The, Blurred Lines, By Robin Thicke

The Hip Hop music industry is infamous for being controversial. In the article Hip Hop’s Betrayal of Black Women there’s a debate on whether the exploitation and constant verbal slander of women should be acceptable just because it sales records. It presents the question that why is it that male poverty breeds sexism? Even though women may have lived in the same environment males still see women as the enemy in their music in an effort to sell records.

Charlotte Church speaks out about this issue saying “The culture of demeaning women in pop music is so ingrained as to become routine, from the way we are dealt with by management and labels, to the way we are presented the public” (Chase par. 9). This leads to questions, for example, must women be sexualized to gain greater earnings? Does sex truly sell? When we examine artists such as Julia Hotter, HAIM, or Polica, we perceive them as strong artists who are unrestricted in their art by their gender or sexuality. However, when comparing their success, sexualized women have dominated the music industry. Chase explains that women are allowed to fill three main roles in modern pop music: One of the Girls’ Girls, the Victim/ Torch Singer, and Unattainable Sexbot. Artists such as Beyoncé would be considered “One of the Girls’ Girls” who are for women power and are considered empowering. Adele is considered a “Victim/Torch Singer” even though she does not use sexuality to sell records, lyrically, she perceives the wronged women and creates a state of despair. An “Unattainable Sexbot” would be, without a doubt, Miley Cyrus, whose main goal is to be the most successful in the music industry by being hyper-sexualized and unrealistic. If an artist does not fit into one of these categories, they generally have a much harder time being one of the most successful in the music

The misogynistic treatment of women in commercialized rap has become a widespread phenomenon which as a result has become commonly accepted by majority of the individuals in society. Rappers, in general, nowadays use women in their videos in a way which is both derogatory and exploiting. Black men in today’s society, especially in the entertainment industry, do not see women as their equals; rather they objectify them as being nothing more than sex objects. People in the Hip Hop industry do not believe that sexism and misogyny is as big of a deal as racism, thus they push this issue to the side by simply ignoring it and learning to accept it. This misogynistic portrayal of women is ruining the image if Hip Hop as both an industry and a form of expressive art. However, instead of taking action against this atrocity, many women simply believe that the images of women and their portrayal in rap videos does not represent nor refer to them as an individual and the type of woman they truly are. By being silent these women are allowing themselves to be victimized by the men of not only the Hip Hop industry but also general society. By not having a say in this matter of the false classification and portrayal of women, they are voluntarily allowing men to do whatever they please to do so, in any given time and with any approach they feel is necessary. They do not

In the essay, “Hip-Hop’s Betrayal Of Black Women”(221), by Jennifer McLune, she vents her feelings regarding hip-hop songs that are rhythmically diminishing the value of black women. She provides example on how the lyrics are being voiced and how hip-hop artists do not seem to care. Kevin Powell in “Notes of a Hip Hop Head” writes, “Indeed, like rock and roll, hip-hop sometimes makes you think we men don’t like women much at all, except to objectify them as trophy pieces or, as contemporary vernacular mandates, as baby mommas, chicken heads, or bitches” (221). There have been apologizes for what the rappers have said but nothing to resolve the dehumanization of black women. McLune informs the readers that hip-hop singers belittle black women and make them invisible. Jay-Z, a popular hip-hop artist is brought to center stage by McLune. The essay shows the example of a part of Jay-Z song that says, “I pimp hard on a trick, look Fuck if your leg broke bitch hop on your good foot” (222). This lyric is a perfect example of how hip-hop artist have no remorse in the words they sing. The hurt feelings and loss of self-esteem black women suffer, is of no concern to the rappers. McLune expresses that those who are underground hip-hop artist follow the footsteps on being sexist and using crude words in their lyrics just because they yearn and dream of being in the spotlight. Upcoming rappers want to be loved like Jay-Z and other famous notorious rappers.

Robin Thicke’s music video to his song “Blurred Lines” avidly contributes to the patriarchy, while portraying sexism, gender standards, and beauty standards. His music video can be analyzed from a feminist theory approach, as it’s evident that his song and video contribute to a patriarchal society and its inherently sexist and sexualized ideologies. The ideology behind the song and music video is purely sexual and about male dominance. The lyrics to the song and actions in the video exhibit extreme over sexualization and objectification of the women. Analyzing this piece of popular culture through a feminist approach opens up a provoking conversation about how popular culture functions in a patriarchal culture. Analyzing pop culture though a feminist theory can allow for a larger variety and more in-depth analysis about the social aspects and political agenda within popular culture.

