Monday, March 29, 2010

Lady Gaga -- Art Or Porn...?

A friend and I went on a shopping trip to West Vancouver the other day, and as we were driving over the Lions Gate Bridge I heard a song by Lady Gaga on my friend's car radio. "Who is that?" I asked her, "She has a great voice." My friend said that was Lady Gaga and asked me if I had ever heard of her. Well, of course I had, but I had never heard her sing. So, last night I thought I would check out some of her videos on YouTube. Marigold has a birthday coming up, and I was thinking I would be "cool" and perhaps get her a CD.

Um ... no.

I must be turning into a prude *gasp*, but when did popular music -- you know, the music kids listen to and watch -- become XXX-rated? These folks are putting exotic dancers like Candy, Bambi and Foxy out of business. I guess I have been living under a rock for the past decade or so, because I had no idea. I tried listening to the lyrics, but I turned it off when she started singing about her muffin. And no, I don't think she was referring to her grandmother's special recipe for raisin bran. Oh, goodness... It's too bad; she really does have a nice voice.

38 comments:

desi said...

I AGREE!!! :)

Linda said...

Where do these people come from?

The Bug said...

LOL. I just realized the other day when Dr. M was complaining that his classes don't get his pop culture references - we're SO behind the times! Never watch movies, never listen to new music... And I AM a prude - I'm afraid of it all LOL.

Katy said...

This would be why my daughter is not allowed to watch the Nickelodeon Kid Choice Awards, and we talk about the fact that she can like a TV show and the characters in them, she can have fun listening to someone's music, but she should in no way idolize the actors/musicians that portray these rolls and sing these songs.

I'm not sure when "becoming an adult" meant you had to be an alcoholic drugged up sex fiend, but that seems to be the standard now. I have nothing aginst these people if they want to sell that as entertainment, just don't try to sell it to my kid please.

So if it makes you feel better, I'm 27 and I'm a prude.

Teri said...

It's garbage. Everyone is looking for their schtick to they too can be a "celebrity". Everyone is allowed to voice their opinion... as long as it's outrageous. If it's a conservative opinion...oh my goodness! "You can't say that!"

scarlethue said...

It's nothing that Madonna or Britney Spears didn't do. Not that that makes it ok... just not new. Lady Gaga annoys me. I don't listen to "popular" music radio anymore. My radio stays tuned to NPR, or I pop in a cd. And I'm only 27!

Brenda said...

It always surprises me how many fans these people attract. That is the really scary part...to me.

Alicia said...

I too really loved her voice, then I listened to the lyrics and I would never buy her cds.

Kathy's Klothesline said...

Her parents must be so proud......

L. D. said...

She forgot that she was pitching a song and not the other stuff.

Deb said...

You are not a prude, Jo. Today's musicians go way too far for a hit.

Cedar said...

GaGa is the 21rst version of Elton John. I prefer Pink myself.

Canarybird said...

I'm from The Beatles generation when pop music had great and lasting melodies. I don't understand what they are putting out nowadays. LOL.

kenju said...

I agree with the last comment. The only time I have seen her was on the awards show, with Elton John. I thought she was so much "flash in the pan" and all for shock value.

heartinsanfrancisco said...

I also have not heard her sing or seen her videos, but based on her still photos am pretty certain that I wouldn't enjoy her performance.

I also prefer my muffins with cranberries or apples. On a plate. :)

Russell said...

I am out of it. I have no clue who this person is. I guess I have become my father.

I remember Cher used to push the envelope. I liked singers like Kim Carnes and Stevie Nicks. I saw Stevie Nicks in concert one night and she was totally wasted, as the saying goes. She even forgot the lyrics to her songs.

At one point she said "Where the f**k am I?" It was her birthday and she had started celebrating a bit early.

I guess some things never change.

Nezzy (Cow Patty Surprise) said...

I'm sayin! She does have a lovely voice.

God bless and have a wonderful day!

KrippledWarrior said...

They don't come any more ultra conservative than Me. And I'm the GAGA Lady's number one fan. Who said her music was for your kids?

Rosaria Williams said...

I guess a good voice is just not enough to make it these days.

Judi said...

I don't care for it myself but my
9-year-old great niece with Asperger's Disorder loves her.

Judi said...

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Mclndesm said...

I love Lady Ga-Ga, but to each his own. Funny post though

Marguerite said...

She seems like another "Madonna wanna be", to me. My two twenty somethings keep me up on all of the current pop. It is her energy that they like! And she does have a nice voice.

Cloudia said...

Let's dance!




Aloha from Hawaii my Friend


Comfort Spiral

Mia said...

It's art. Unless she has live sex shows on stage. Even then it could be art. You don't have to like something for it to be art. I don't care much for Picasso but I'd never deny that his work was art.

There are 2 criteria for reaching old age. When you'd rather go to bed than go out and party and when you complain about the younger generation's music.

Everybody does it sooner or later. We complain about today's music, our parents complained about our music, our children will complain about their children's music. Today's Eminem fans will one day look back fondly on the days when lyrics meant something and music was great.

Wolynski said...

Manet's paintings - the picnic with the naked woman and Olympia caused a scandal in their day - people thought it was porn.

Lady Gaga has a fabulous voice (speaking of porn, Madonna doesn't). Boundaries are being pushed, we just have to get used to it.

PinkPanthress said...

I only liked her 1'st or 2'nd Single in her starting Career, but everything else of her is just too much!
The (wo)-man shoves so much sex down our throats, it's disgusting. So I don't really care fore her!

