 |
Katy Perry - One of the Boys
CD DetailsArtist: Katy Perry Brand: Baker Drivetrain Edition: Music CD CD Release Date: 2008-06-17 Model: 05099950424924 Music Label: Capitol Soundtracks: - One Of The Boys
- I Kissed A Girl
- Waking Up In Vegas
- Thinking Of You
- Mannequin
- Ur So Gay
- Hot N Cold
- If You Can Afford Me
- Lost
- Self Inflicted
- I'm Still Breathing
- Fingerprints
Music reviews of One of the BoysMusic Review: Misandry (n.): Hatred of Men Rating: 2 Stars
Sometime, 20 years from now, when the teenage girls of today are in their mid-late 30s are single and jaded, with the marriage rate declining and divorces on the uprise, they will look back toward their youth and wonder what made the difference between their generation and those that came before. That the music of Katy Perry and the sentiments of misandry it pushed upon their young, impressionable minds will be no small part of it I have no doubt.
Although she is heavily aided by a bevy of experienced songwriters and producers, I will give Perry credit where it is due. This is some very catchy pseudo-rock (no matter how gritty the music may pose itself to be this is pop at its purest, but people are more likely to buy it if it's marketed as rock), and I have no doubt she has more than enough hand in these songs with their unshakable melodies and smart, sassy wordplay.
However, the sentiments they put forth are equally angering and saddening.
Take club hit "UR So Gay," for instance. While in the context of the song there is nothing directly homophobic, by using this slur as the title and centerpiece of her song she pits straight men and gay men against each other. How? By using an anti-gay slur to cripple a man's sense of masculinity (read: straightness, since in the contemporary woman's world straight men and gay men are always polar opposite stereotypes of masculinity and femininity, respectively), she therefore validates the fact that the term "UR So Gay" is indeed insulting. This will certainly not make straight men more accepting of their gay counterparts any time soon. The man behind this review doesn't care for the fact that she tries to emasculate the subject of her song for being a vegetarian, either. Here's wishing a nice bout of Mad Cow on you, Miss Perry. How low can you go?
The double standards this 23 year-old promotes are downright horrendous, and legitimize hostility toward men, keeping women safely sequestered from ever being able to truly understand the opposite sex. This makes Miss Perry the absolute, POLAR opposite of Alanis Morissette, whom she has been touted as the natural successor to. Morissette's talents as a songwriter are unprecedentedly eloquent, due in no small part to the fact that, while certainly a feminist icon, she realizes there are differences between men and women that she will never come to fully understand, and that men, like women, are responsible for much of what is good and harmonious in the world - it's not all black and white; Perry's sentiments are the stuff of a very simple mindset.
Whereas a song on Morissette's new album is titled "In Praise of the Vulnerable Man," Perry wields the proverbial ax at men in many of her songs such as "Hot 'N Cold" (You change your mind like a girl changes clothes/Yeah, you PMS like a bitch, I would know) only to proudly declare "I Kissed a Girl" and title her album "One of the Boys," wearing the very badge of semi-androgyny she denies her male counterparts, although she cops out on the title track.
These lyrics from "If You Can Afford Me" may be the most offensive here. Strongly holding men to outdated tenets of masculinity that reigned a half-century ago, at the same time Perry declares her right to break free from similar chains, all the while cheapening herself:
"If you want me you're gonna have to break the bank tonight/`Cuz some don't have the patience, some call me high-maintenance/But you pay the bill, cuz that's the deal/If you wanna ride, just name your price, don't play cheap with your heart/Don't make a bet if you can't write the check for me, for me/`Cuz I can be bought, but you'll pay the cost/If you can afford me."
She later goes on to stipulate that one thing will be free - "a lovin' me." Of course, love only arrives after the wallet has been taken out. How convenient.
If young women continue to have sentiments like these bombarded into their consciousness by popular culture, they will never find intimacy with men, and why would any man want to put up with such double standards? More and more women will wonder why they never found the right man, and men will remain bachelors for their whole lives, never allowing themselves to be vulnerable to women beyond one-night stands. Furthermore, sentiments like these are mighty egotistical and self-aggrandizing. Feminists from groups like the AAUW argue that girls these days still suffer from intense insecurity and are "shortchanged," but if Perry and her music are any example, what they really need is a good dose of modesty.
It may sound like a lot of pressure to put on a pop music album, but that lyrics like Perry's have been accepted with open arms and little scrutiny sure says a lot about current culture's hostility toward men. As a man, I consider myself a feminist, but this is surely the most convoluted, unfair feminism I have witnessed on a mass scale.
Indeed, as she puts forth on the emotionally weighty conclusion "Fingerprints," which shows her great songwriting potential, "I'm leaving my fingerprints on you/Representing you and me/Don't you wanna go down in history?" Indeed, she is leaving her fingerprints on the minds of young listeners and representing their generation. How it will all go down in history, however, is not something to be lauded if my predictions are grounded in truth.
More One of the Boys free music reviews: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Description of One of the BoysEver since the November 2007 digital release of the hilarious, zeitgeist-capturing single "Ur So Gay," Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Katy Perry has been wowing critics and fans alike (including the Queen of Pop herself, Madonna) with her big voice, sassy attitude, and feisty, confessional songs. Katy's debut album, One of the Boys, is a sharp, witty pop-rock gem filled with candid tales of neurotic ex-boyfriends ("Hot N Cold," "Ur So Gay"), crazy road trips with friends ("Waking Up in Vegas"), and figuring out who you are along the way (first single "I Kissed A Girl," "Fingerprints"). While the album displays Katy's feisty, girl-power swagger, it also reveals her more vulnerable side on such regretful ballads as "Lost," "I'm Still Breathing," and "Thinking of You." Although just 23, the Santa Barbara, CA-born native has been writing songs and playing guitar for several years, and possesses the flair and confidence of a veteran storyteller. Catch her in all her glory this summer when she joins the Vans Warped Tour for its entire coast-to-coast run.
|
 |