The 1990’s were responsible for a plethora of powerful music. While many may correlate this decade with pop stars like Brittany Spears and Christina Aguilera’s brand of bubble gum mainstream music, there were many women who did not resign themselves to the conventional. Artists like Courtney Love and Fiona Apple hit the music scene during this decade. They introduced the world to a new brand of female power unlike anything the world had seen. During this time, these women and many others were not afraid to call themselves feminists, in fact, they insisted upon it. This decade was responsible for some of the most powerful female anthems from many different genres of music but one song stood out above the rest and made singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette a world-wide phenomenon. “Jagged Little Pill” was Morissette’s third studio album was released on June 13, 1995. It was an instant commercial success that many considered a feminist masterpiece and cultural awakening. Three of the songs off …show more content…
“You Oughta Know” is about a woman scorned. The song reads as a rebuttal to the man who had wronged her. There has been speculation over the years that this song was written about actor-comedian Dave Coulier. Coulier has both admitted and denied the claims that the song was written about their relationship. The singer had been elusive about admitting the song was about any particular person or the actual meaning behind the lyrics. In an interview conducted in 2008 to a CanWest News Service journalist, she commented on her motivation when writing new material. “Well, I’ve never talked about who my songs were about and I won’t because when I write them, they’re written for the sake of personal expression. So, with all due respect to whoever may see themselves in my songs, and it happens all the time, I never really comment on it because I write these songs for myself, not other
I. Introduction Gender plays a big role in music, I became aware of gender role in music when noticing how most songs talks about women and how they are being either exploited or empowered. Most music videos even in the 80s either objectified women or respect sexuality. Women are usually sexually alluring in music videos, stage performances and even in the song lyrics. Most music video uses video vixens or video girls that are usually dressed or performing sexually. For example, “Siouxsie Sioux frequently performed wearing black leather and rubber bondage attire, as well as heavy eye make-up, making overt statements about her sexuality.
The story I chose for this analysis is “Why, you reckon?” by Langston Hughes. IN this analysis I will be focusing on how the great depression in Harlem had effect on the story, how racism played a part, and how or if the characters were justifyied in their actions. During this time period the intense racial divide combined with the economic harships that plagued the U.S. during the 1923’s makes for an interesting story that makes you think if the charaters were really justified.
To exemplify, “[s]even of… 19 female performed songs [from 1958-2005] were about lost love, two were about strong love” (Pruitt, p. 18). Lyrics are traditionally limited for women in country music within the scope of how they affect men. However, male-fronted songs, while predominantly about heterosexual love, have a variety of topics available, such as “‘country life,’ … ‘aging,’ ‘fame,’ ‘family,’, ‘homesickness,’ ‘infidelity,’ ‘liquor’” (Pruitt, p. 17). Themes outside of love are uncommon for female country singers on the charts, though women are underrepresented on country music charts. In fact, until 1968, women were absent from the top five country charts (Pruitt,). Even though women have always taken part in country music, their role is depended upon
In society today, media such as movies and music share huge roles in the dynamics of culture especially concerning communication. In Dream Worlds 3: Desire, Sex, and Power in Music Video we see how famous singers and producers in the making of their music videos have the power of illustrating our language and beliefs. From the music we listen to and things we watch, we are constantly gaining new knowledge by the message that is being presented to us. The main focus of this specific documentary was how women in the music or media industry all together are treated. From this documentary and lectures in class we see that media objectifies, stereotypes, and degrades women and their bodies as advertisements and money makers. Themes in the film discussed
On the night of December 13, 2013 Beyoncé, released her fifth self-titled album on ITunes. The album caught many people by surprise because Beyoncé did not set a date for the album, nor did she use any promotion; she did release a video on her Instagram asking her followers if they “were ready”. The buzz spread through social media like a wild fire. With no promotion or no warning, Beyoncé album took the world by storm and made it for her audience and critics to take in the album and it contents. Many people loved the album for not only its catchy songs, but also the growth and “looser” conservative Beyoncé. On the other hand many people did not feel that her album was growth, but a way to catch up to the overly sexual generation. Beyoncé has always been aware of her sexual side, pop side, and feminist side; this has been documented through her four previous albums. Yet, a lot of people have questioned if Beyoncé a feminist because of the content of her newest album. In order to answer that a person must ask him or her self; what is a feminist, why some people believe she is feminist, why others do not believe she feminist, and whether or not Beyoncé think she is a feminist.
Edward Joseph Snowden is a former CIA technician, Booz Allen Hamilton's former employee, and a former NSA defense contractor. Edward Snowden had leaked a secret of NSA through an interview with Glenn Greenwald from The Guardian which startled the world. In his disclosure, Snowden revealed about NSA that they are mining data works all along and secretly monitoring U.S. citizens' personal information by accessing through different servers.
