Hey Robin Thicke, I also hate these “Blurred Lines.” The song of this past summer, “Blurred Lines” by Robin Thicke featuring T.I. and Pharrell has created an uproar among many people for promoting rape culture with lyrics like: “Okay now he was close, tried to domesticate you/But you’re an animal, baby, it’s in your nature,” and “I hate these blurred lines/I know you want it…but you’re a good girl.”
When I heard the song for the first time I was distracted by the killer beat and didn’t pay attention to the lyrics. However, when the radio host announced the song was called “Blurred Lines,” I stopped my awkward car dancing and said, “Um what?” I listened to the song again when I got home and paid attention to the lyrics. I was astounded.
Everyone has his or her own interpretation of what “Blurred Lines” entails. For me, it is when a girl or a guy is drunk and says they want to have sex but you are not sure if it’s just the alcohol talking. Maybe Thicke wanted to write a song making fun of creepy old men that has a good beat but ultimately, he just glorified rape culture.
“Feminist in LA” blogger Lisa Huyne wrote last April, “Basically, the majority of the song has the R&B singer murmuring ‘I know you want it’ over and over into a girl’s ear. Call me a cynic, but that phrase does not exactly encompass the notion of consent in sexual activity. Seriously, this song is disgusting — though admittedly very catchy.”
Fortunately, in this day in age, you can always find parodies that describe your feelings perfectly. My personal favorite parody of this song is “Defined Lines” which is by three women at Auckland University. The video features the three women singing lyrics like “We ain’t good girls/We are scholastic/Smart and sarcastic/Not f—ing plastic,” and “If you wanna get nasty/Just don’t harass me/You can’t just grab me/That’s a sex crime/Yeah we don’t want it.” Preach it sisters. The video also features men dancing in their underwear, a response to the half-naked women in Thicke’s video.
So what’s Thicke’s response to the backlash?
In an interview with GQ Magazine this spring, Thicke said, “We tried to do everything that was taboo. Bestiality, drug injections, and everything that is completely derogatory towards women. Because all three of us are happily married with children, we were like, ‘We’re the perfect guys to make fun of this.’ People say, ‘Hey, do you think this is degrading to women?’ I’m like, ‘Of course it is. What a pleasure it is to degrade a woman. I’ve never gotten to do that before. I’ve always respected women.’”
Oh my.
Although, as I stated above, I don’t condone the lyrics of this song but I sometimes wonder how society would have reacted if the song wasn’t called “Blurred Lines” and if the video wasn’t so degrading. The music industry is constantly objectifying women and there are always songs degrading women, so why don’t we take notice or have a stronger reaction to those?
How can we stop this cycle? Don’t listen to or buy songs that have degrading lyrics. Don’t watch the music videos on YouTube. Although I like the beat of “Blurred Lines,” I still don’t listen to it. Don’t sacrifice your values for a good beat.
I hope that “Blurred Lines” will help direct more attention to offensive song lyrics and the music industry stops objectifying women and promoting rape culture. Let’s have songs with good beats that celebrate women.
