Lady Gaga Feminism: End Of Normal

Dissent is deeply intertwined with music. Music gives a voice to groups who are silenced by oppression, it gives people a purpose, and it can create political movements. From the Sex Pistols to Bikini Kill, and now more recently Pussy Riot, all of these bands perform as both musicians and as political activists. In the case of Pussy Riot; their disruption of the mundane through their guerilla performances is form of active dissent against the Putinist regime. Following the 2011 protests, Pussy Riot was part of a larger political moment in Russian history as people took to the streets and took to art as a way of voicing their disgust with the corruption in the Duma. Decked out in balaclavas and bright colors, these women follow the punk tradition of protest through disruption and outcry against oppression in their lyrics. Some critics of Pussy Riot, such as the Russian Government, may say that their actions are not protest, but rather “hooliganism” and that their disruptions have no purpose, but Pussy Riot’s lyrics and performances are clear intersections of artistic expressionism, revolting against the Putinist regime, and a call to action.

In her article “The Venus Hip Hop and the Pink Ghetto: Negotiating Spaces for Women,” Imani Perry argues that the objectification of women in the music industry is normalized in our society. Her purpose is to persuade us that most feminists who fight against the objectification and exploitation of women are ultimately colonized by the sexual fantasies of men. As a law professor at Rutgers Law School, Perry structures her text in a very effective manner. Using a general-to-specific organization scheme, she begins by outlining the recurring image of sexualized women in music videos, then presenting various cases of prominent feminist figures in the music industry.

Women’s music came from radical, grassroots origins in the 1970s thanks to contributions by brave women, mostly lesbians (Mosbacher, 2002). These women used non-violent, peaceful force to forge their own way into the music industry. It was a peaceful yet political revolution of togetherness and liberation. It brought together women of different backgrounds who produced easy-listening, mellow harmonies played with lyrics filled with tumultuous

Popular music is often one of the best lenses we have through which to view our own cultural orientation. Many of the artistic and experimental shifts in popular music have mirrored changes in our own society. For instance, the emergence of Elvis Presley as a public figure would signal the start of a sexual revolution and the growth in visibility of a rebellious youth culture. Similarly, the folk and psychedelic music of the 1960s was closely entangled with the Civil Rights, anti-war and social protest movements. In this regard, we can view popular music as an artifact through which to better understand the time and place in which it is produced. In light of this, the state of popular music today may suggest troubling things about our society.

When people think of popular music they think of party beats created for pure entertainment and nothing more. People do not see this genre of music as capable of anything else. The stigma of popular music only being a form of amusement for the mass consumer is challenged when artists use music to attract attention to social issues. This paper intends to show how music like Raï challenge the thought that popular music is only for entertainment.

The only thing more powerful in mobilizing symbols, sentiments, and sensibilities than popular culture, is personal and shared experiences. What is so potent about pop culture however, is the ability of its participants to share their personal experiences to audiences than can both empathize and relate to the realities these artists present. This extended period of the civil rights and black power era can arguably be defined as the mobilization of the larger public by popular black figures whose individual charismas and drive inspired collective action. Some of these figures were exclusively political, many of which prominent intellects of race academia and/or known for their discourses that captivated thousands. And then there were figures that used their influence as musicians or writers who, with access beyond those with a conscious interest in politics, could incite people to think and reevaluate their lived realities through song and performance. Nina Simone is perhaps the most politically significant figure of the latter group, as she not only actively participated as a proponent of civil rights efforts, but became a pioneer in black power and feminist ideology.

Gaga Feminism was an ideal conceptualized by Halberstam as an ideal that aims to deconstruct sexuality, sex, and gender. This reading seems to come from a lesbian feminist perspective, which focuses on the empowerment of women over men specifically. On the other hand, this writer described that Gaga Feminism was grounded in the status quo and less concerned with equality and deconstruction.

Feminism as an idea has been actively intersected and integrated within the western mainstream pop culture progressively since the beginning of the 21st century. Some of the largest players in the current mainstream music scene not only identify as feminist but also encourage their millions of fans to do the same. While this could potentially be a positive influence on a movement that has struggled to gain larger scale mainstream representation since it’s beginnings in the 19th centaury, this essay aims to explore the damage it is inevitably causing to the movement.

Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, known famously by her stage name, Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter and performance actress. Active since 2001, Gaga achieved international fame upon the release of her first album The Fame in 2008 featuring hits including Just Dance, Paparazzi and Poker Face. Her subsequent albums The Fame Monster (2009), Born This Way (2011), Artpop (2013) and Cheek to Cheek (2014) helped secure her foothold as an eccentric and versatile pop star selling a combined 28 million copies. Her achievements also include six Grammy Awards, 13 MTV Music Video Awards, 13 Guinness World Records for music and social media related achievements, the Songwriter's Hall of Fame's Contemporary Icon Award and frequent listings by Billboard, Forbes and Time magazines as one of the most influential and powerful person of the past decade. As an icon, Gaga creates her artistic identity

A brief analysis of the lyrical content of many popular songs substantiates the fact that sexism and misogyny are significant problems within music today. In an article called Music and Misogyny: why we’re

To this extent it is debated whether disco’s sexual politics was regarded as either progressive or regressive. Nonetheless, Echols argues that once it moved into pop mainstream “it became marked, even tainted, not just as ‘soulless soul’ but as girls’ music.”(72) She also expands to the fact that though it may have been seen to be a female’s genre, some argued what effect disco would have on women's liberation. In a Rolling Stones Article, Stephen Holden characterized Donna Summer as an ‘“inflatable sex machine as insatiable as she is helpless.’” (74) This change in America’s sxual politics did not go over easily with some, creating ambivalence and agitating resistance in the world of pop music. “Disco sucks” became the summoning force of those, especially rockers who were tired of the authoritative beat and drive of disco. However, in the world of disco that drive grew more and more benevolent. As disco became more of itself and truly started to shape, it also grew to be more feminine and along with that it became evenly more devalued. Yet this is in association to the muscled, mustached gay men who became the assault force against the

This idea of the average American family, does not accurately depict our society. With the image of this ideal household, this sets a standard that may be impossible for some, due to their race, gender, class, sexuality, etc. Heterosexuality is never questioned or threaten within society because it is normal. Not only is it a political institution, but it is contributing to the constructions of the gender binary. In Compulsory Heterosexuality, the concept of becoming a mother is brought the reader’s attention. Women are emotionally available and caring towards others so, they make for great mothers. There are plenty of women who choose not to be mothers, does this make them any less of a women because they do not fall under the definition of the female binary. On page 637 of Compulsory Heterosexuality the author writes, “I am suggesting that heterosexuality, like motherhood, needs to be recognized and studied as a political institution-even, or especially by those individuals who feel they are, in their personal experience, the precursors of a new relation between the sexes.” Now, the gender binary, family gives society the impression that the men have to be hard working and to provide for his family. While the women are expected to take care of everything else and take care of the

The context of this song develops a strong social, historical and cultural environment of this song and background of what was going for people to understand and appreciate about what Lady GaGa is trying to inform others about. The social environment of the song is that people keep rejecting and bulling others for their gender or sexuality as well as the historical environment of the song is that people’s colour or religion has been used against them and they have been put into slavery and low positions in the world. Finally the cultural environment of the song is people and colours, marriage and gender. The background of the song is people have rejected people though out time who want to marry the same gender as them and slavery cause by people colour which was what happened to cause Born This Way to be written. This message is still relevant at the moment as people are still being effect by it but people are

Lady Gaga has become the most influential Pop music artist of our time. An artist's job is to take an image, be it through words or sound, lyrics or song; that explains what it's like to be alive at that time. What makes Lady Gaga's art so unique is that it captures the period we're in right now. Lady Gaga has in the last year and a half become a household name. Maybe you have heard one of her catchy tunes on the radio, and have had the lyrics stuck in your head all day. Perhaps you have seen one of her crazy outfits on TV. Whatever the case Lady Gaga has proven whether it be through music, or fashion that

When one hears the word “feminist”, many different things may come to mind. One may think of the “bra burning” feminists of the 1960s or the “riot grrrl” feminists of the 1990s. It can bring to mind issues such as abortion, birth control, and unfair wages. There are many different aspects of feminism, some of which are understood only by those involved in the movement. But like most things people are passionate about, feminism has held a strong place in music since its very beginning, and can be seen in its festivals, its politics, and in the average American’s everyday life.