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.

The above article discusses a study conducted that tested whether exposure to rap music increases sexism within males. The study did not give any direct concrete evidence that rap music causes misogyny. Yet it brought up some useful insights that were supported by the study. Initially, they discovered that listening to non-sexist songs still led to some type of sexist behavior. This finding is relevant as it shows that it might not solely be the lyrics that are responsible for sexism within music. People can be instinctively associating rap music with being misogynistic. Another finding was that misogynistic lyrics prime young males to behave sexually aggressive temporarily. This reading is important for this topic as it disregards the popular belief that rap music causes sexism, but it also takes in account that rap music can prime young males to be slightly more aggressive. While this study cannot be used to promote any type of censorship in media, it can still encourage the music industry to reevaluate the material they are launching to public, especially the young generation.

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

Misogyny exists not only in Hip-Hop but also in American society as a whole. Objectified female bodies are everywhere: in advertising, on magazine covers, and television and movie screens. In Hip-Hop women are exploited and viewed as objects. In raps they are often called “bitches” and “hoes”, and place them in music videos half-naked furthering the

The essay, “From Fly-Girls to Bitches and Hos,” discusses the pervasive misogyny found in hip-hop lyrics.The author, Joan Morgan, argues that by comprehending what is occurring in the hip-hop culture to generate

It is suggested that one of the reasons why artists use misogynistic lyrics in their music is that they have internalized the negative stereotypes about women that are prevalent in American society. African women were historically portrayed as animalistic sexual beasts and African males in a submissive role, giving in to wild instinct or bodily impulses. The internalization of such stereotypes may be a possible explanation of the hyper sexuality within certain hip hop music. Various authors have argued that misogyny is merely an outgrowth of the cultural acceptance of misogyny at large.

For twelve weeks Blurred Lines was at the top of the Billboard 100 charts and could be heard thumping from speakers everywhere. Sung by Robin Thicke and featuring prominent rappers T.I. Harris and Pharrell, this track was proclaimed the anthem for summer 2013 . At the surface the song is seemingly harmless with a cheery rhythmic beat and catchy lyrics, but when examining the song and accompanying music video, Blurred Lines is anything but harmless. Dubbed “that rape song” by many discerning listeners, Blurred Lines is a song about the blurred lines of consent. With gems such as “You’re an animal, just let me liberate you” and “I’ll give you somethin’ big enough to tear yo ass in two” featured throughout the song it is astonishing how

The 1980’s consisted of several historical events and societal changes that have been relived though the lyrics of many young hip-hop artists. Of the numerous genres of songs, hip-hop has been labeled as of the most relatable genres. During this 1980’s, many of the songs that were written by male hip-hop artist tend to focus on the relationship aspect of male and female interactions. This finding is similar to what was stated in Frith’s article (1986) that most successful pop songs were about being “happy in love” and “frustrated in love” as well as having a sex interest (p. 78). Instead of using derogatory terms to describe women, men felt the need to use more delicate and gentle terms. Through their music, artists portrayed women as individuals who provide love, support, happiness and fulfillment to a man’s life. Furthermore, male artists portrayed themselves as men who weren’t afraid to express their emotions, admit their dependency on women, and their willingness to do what it takes to keep a woman. There were no signs of hypermasculinity or dominance in the first few songs

Women have consistently been perceived as second-class citizens. Even now, in times when a social conscience is present in most individuals, in an era where an atmosphere of gender equality 'supposedly' exists, it is blatantly apparent that the objectification and marginalization of women is still a major social issue. In reality, progression in terms of reducing female exploitation has been stagnant at best. Not only is the degradation of women a major problem that to date has not been eradicated, but it is actually being endorsed by some music celebrities. There are a growing number of people who purchase rap albums that support the fallacy that women are mere objects and should be treated as such. As the popularity of rap continues to

Blurred Lines is a popular summer song that is constantly played on the radio. A song like “Blurred Lines” should not be played on public radio. A big problem with “Blurred Lines” is that it attempts to normalize disrespectful behavior towards women. Robin Thicke teamed up with rapper T.I. and singer-producer Pharrell to deliver arguably this summer’s most popular song. The song “Blurred Lines” has placed number one on the billboard hot 100 and has sold over one million copies. Critical reception of the track is mostly positive. Yet with the success comes a not so positive response. When first listening to the song a person might find themselves nodding your head to a catchy tune, but perhaps once a person listens closely to the lyrics some people may not want this song on their iPods.