“Fuck you” she said “say that instead of I’m sorry. Then you’ll be like ‘shit!’ and it will train you to stop saying it.” She laughed sucking on the end of a half smoked cig and tossing her hand over … Continue reading
The recent release of Robin Thicke’s new hit song ‘Blurred Lines’ has quickly become the center of a good deal of hype, discussion, and controversy. As his song topped hit charts across the globe the music industry applauded his talent and performance. Some calling it one of “the catchiest and sexiest pop dance hits of the year.”
For those who are on the front lines of women abuse, sexual violence and exploitation it is clear that the content of his catchy tune represents and embraces the rape culture. The “Good girl”, “I know you want it” lyrics are mixed together and laid out to communicate Thicke’s own desires projected onto her. At one point in the song T.I raps about sodomy and then says that ‘not many women can refuse this pimpin’. The tune is entertaining but the quality of the music merely allows him to popularize a few very dangerous ideas, ideas that we see lived out every day through domestic commercial sexual exploitation. (Did anyone else notice the exchange of money, symbolizing the trick, between Robin thick and T.I at the end of the music video?)
Even though Thicke continually repeats “I know you want it” throughout the entirety of the song, I was left wondering “who would want this?”
It is almost as if Blurred Lines represents two myths: the rape myth that women want (and celebrate) non-consensual sex and the myth that America wants to hear him singing about it.
That people want to hear catchy, well made music that degrades women is not a myth. Blurred Lines toped Billboard’s hot 100 list for twelve consecutive weeks. Thicke sold 5 million albums with this song in the United States alone. We can blame pop culture for popularizing these ideas but the truth is that pop culture industry is not force-feeding us trash. They are producing what we will buy. And buy we do.
The truth, of course, is that women don’t really want men to push them for sex. Singing ‘I know you want it’ in the chorus of a well-made melody doesn’t change that fact. Women don’t really want to be forced to have violent sex. But I wonder if as a society we are a little fascinated with the idea that they do. We say “It’s catchy” and “it’s provocative” without giving thought to why music that degrades women is appealing to us and then we justify our fascination by adding “it’s just a song”. We assume that no one actually takes these ideas to heart so singing about them must be okay.
Of course it isn’t okay. It is this type of music, celebrating an objectivized view of women, which creates a culture of abuse, rape, and exploitation of women. As a society we don’t support men raping women (or buying them for sex) and saying ‘I know you want it’. But Robin Thicke can sing it in his song and it becomes true…true for America. The pop culture industry can produce inappropriate, disrespectful music and sing ‘I know you want it’ and, whether we admit it or not, we do. We buy it in droves and we embrace it. And until we are willing to stand up and boycott (with our dollars) the artists who make this music, the industry will always be able to sing us ‘I know you want it’ and have it ring true.
Life Unhindered 