Treading the commercial strewn landscape of today’s music channels, it’s hard to avoid a slap in the face from a whip brandishing Rhianna or to be knocked aside by the grinding hips of Jessie J. With wide circulation of videos over the web and on TV, kids are being bombarded with sexual images. Its time to shake up the industry: for the sake of future generations.
The ridiculously over sexed dance routines seen in today’s videos usually follow the familiar blueprint of: a leading female throwing some seductive shapes (the orgasm face is a favourite); followed by pile of beefcakes- sometimes a solitary cake- tending to nuzzle the neck of the woman or opt to stand in lines pouting whilst being fondled by the woman. It’s scary to think that future singer songwriters are not only being fed this crap, but being allowed to believe that dressing sexily or appearing attractive is a fool proof formula for success.
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| Jessie J- Do it like a dude |
For stars like Cheryl Cole to be objectified and for their appearance to take higher importance than their “talent” or even the song itself is a step back in time. How do Katy Perry’s custard spewing breasts (California Girls video) demonstrate any social progression from the dark ages of Barbra Windsor's bra pinging open in Carry On?
Its’ almost as if to get into the top ten there is a checklist for female artists. Must have unrealistically skinny figure, be fitted out in the most minimal amount of clothing possible and must be capable of thrusting whilst lip syncing. No wonder young girls are feeling more pressured than ever to look and behave in a certain way, if the people they model themselves on are day time versions of Spearmint Rhino shows. What hope do women have of either being taken seriously by our male counterparts in the pop industry , or in shaping the next generation of females who don’t have eating disorders or body hang ups.
The counter argument is of course that for women to be seen in a sexually aggressive position empowers them to take control of a drooling audience of men. I’m not suggesting that labels start signing Vestal Virgins or bind artists to a lifetime of chastity. I’m just pointing out that it would be all the more empowering to make it into the charts with a decent song rather than a sexy video. Its only through a much needed cultural revolution that we can hope to achieve an equilibrium of gender in the music industry. The sooner it comes the better
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