you're an animal, baby, it's in your natureJust let me liberate youHey, hey, heyYou don't need no papersHey, hey, heyThat man is not your makerSo the singer is telling a girl she was what - going out with a nice guy (because he tried to domesticate her?) but he'll liberate her so she can be an animal again? Offensive, but not too offensive? Sexy, maybe? Or denigrating?But then he goes on to tell her:What do they make dreams forWhen you got them jeans onWhat do we need steam forYou the hottest bitch in this placeSo, on one hand we are trying to tell women to take back the night, wear whatever you want, wearing attractive or sexy clothing does not make you rape bait, but the song of the summer says...what?And then the lines that make me say, WTF?One thing I ask of youLet me be the one you back that ass toGo, from Malibu, to Paris, booYeah, I had a bitch, but she ain't bad as youSo hit me up when you passing throughI'll give you something big enough to tear your ass in twoSwag on, even when you dress casualI mean it's almost unbearableThere have been mentions of the joys of anal sex in another thread, but the song of the summer says "I'll give you something big enough to tear your ass in two"? This is the song of the summer?And all through the song there's a chorus of "I know you want it, I know you want it. I know you want it". Violent, painful anal sex?Hearing this song and knowing it's a so-called hit just depresses me. It's like years and years of progress are being rolled back every time someone plays it on the air.Or am I overreacting? You guys who are married and have little girls - are your daughters dancing around the house and singing "tear your ass in two" at the top of their lungs? I have friends who giggled when they daughters bounced around the house to the tune of " ", is this just the same?The full lyrics. To hear the song you'll have to find it yourself. I can't be bothered./sp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prince Alexander Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 Most popular media caters to the lowest common denominator of audience. If you are an intelligent person, you know you can just ignore it.If you feel like going on crusade against media in hopes of making it better, consider that world has always been about 90% shit, and will remain 90% shit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1918me Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 I haven't actually heard this song yet, but I think I have to agree with the "iffy lyrics" bit. Misogynist undertones? Perhaps. In either case, it seems pretty overtly sexual to be given the title "Song of the Summer;" I thought they were exclusively "G"-rated bubblegum pop tunes, but maybe I'm just out of it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fragile Bird Posted August 17, 2013 Author Share Posted August 17, 2013 1918me, yes, exactly. Bubblegum pop tunes.Weird, isn't it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spockydog Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 Have you seen the video? It's like the last thirty years never happened. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1918me Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 Have you seen the video? It's like the last thirty years never happened.Having watched the first twelve seconds of that video, I can safely say my faith in our culture has dropped several notches. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shryke Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 I don't know, it seems overly sexual but not entirely problematic.Your quotes:OK now he was close, tried to domesticate youBut you're an animal, baby, it's in your natureJust let me liberate youHey, hey, heyYou don't need no papersHey, hey, heyThat man is not your makerThis doesn't seem like your interpretation of "she's going out with a nice guy". It seems more like she's going out with a controlling guy who's trying to button her down. He's say "he's not your maker" (ie - don't let him control you) and come with me, we'll be wild and crazy like you are inside. (and, obviously, have sex)To wit, verse three:Nothing like your last guy, he too square for youHe don't smack that ass and pull your hair like thatThe whole song, from the chorus, seems about how he wants to let the sexual animal loose inside a "good girl" (ie - a more conservative girl).I know you want itBut you're a good girlThe way you grab meMust wanna get nastyGo ahead, get at meI don't see anything about "rape bait" in there either. Although there's definitely an element of "I know you are really nasty inside, you know you want to have dirty sex with me" which some may or may not find problematic.I don't think the "tear your ass in two" line is necessarily referring to anal sex. I've seen the expression used generally for any kind of sex.It's "I know you want it" as in "I know you really want to get nasty and sexy and dirty and break from your good girl image". And have sex with me when you do that obviously because the song is about as "Look at how awesome I am" as you'd expect from any pop/rap/etc song involving the singer himself.So yeah, just seems to me it's "Your hot, I'm hot, bust out of your shell and let's have nasty sex".The graphicness is a bit extreme but I'm kinda getting used to that in pop songs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sci-2 Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 Having watched the first twelve seconds of that video, I can safely say my faith in our culture has dropped several notches.The video with naked women dancing around? Meh, I couldn't finish watching because it bored me but it wasn't any worse to me than most other music videos.The only lyric that seems far beyond the pale is the one about tearing asses.Besides that, I'm not seeing anything new. Not to say it isn't bad or sexist, but it just isn't some new low. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Castel Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 Still checking out the whole thing, will respond later but this caught my eye:Most popular media caters to the lowest common denominator of audience. If you are an intelligent person, you know you can just ignore it.If you feel like going on crusade against media in hopes of making it better, consider that world has always been about 90% shit, and will remain 90% shit.What about kids? Are they the lowest common denominator? You do this a lot. The media or entertainment being shit (according to intelligent people like you) is one thing, being a particular brand of shit -whether it be racist or misogynist shit (not sure how I feel about the song, I'm reading the original articles that called it rapey)- is another thing altogether.Not to mention that this whole argument ignores the fact that people are shaped by their culture. Well, it doesn't, it just takes those influenced by their culture and designates them as the "hoi polloi", the weak, unsophisticated masses, thus allowing people to blame it all on them and ignore any attempt to change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kairparavel Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 So would innuendo be better if it were more metaphorical? If so, song of the summer 1986 might be more appealing. As I've mentioned in another thread, I like this song against my better judgement and try really hard to ignore the lyrics. But Robin Thicke, TI and the otherwise brilliant Pharrell and their awesome hook have not invented a musical wheel here. The objectification of women and sexual innuendo is hardly new or *controversial. *newly controversialMaybe last year's song of the summer is more amenable?http://www.npr.org/b...pumped-up-kicks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sci-2 Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 It's "I know you want it" as in "I know you really want to get nasty and sexy and dirty and break from your good girl image". And have sex with me when you do that obviously because the song is about as "Look at how awesome I am" as you'd expect from any pop/rap/etc song involving the singer himself.So yeah, just seems to me it's "Your hot, I'm hot, bust out of your shell and let's have nasty sex".Yeah, thinking about it, this is how I see the song.Without the tearing ass part it's probably no worse than a Springsteen song. