Breakthrough pop star Meghan Trainor dropped the video for her latest single, 'Dear Future Husband', earlier this week and let's just say that it did NOT go down well with the internet, with some even going as far as to deeming it the 'Worst Song of 2015'. After recently causing controversy by claiming she 'doesn't consider herself a feminist' and body-shaming 'skinny b*tches' in the lyrics of her hit song, 'All About That Bass', many fans were already beginning to question the propriety of their role model when this new release showed to be the final straw. However, as with all issues like this - it never is quite as black and white as we'd like it to be in a perfect world. Let's weigh up all the evidence and have a closer look at the song:
YES
In many people's eyes, the entire song is pretty much perpetuating the notion that a female's only dream in life is to get married and mould themselves into a human being who exists only to please her husband. With lyrics such as 'I'll be the perfect wife, buying groceries' and scenes of Trainor scrubbing the floor while wearing stilettos, it's undeniable that the fundamental message of the song is certainly outdated. Reeling off a list of requirements, it seems that the only things you need to do in order to capture a woman's heart are 'Take me on a date', 'After every fight, just apologise', 'Tell me I'm beautiful every night', 'Don't forget the flowers', 'Open doors' and 'Buy me a ring'. Y'know, almost as if women are nothing but shallow creatures that rely on material gifts, hollow compliments and platitudinous pleasantries. The entire song is heavily focused on the physical attributes of women and the man's incentive for doing all these wonderful things for his wife is the prospect of getting to 'try rock her body right'. This frequent objectification of the female body and insinuation that women have no intellectual substance is an issue that feminists have been attempting to conquer for decades, so it's no wonder that so many feel that conveying the message that all females are good at is looking pretty will have a detrimental effect on all we've achieved.
There is a rather interesting section of the lyrics which seem to have been skipped over by many, in which Trainor quips, 'You got that 9 to 5 / but, baby, so do I' and warns her future husband not to think 'I'll be at home baking apple pies'. This seems to contrast greatly against the previous lyrics and eliminates any prior portrayal of a housewife being the only ideal job for a female to have. Despite this, some argue that it is important to remember that the music video has an intended 50's theme, thus is it so wrong to innocuously recreate something that's in the past? I'll leave that one for you to answer as I'm sure there's a huge amount of debate over the possible effects of an action like that. Most importantly, I think we need to raise the question - is there any such thing as an artistic license any more? Can a fun and catchy song just be enjoyed for what it is rather than being analysed to death? Should music be completely segregated from the socio-political sphere? So many questions, yet little answers.
My opinion?
I'm not a fan of Meghan Trainor and I have to admit that I'm struggling to care about her music at all. However, I do strongly believe in the philosophy, 'I may not agree with what you have to say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it.' Whatever your opinion, never be afraid to hold it. Freedom and love as always.
I haven't seen the video or heard the song but I think some of the lyrics do seem a bit problematic. It's obviously meant as a harmless pop song but I think artists generally need to be more aware of the messages they can put across even if they haven't intended it that way. It's kind of interesting that people have taken such an issue with this but there are countless songs by men painting women in the same kind of light!
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Holly - hollypocket.co.uk x
I think people are forgetting men do the exact same but for women in there songs/music videos it's a 2 way street and I think everyone has targeted her! Look at this Beyonce video for example yes the lyrics are very feminist and good for women but parts of the video are just like Meghans! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QczgvUDskk0 Xx
ReplyDeleteOliviaCheryl.com
I have to say I haven't heard it, but I do agree with some points in both yes and no tbh!
ReplyDeletewww.thewonderlanders.com
Personally I am not a fan of Meghan Trainor at all. She thrives on controversy and she wouldn't be half as famous without it.
ReplyDeleteEmma xo | missemmalouise12.blogspot.ie
Not a huge fan of her music either but I do agree with your points from both yes and no. Like Emma said though, I do sometimes question if maybe she does that kinda stuff for the attention.
ReplyDeleteCaitriona | Blog
I love the song, it's so catchy. In a few weeks so many new songs will be out that this will all be forgotten about, I'm just going to enjoy the song and not read into it too much Tanya | Glamour. Glitter. Gloss.
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