Besides she copies too much other Singers for my taste.
Whenever I see her in some of her Outfits, she resembles Róisín Murphy, Madonna(in the 90'ties) and/or Christina Aguilera! No own concepts & ideas the woman has got... :C

Jo said...

Hello, everyone, thank you for your wonderful comments. I agree Lady Gaga has an amazing voice. When I heard her, I wondered who she was. And I agree that is her art, but most art is age-related, i.e., movies, literature, painting. My question is, how many people would sit a child down with a package of cigarettes, a bottle of whiskey, and the book Lady Chatterly's Lover? They are not age appropriate. Neither is Lady Gaga. It's not a generational thing, complaining about this generation's music. I like Lady Gaga's music -- for adults. And yes, boundaries are being pushed, but do they have to be pushed onto children? I remember when I was about 10 years old, and my much older brother's friend had a *gasp* Playboy magazine. My brother wasn't allowed to bring it in the house, but I managed to see it and it showed me a "grownup" world that I was not quite ready to see. I think the same thing applies to Lady Gaga, et al. Are kids really ready for an almost naked woman to be grabbing her crotch and singing,

"Your love is nothing i can't fight
Can't sleep with the man who dims my shine

I'm in the bedroom with tissues and when
I know you're outside banging that i won't let you in
'cause it's a hard life with love in the world
And i'm a hard girl loving me is like chewing on pearls

You've got me wandering why
I I like it rough
I I like it rough
I I like it rough"


I dunno ... call me a prude, I guess. That's adult content.

Laurie said...

It all started with that Sinatra kid, and it's been going downhill ever since. LOL! Seriously, it seems every generation has the "shocking" artist that the younger crowd loves and the adults tsk-tsk over - Sinatra, Elvis, The Beatles, Jim Hendrix, The Doors (I could write a whole essay on my grandmother's apoplexy over The Doors), Madonna, Marilyn Manson...etc. The problem is, the succeeding generation has to push the envelope that much MORE. Gaga has a great voice, but the music leaves me cold. I'm very much into pre-war (as in WWII) blues, country, and jazz these days. That Jimmie Rodgers...oh my... ;-)

PhilipH said...

Ga-Ga - odd sorta name. Not my cuppa tea.

What is she trying to portray, I ask myself. Is she a singer, an 'exotic' dancer, a porno or what?

In my opinion she should make her mind up and stick to one thing. She could try pole-dancing too until she gets too old and tired.

Still, if you like what she does that's OK. Me? I'd rather watch the grass grow.

Rajlakshmi said...

agree with you... its all marketing... everythings has to sell...

Katy said...

I just wanted to add again that I agree with those commentors who argue that her music and shows are art. She is pushing boundries for shock value, she's just like Madonna. I get it and honestly don't have a problem with it. But Madonna wasn't marketed to small children. Her vedios were only shown on MTV (not a kid centric network)

The difference here, and the point that I feel Jo is making is that Lady Ga Ga IS marketed to kids. She was nominated for 1, but 2 Kid's Choice awards. I honestly don't see a lot of difference between the music of today and the music of 20 years ago, I just notice a difference in who the music is being played for and that is what I have a problem with.

Jo said...

Katy, yes! We are robbing children of their innocence and childhood, when that is what is marketed to them as the "current" trendy music they should be listening to -- and watching. I just don't get it...!

A human kind of human said...

Yeah, they are pushing the envelope, but what happens when the table ends? Just wondering!

Whitney Lee said...

The other day the 4 yr old daughter of a friend was here and started singing a song she'd obviously heard on the radio with her mother. It went something like "Shush girl, hush your lips. Do the Helen Keller and talk with your hips." I understand that it may have a catchy beat, but I was horrified! It's inappropriate in the extreme (and I find the song pretty derogatory to women). It's really sad that I can't even have half the radio stations on when my daughter's in the car because of the inappropriate content of half the songs.

Land of shimp said...

Do you know, I actually like Lady Gaga, Jo. Her lyrics are absolutely nothing compared to rap music, but that's hardly the point. Here's why I like her -- the entertainment industry treats everyone as a product. An image is honed. Whenever we see someone interviewed, or a magazine piece down, a lot of what is said is about that structured image.

The people we admire, it's difficult to know them, their clothes are selected by stylists, their image maintained by PR consultants. Agents help them choose projects, and it's all about selling themselves as a marketable commodity.

The reason I like Lady Gaga, is risque lyrics and all, she chooses not to play that game by making herself the outrageous, ridiculous, performance artiest she is. She refuses to be known by any mass marketed labeling, and she's created this absurd, and yes...smutty...persona. At one point she went everywhere with a teacup held to her lips.

I enjoy absurdist displays, and that's what she's doing. Rather than have a constructed veneer by a team of publicists, she makes it very obvious that her entire persona is contrived.

Do you know, I actually think there might be value in younger people understanding that about entertainers. I'm neither here nor there on risque lyrics. Kids are going to be exposed to all sorts of things that make my hair want to fall out, and suggestive lyrics are rather low on that scale.

But knowing that a young woman could decide to mock an industry that values women solely for their looks? That's worthwhile. She's very individual, and that's another worthwhile message.

So in her case it is a case of separating the wheat from the chaff, and it's both present in her.

A.M. said...

I can't stand anything to do with her. Why do we let people with severe mental problems rule over our kids. The other day my sister said "look what my 2 1/2 yr old can do" - and I was horrified when he started singing to one of her songs. Hopefully people will stop this craziness about her soon. ewwwwwwww and YUCK!

Paula Slade said...

Totally weird with limited talent - a voice range that encompasses about four notes. Definitely not a role model! (Can you tell I'm not a fan?)