Wow!!! I really liked the reading for tonight, mainly because I can totally relate to it. I love music and listen especially to hip hop and a little rap. Although a lot of songs are fun and innocent many send a derogatory message about women. And if we are ok with listening to it what does that say about us? This directed free write really calls attention to the women portrayed in these songs and pushes us to question why we deem this as “just lyrics”.



In the article “Louis Chude- Sokei charges the dismissals of “slackness” lyrics as either sexist or pornographic miss the point” (378). He justifies that through these lyrics women feel empowered by their sexuality and as a result by more records than men do. “Like Chude- Sokei, Carolyn Cooper argues that sexual topics in dance- hall lyrics provide an alternative to the denial of women’s sexuality in most popular music” (378). In other words these critics argue that the harsh and often ridiculous lyrics that we sometimes hear are in fact better than other music because we are being introduced to women’s sexuality. This according to them is not degrading or negative but makes women feel as if they have some sort of control with their sexuality.



I will be the first to admit that I too listen to music that talks about women either by calling them names or putting them down. Although I don’t agree with it I still listen to the song and not just one time. But when it comes down to right and wrong, derogatory lyrics are degrading to women and shouldn’t be so widely accepted. If a man referred to a woman as slut or a whore in person he would be in the wrong but if he sings it we all dance around. There is something very sad about that. These lyrics don’t empower women, they teach them to be way too open about their sexuality.