Watching the music video for “Trading Places” by Usher. [Photo © Shannon Milling]
By Shannon Milling
“You can twerk it while in a split, you racking up them tips / your body rock and your booty poppin’, I’m proud to call you my bitch.”
So goes Usher’s hit track released at the end of last year titled, “I Don’t Mind,” a song about his adoration for a stripper. In the song, Usher’s pride comes only from her looks and sexual display.
While many listeners bob their heads with the rhythm and sing along to the chorus, they may not be conscious of the negative stereotypes about women songs like this perpetuate.
“(They are shown as) sexual objects, so there is absolutely no depth in the representation of the woman, but a fixation on the female body. You’re lucky if you get a full representation of that body because that body is usually just reduced to boobs and backsides.”
Eternia is a two-time Juno nominated female hip hop artist, born in Ottawa. She believes that hip hop isn’t at its root misogynist, but it is a product of a society that is.
“If you weren’t raised knowing this was appropriate and this wasn’t, you’re going to talk that way. Sometimes we are not even aware of what we say and where it came from and the fact that it’s sexist,” she says.
When a society is exposed to these types of lyrics and music videos, there may be huge consequences for both men and women.
“It becomes conceived as normal for a new generation to use terms that technically are ignorant, or inappropriate, or offensive and to not be even aware that they are offensive because everyone else around them is using them, including their idols,” Eternia explains.
Working in a male-dominated field, Eternia combats sexism by being herself. While achieving her success, she says she never used her gender as a selling point, but focused on being the best MC she could be. Her lyrics express her real thoughts and feelings, and she represents an anti-stereotype to the industry.
Jutes is an up-and-coming rapper born in Ottawa. His songs aren’t always serious, and he says they are all about being positive.
“I think the majority of people who are talking like that and acting like that are just following trends because they saw somebody famous doing it,” Jutes says.
Although he says he wants his sound to be separate from the mainstream, he has referred to women as “bitches” or “hoes” in a few of his lyrics and has had women sexualized in his music videos.
He explains that choosing this language specifically in his lyrics is “very tongue-in-cheek.” He says he isn’t trying to seriously degrade women, but he uses words that him and his friends use on a regular basis.
“My guy friends will be like ‘Yo bitch, what’s up’… We literally degrade ourselves so like, most of my stuff is pretty tongue-in-cheek, like even my videos, its like I’m always poking fun at myself…So I kinda just poke fun at everybody, like, that’s just how I am,” Jutes says.
Jutes points out it may be hard to say that hip hop will stop being sexist at some point. He says there is more discussion happening amongst feminists and especially with the internet platform which allows a range of voices to be heard.
“Feminism seems to be making a strong, strong comeback, so probably ya, it will probably end. I think that right now just based on what I see on social media and like a lot of celebrities are standing up these days with feminism and stuff like that,” he says.
Pius Adesanmi is a professor from Carleton University who includes pop culture and feminism in his research interests.
He says that most mainstream artists in hip hop culture foster a shallow and superficial representation of women.
“(They are shown as) sexual objects, so there is absolutely no depth in the representation of the woman, but a fixation on the female body. You’re lucky if you get a full representation of that body because that body is usually just reduced to boobs and backsides,” Adesanmi says.
Something to be considered, he points out, is the fact that female artists in pop culture and hip hop are also feeding into the issue and actively participating in it.
“Every female artist no matter how talented they are across races … they feel the need to sell flesh, they feel the need to project flesh,” Adesanmi explains.
Elaborating, he says he doesn’t understand the extent of the women’s choice in the matter, as the industry is so patriarchal that they may succumb to many pressures from levels of their management. Regardless of how successful the female artists are, he says it doesn’t make a difference in them being sexualized.
“All I know is that female artists are just as guilty as male artists,” he says.
According to a thesis by JK Larsen, from The University of Oslo in Norway, there was a major switch in content for hip hop music. Rap was more politically focused in the early 1980s and was labelled “message rap,” which brought to light social issues and inequalities. At the end of the 1980s, the “gangsta rap” movement took hold. This genre still explored social issues, but also included lyrics about homicide and demeaning attitudes towards women.
Feminist activists are challenging this industry, pointing out that the meaning of these messages affects all people. Many are using social media as a way to make their case.
Last year, many lashed out at Robin Thicke during his Twitter Q and A under the hashtag #AskThicke. The session was to promote his newest album, but the feed erupted with criticisms. Many spoke out against the controversial lyrics of his hit, “Blurred Lines” when it came out for apparently promoting and encouraging a lack of sexual consent. This analysis transferred to the Twitterverse, and it fuelled further discussion and a big message to the artist.
One Twitter user, under the handle @LaurenHarsh1 said, “#AskThicke If one of your songs played in a forest and no one was around to hear it would it still be sexist and gross?”
Although some may disregard the importance of analyzing popular jams, many see the influence in the words sung on the radio.
“Music is power, it’s representation, it’s identity. It moves into the very idea of role models, you know, for young women [and men] out there. It’s a version of culture, of youth culture. It goes into so many things,” Adesanmi says.
Discussing music through a feminist lens
This is an interview with Nasreen Rajani. She is a PhD student from the School of Journalism and Communication at Carleton University. She focuses on the intersections of technology, media and feminism.
