Socially Acceptable... Since When?

It seems now that just about everyone is familiar with the summer hit by Robin Thicke, T.I and Pharrell Williams. And it's true. 'Blurred Lines' was this summer's anthem. You could hear it just about anywhere; clubs, restaurants, shops, radios, music channels. So why was it such a huge hit? The catchy lyrics and the energetic beat went hand in hand making this song loved by most. But when you actually dig a little deeper, this song has a dark underlying meaning. To put it bluntly, the song seems to revolve around the idea of rape. All you have to do is look at the lyrics more closely and realise that half the things they are singing about are linked very closely to serious rape cases.

"I know you want it,

You're a good girl"

"Do it like it hurt,

Like it hurt"

"I'll give you something bit enough

to tear you ass in two"

Many rape victims have heard these lines. So why is it acceptable for artists like Robin Thicke to incorporate this into his music? And when I say acceptable I don't mean that everyone likes the lyrics, I mean that in society today we have almost come to accept this vulgar nature of certain men to be a cultural norm. I myself have younger siblings who enjoy singing along to 'Blurred Lines', they don't understand the meaning behind it, and nor should they, but we allow these songs to be played everywhere and so often that of course children will pick up on them. 

It seems now that parodies of 'Blurred Lines' have started to rise on YouTube. One of the most successful parodies, known as 'Defined Lines' has received over two and a half million views on YouTube. When you watch the video its fairly obvious as to why it will of been a huge success with many feminists.

Robin Thicke was certainly not the first male artist to have songs like this, but he won't be the last either. Example number two; 50 cent, an american rapper most famous for his song 'Candy Shop', the chorus line of this song being:

"I'll let you lick the lollipop
Go 'head girl, don't you stop
Keep going till you hit the spot"

We may not be able to control what the radios deem acceptable to play in the middle of the afternoon, but we can control what our children witness on the television. Music videos today have become a style of soft porn. Tinie Tempah's recent release 'Trampoline' is just one of the hundreds of music videos that sexually exploit a woman's body image. They show these slim girls with larger breasts than the average woman, parading around in next to nothing.

Music videos have been banned in the past for having inappropriate content, so why aren't half naked women seen as "inappropriate content"? Eminem had his music video for 'Just Lose It' banned from the american satellite channel 'Black Entertainment TV' because it showed his parody of the unfortunate situation that Michael Jackson found himself in regarding child molestation. Was that a justified reason for banning the video? 

I myself wonder what shifted over time for this to happen, doesn't anyone miss the days when you could see this on your television;

Footloose Music Video

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