The #1 song of 2013 was named “Blurred Lines”. With
lyrics like “I know you want it but you're a good girl. The way you grab me, must
wanna get nasty” and “you the hottest b----
in this place”, it’s enough to make a mom want to take a hammer to all the iPods
in the house.
According to Arbitron.com, 72 million people
listen to Pop radio weekly, 30% of those being females between the ages of 12
and 18. That is 21.6 million teenage girls. So, how is it the most listened to and
requested song of this past year, suggestively questioning sexual consent and possibly
encouraging rape, was so popular?
It is easy to be appalled, of course, as a
mother of a preteen daughter and a preteen and teen son. Granted, it does not
seem that long ago I was a teenager listening to music on the radio that only
now seems inappropriate. In my day it was Color Me Badd with lyrics like “let
me take off all your clothes” and BBD’s “me
and the crew used to do her”. However, in 2013 half of the top 10 songs of the
year included strong sexual references whereas in 1990 only one top 10 song
included sexually obvious lyrics.
What is our obligation to our children when it comes to
music? What do we do as parents? Is giving them the freedom to make their own
choices the right path to take and trust their judgment or should we be active
in this part of their life and make the choices that are best for them when it
comes to music?
There it is. Right there.
Chime.
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