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1918me Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 The video with naked women dancing around? Meh, I couldn't finish watching because it bored me but it wasn't any worse to me than most other music videos.The only lyric that seems far beyond the pale is the one about tearing asses.Besides that, I'm not seeing anything new. Not to say it isn't bad or sexist, but it just isn't some new low.Maybe I've just been too sheltered from this kind of thing :P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywolf2375 Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 Have you seen the video? It's like the last thirty years never happened.I don't think they did, I'd bet the singer is George Michael and this is a WHAM! knock off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Theda Baratheon Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 I don't know, I pick up some really rapey vibes from this song, even the fucking title ''blurred lines'' for christ sake, I don't like the scantily clad women with guys in fucking suits and the hairpulling in the video either. No wonder there's been so many parodies of this crap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kairparavel Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 It's the title that probably raises the most concern. What, exactly, are these 'blurred lines'?http://www.thedailyb...d-of-rapey.htmlAt any rate, this song is everywhere and the parodies are manyhttp://jezebel.com/tag/blurred-linesThis is my favouritehttp://jezebel.com/y...h-kid-999671582ETAGet Lucky has my vote for song of the summer, at any rate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywolf2375 Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 The only lyric that seems far beyond the pale is the one about tearing asses.I'm not even sure if that is intended to be about anal sex or more "I'm hung like Florida" - that line makes me think more about the opening discussion from Reservoir Dogs and what "Like A Virgin" is about than anal. It just isn't as cool a lyric to say "I've got a big dick." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fragile Bird Posted August 17, 2013 Author Share Posted August 17, 2013 So would innuendo be better if it were more metaphorical? If so, song of the summer 1986 might be more appealing.http://www.youtube.c...mz_eZ5N4A quick search shows Papa Don't Preach as the top song of 1986. Sledgehammer was number 3.But I'm quite sure I could dig up lots of songs with suggestive lyrics. :dunno:As I've mentioned in another thread, I like this song against my better judgement and try really hard to ignore the lyrics. But Robin Thicke, TI and the otherwise brilliant Pharrell and their awesome hook have not invented a musical wheel here. The objectification of women and sexual innuendo is hardly new or *controversial. *newly controversialMaybe last year's song of the summer is more amenable?http://www.npr.org/b...pumped-up-kicksSeems a bit more cerebral than Blurred Lines. From Wikipedia:The lyrics to "Pumped Up Kicks" are written from the perspective of a troubled and delusional youth with homicidal thoughts.[4] The lines in the chorus warn potential victims to "outrun my gun" and that they "better run, better run, faster than my bullet". Foster said in a statement to CNN.com, "I wrote 'Pumped Up Kicks' when I began to read about the growing trend in teenage mental illness. I wanted to understand the psychology behind it because it was foreign to me. It was terrifying how mental illness among youth had skyrocketed in the last decade. I was scared to see where the pattern was headed if we didn't start changing the way we were bringing up the next generation."[7] In writing the song, Foster wanted to "get inside the head of an isolated, psychotic kid"[4] and "bring awareness" to the issue of gun violence amongst youth, which he feels is an epidemic perpetuated by "lack of family, lack of love, and isolation".[8][9] The song's title refers to shoes that the narrator's peers wear as a status symbol.[10]The issue of youth violence is a matter close to the group. Foster was bullied in high school, while bassist Cubbie Fink has a cousin who survived the Columbine High School massacre in 1999. Fink said of his cousin's experience, "She was actually in the library when everything went down, so I actually flew out to be with her the day after it happened and experienced the trauma surrounding it and saw how affected she was by it. She is as close as a sister, so obviously, it affected me deeply. So to be able to have a song to create a platform to talk about this stuff has been good for us."[6]Contrasting with the dark lyrics of the song, the music, which was written first, is upbeat. Foster said, "It's a 'fuck you' song to the hipsters in a way—but it's a song the hipsters are going to want to dance to."[4] Jeffery Berg of Frontier Psychiatrist said, "I was so engrossed with the cheery melody of its chorus that it took me a few listens to discover that the lyrics suggest dark, Columbine revenge."[11]Due to the opening lyrics, "Robert's got a quick hand," many have speculated that the song is a reference to Robert Hawkins, perpetrator of Omaha's Westroads Mall shooting. The band's publicist denied any connection: "This is completely false. The character name in the song is just a coincidence."[12] For play on the television channels MTV and MTVu, the words "gun" and "bullet" were removed from the song's chorus.[13] Foster believes many have misinterpreted the song's meaning, and have written letters to his record label and called radio stations to complain. He explained, "The song is not about condoning violence at all. It's the complete opposite. The song is an amazing platform to have a conversation with your kids about something that shouldn't be ignored, to talk about it in a loving way."[2] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1918me Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 Get Lucky has my vote for song of the summer, at any rate.Now this I can agree with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shryke Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 Get Lucky has my vote for song of the summer, at any rate.I'm with you here.Colbert agreed to, till Daft Punk stood him up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galactus Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 There have been mentions of the joys of anal sex in another thread, What? this is the second time someone mentions "that anal sex thread", now I'm morbidly curious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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