Out of all the music produced in the last couple of years, for my study I chose to examine four top 20 songs in the last ten years, looking for lyrics which are deviant or describe deviant behavior, and what would be considered acceptable. My four sample songs are all sung by female groups. As I looked for sample songs, it became glaringly obvious this section of popular music is dominated by women who identify as the norm of light-skinned and thin.
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"Don't cha wish your girlfriend was hot like me?" is the first line of the chorus for 2005's "Don't Cha" by the Pussy Cat Dolls, a burlesque song and dance crew. The song soared to popularity, constantly being played in clubs, movies, and spoofs. However, if we examine the lyrics, topically it's about being a "homewrecker", which is normally a deviant behavior. PCD's lyrics attack the man's current partner's supposedly lesser traits. The lead female is more raw, more fun, more sexual, she is more attractive and more of a woman. Their video is full of sexualized women dancing suggestively and focused on appearance. In a different light, Taylor Swift's "You belong with me" laments her own tale of being the other woman, a deviant behavior that many people still find relatable.
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An ordinary girl who does not adhere to the stereotype of a high-heel wearing cheerleader, is less deserving of and attractive to the boy she pines for. It is clear from the video, she is a glasses wearing, average dressing, intellectual girl-next-door. Her rival (a brunette Taylor) is wearing make-up, has long, straight hair, skimpy, bright clothing, and is popular in school. Blonde Swift is the deviant in her liking of his favorite bands (something male!) and lack of feminine "it" girl qualities. At the end of the video Swift of course transitions into a virginal, glasses free lightly made up prom date, making her desirable and closer to the norm. The boy picks her over his girlfriend, and the song fades to black. It leaves one with the impression that conforming to the norm will bring the desired happiness that you will not attain as a deviant. If Taylor had shown up in her PJ's and glasses, she'd probably have been laughed out of the prom.
And finally, after a career in Christian music, Katy Perry revamped her name and image, releasing "California Gurls" and eventually breaking records with other female entertainers for the number of hit songs to come off of her CD. Party girls are the ultimate norm in California Gurls. "Fine, fresh, fierce." Katy sings, naked on a cloud of cotton candy. Snoop dogg's guest spot reiterates that women should dress in skimpy outfits, be willing to have sex both on the beach and in a jeep, and be in great physical shape. Katy Perry normalizes the party girl image, a fairly deviant behavior, as is promiscuity in women. Unfortunately, with her attempt to normalize party girl behavior, it comes off as in the interest of finding love and being acceptable to a man. While some might write these songs off as bad influences for women, dictating how they should behave based on norms, there's also a semi-subtle message about what men should do and find attractive. Men should want these party girls, these women who are more normal and sexual than their current partner. Men should make finding a woman with beauty and a sense of fun and adventure a priority. Smart girls do not get the guy, and men should stop looking at smart, accomplished women as attractive, because that's not normal. Men who don't want young, sexy girls are deviant, especially those who are attracted to the older women or women who are focused on careers or interests over appearance. Following a successful Disney career, Miley Cyrus released her single, "Can't be tamed." In her transition from children's music to adult themes, Cyrus went to an extreme deviant behavior for her video and song. No longer sunny, flirty, and virginal, Cyrus gyrates with both male and female partners (hinting at deviant bicurious behavior) as a rare creature who cannot be tamed from her promiscuous behavior. She calls herself crazy for wanting her own way, and not being dependent on a man, giving justification for her deviant behavior.
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| It's only ok to be bisexual if you're only doing it for attention. Otherwise it's deviant. |
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| Snoop knows how to be a normal man. |
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When society tells our girls what they should strive to be, we are also telling men who are attracted to women what to look for in a partner. But when the music stops, we're left with a norm of light skinned girls with low self esteem and short shorts, and men who are trained to look for those girls, or risk being humiliated with an abnormal, deviant partner. If you listen to the lyrics, watch the videos, we could only assume those men who partner with women outside the norm are still be wishing their girlfriend was hot… like the norm.
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| The Norm. |
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| Thanks for reading! |
Photocredits:
Pussycat Dolls
Taylor Swift (screenshots)
Taylor Swift Madonna/Whore comparison
Miley Cyrus (screenshots)
Pussycat Dolls
Taylor Swift (screenshots)
Taylor Swift Madonna/Whore comparison
Miley Cyrus (screenshots)
Katy Perry ft. Snoop Dogg (screenshots)
