Moreover, the rape symbolism becomes pronounced in "How Low." First, Ludacris walks through the mirror into the girls' room. Initially there were only a few females but when he steps inside, somehow there are several more girls in the room. His stepping through the mirror is a gross violation of their privacy and personal space. The act is a symbolic rape as Ludacris enters the room uninvited while the women are scantily clad. Moreover, Ludacris brings with him some male friends who don creepy white masks like that of Jason in Friday the 13th. The video then depicts some of the women running scared down the stairs, as they are being chased by these creeps in the hockey masks. The imagery is frighteningly sexist, as males are shown as preying on helpless females. Later, women are being stripped of their clothing against their will by an unseen force. They have looks of fear and dismay on their faces, which then--appallingly -- turn into looks of pleasure. Thus, the stereotype that women want to be raped is reinforced repeatedly in this video.
Stereotypes related to gender and ethnicity are also explored in pop music videos. For instance, in Ludacris's "How Low," lyrics refer to women as "French Vanilla," "Caramel," and "Chocolate" depending on their ethnicity. Then, Ludacris mentions how he is not trying to use "discrimination" but that he likes how "Asian women like to serve us." Women serve as decorative objects, but they also literally serve the men fruits, cake, and other treats.
Not all pop music videos are sexist. Many are gender neutral, while some are in fact firmly feminist. For example, OK Go's video for "This Too Shall Pass (Version 2)" has no gender references at all. The video depicts a chain-reaction project and is a gender-neutral and fun video. The lyrics are likewise gender-neutral. In Paramore's video for "Brick by Boring Brick," gender is also relatively neutral. The song is about a...
Gorillaz's video and song lyrics for "Stylo" are also decidedly gender-neutral, neither about men or women or even about their relationships.
A few pop music videos feature women in positions of power, even when those women rely on their sexuality as a source of power. For example, Ke$ha's video for "Blah Blah" features the vocalist taking full charge of her body. "Think you'll be getting this?" Ke$ha asks, pointing to her body. "Not in the back of my car," she answers her own question. She bosses around the men in the video, telling them to keep their mouth shut and stop with the titular "blah blahs." Ke$ha even wraps up a man in duct tape as if in a bondage scenario, clearly a reversal of gender roles. Moreover, men are usually surrounded by women dancers in pop music videos. For Ke$ha it is the men who revolve around her.
Similarly, Lady Gaga often shows men revolving around her. Lady Gaga's "Telephone" might be the most ironic current popular music video. The video features an all-female cast in stereotypically sexy roles in a jail cell. However, the eroticism is tongue-in-cheek. Lady Gaga's gender is questioned, as the guards wonder if she has a penis. This depiction is a refreshing acknowledgment of gender fluidity. The first person Lady Gaga kisses in the video is another female, and the thematic reference to the film Thelma and Louise is likewise an affirmation of female power. Unfortunately, Lady Gaga and other feminist pop music stars are in the minority. Most popular music videos perpetuate unfunny and potentially dangerous misogynistic trends. Those trends reflect deeper cultural norms related to gender and sexuality.
Works Cited
All videos retrieved from MTV Music Videos Web site at http://www.mtv.com/music/videos/
