Friday, January 28, 2011

Gaga wants your Bad Romance and… to read you a Bedtime Story?

My roommate mentioned this story about a “Telephone” inspired children’s book, and I needed to investigate. What a funny and disturbing idea!


Also, while on the subject of Lady Gaga, she just released lyrics to her new song, “Born this Way.” I was inspired to change the title of this blog. I’m experimenting and seeing which one I like better.

In the past, I’ve been a tough critic of Lady Gaga’s image. I wondered whether her songs empowered women or objectified them, and after critiquing her music videos I thought her messages were disempowering, and she was not doing enough to promote women’s rights in such a position of power in the music industry. My experiences over the last year have pushed me to question my thinking. While I get a little tense at the thought of eight year olds replicating Gaga’s music videos on YouTube, I admire her openly sexual, independent, strong persona. In a world where women have to constantly navigate double binds like needing to be sexy and innocent at the same time, she stands out. She talks about her sexuality without shame and doesn’t care what the people around her think. She has managed to rise above conformity, and I think her new song, “Born this Way” successfully makes that point.

She sings, “Don’t hide yourself in regret/Just love yourself and you’re set/I’m on the right track baby/I was born this way.” Now, that’s a song I want to dance to…

Here's a link to the rest of her lyrics:

1 comment:

  1. I just found an article critiquing Gaga's "Born this way", and I'm not sure how I feel about it. I agree that some of her lyrics are racist, but I still think the song has a powerful message. You decide... http://feministing.com/2011/02/09/an-open-letter-to-lady-gaga-from-a-fan-and-fellow-feminist/#more-29905

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