In her Top 10 hit ". . . Baby, One More Time," Britney Spears posits the song’s persona as a passive naïf. Continual references to blindness and hitting metamorphose the song from a teen-targeted summer pop tune into ideology enslaving young women into dangerous, constrictive views of relationships--and themselves. Using feminist and Lacanian theory allows us to see the speaker’s entrance into the Symbolic and the problems thereof.
The second wave of feminism starting in the late 1960s presented new ways of thinking about female rights and roles and gave greater attention to the issues affecting the various groups of women in the feminist movement. One of the essential topics that rose was the debate over female sexuality. From this point on efforts were made for changes in how women were expected to express their sexuality, which was controlled and adapted to the standards of men . These changes were also seen in the music area of which women sought to control their own representation and agency. Women began to challenge any models forced upon them based on preceding gender norms and traditions, and began to express their own identities according to their own comforts . The shift from traditional industry to the new media age in the 1990’s was a period of rapid transformation regarding female representations, of which females have claimed the freedom of expression through music, mainly seen through the sexual appearance of the female body. Nevertheless this achievement has been debated over most predominantly between liberal and radical feminists. This Essay will discuss the distinct views of radical and liberal feminists regarding the development of women’s freedom of expression and opportunities over time. Liberal feminists believe that women are in control of their own sexuality and have the right to express it in any way they choose. In contrast, radical feminists believe that female artists who expose their body in a sexual way and believe they have full control over themselves, are actually still trying to satisfy their predominantly male audience, therefore giving them control . To exemplify the different views on female development over time this es...
Madonna is a controversial legend whose attitudes and opinions on sexuality have forced the public to take notice and change the image of females in society. Madonna believed women’s sexuality was a natural aspect of life; therefore, she dared to challenge the rules and definitions of femininity and sought to expand the meaning of it. In a male dominated world, she wanted to focus on the importance of women and let them have a voice of their own. Madonna shattered all the myths on traditional beauty standards and made her statement on sexuality and feminism, which changed how society viewed the standards of beauty. She impacted female power by encouraging sex- positivity into her music and her style. It is mainly because of Madonna that ordinary women, and women in modern entertainment have more choices and freedom which continues to influence further generations.
Both these articles are significant to the study of popular music in regards to gender. Gender makes up a huge part of how people see and respond to popular music, therefore it is important that we understand various aspects of it. Both articles give insight into important times and movements in popular genres. They encourage thought and discussion in relation to gender in popular music. Downes and Johnson write with specific examples and clear motivation, that leaves the reader informed, interested and aware of the ways in which women fought for gender equality and how they challenged and rejected traditional roles in music.
Taylor Swift came to the public eye when she was fifteen years old and she had to learn how to be a role model even though she was still figuring herself out. Over the years, many people have criticized Taylor Swift by saying that she fakes her feminist and that she does things to her own advantage but she has decided to show the world that she is capable of defending herself all the time. I claim that despite the critics, Taylor Swift has shown that she is a feminist who has influenced society through her example, lyrics, videos, speeches and reaction towards criticism.
Whether someone is a nobody or a somebody, everyone is a follower, but the decision to follow the crowd or the heart is theirs. “I'm Nobody! Who are you?” is a poem written by Emily Dickinson about the two categories of people in the world: nobodies and Somebodies. A somebody is someone who chases the crowd or the trend. Somebodies always want to blend in with those around them. Whereas, a nobody is someone who only pursues his/her’s heart. Nobodies want to stand out and be unique, but they are shunned and looked down on for being different. The disheartening reality is that today rather than being themselves, majority of people yearn to be more like somebody else.
Anne-Marie enjoyed a U.K. hit in 2016 with alarm but most U.S. listeners are hearing her for the first time. The 25 year olds biggest thrill? hearing Paul say her name at the start of the song. ‘I was going to set it as my ringtone said Anne Marie “Rockabye” has 230 million Spotify streams since October 2016, and gives Clean Bandit its second top 40 hit. “People are hearing the message,” says Anne-Marie, “appreciating single moms, saying
A subculture of the 90s was “Grunge” this culture “become synonymous with a musical genre” (Marin, 1) and entwined itself in fashion. The Grunge cultures was “about not making a statement, which is why it 's crazy for it to become a fashion statement" (Marin, 1). However, out of this culture many alternative music artists emerged. Some of those more notable were bands like “Nirvana” and “Sound garden”. Grunge, spoke to the angry, restless and confused youth of the 90s. Canadian native Alanis Morissette, also found a place in the alternative music scene. Her song entitled “Hand in My Pocket” expressed the attitudes of the generation illuminating their duality and frustrations. She says (Morissette) “I feel drunk but I’m sober/ I’m young and I’m
The lyrics of music play an important part of interpreting the meaning of the song. The roles which women have been allowed by the society to embody have changed drastically. Women may question their roles because of what they see portrayed by popular culture or media. Change in female’s identity can be seen in how women are viewed or how they portray themselves in popular culture specifically through music. In general, music continues to...