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Sabrina Cardenas
English 115
Professor Derohanessian
29 October 2014
Right Message Goes Left
Visual images grab our attention more than a billboard or a clipping in a magazine,
especially when paired with a catchy song. Over the years videos of all types have improved
with the help of new technology for sound and music artists have expanded their creativity to
improve their music videos as well . Each generation had its own popular topics to write about.
As of late in our society self-acceptance, independence, and female empowerment have been key
messages of many songs. While positive messages, artists like Nicki Minaj and Miley Cyrus, as
well as some male artists, emphasize all three key messages through provocative behavior. I
believe that the artists emphasis on the shock factor of the video or behavior is tearing the
public away from even trying to decipher the positivity it could hold.
In Nicki Minajs song Anaconda, Minaj raps This one is for my bitches with a fat ass in
the fucking club, referring to loving her thicker bottom and that other thicker bottomed girls
should love them too. Though the song itself is over-sexualized, those last lines at the end make
it just a bit more self-acceptance- up until you watch the video. It is set in a jungle-like setting
where Minaj and the backup dancers are wearing revealing clothes- short shorts and sports bras.
Closer to the chorus, the twerking begins and its Minaj and the dancers twerking on chairs and
against each other, Minaj touching the other dancers behinds, and finally ending with Minaj
giving artist Drake a lap dance. In a seductive scene in the imitation kitchen where she sexualizes
whipped cream and a banana, Minaj says I'm chopping up the banana it's always about the

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female taking back the power. If you want to be flirty and funny that's fine, but always keeping
the power and the control in everything" (see Figure 1). At the end of the video with the lap
dance scene, Minaj hits Drakes hands away from touching her and walks away, taking back the
power and control of the situation. Though some may have watched Anaconda and caught on to
Minajs role-play for female empowerment, others may have only noticed the twerking and the
lap dance, and maybe by chance, noticed Minajs objection to such lewd acts.
As for Miley Cyruss We Cant Stop, her music video seems to coincide exactly with the
song lyrics and the meaning behind the song; she can party whenever she wants to, however she
wants to, who are we to tell her otherwise? Cyrus twerking and groping other females in her
music video, along with sharing an intimate moment with a doll in the pool, is all a part of her
reinventing herself, separating herself as far as she can from her former Hannah Montana image
as possible. In her new transformation towards independence, Cyrus cuts ties with her manager
and record label to work on a clean slate where she calls the shots instead of listening to what
other people want her to be like. Cyrus made her censor-free independence clear when she
twerked on Robin Thicke at the VMAs in 2013 in front of millions (see Figure 2). Cyrus
response to many objections from the general public was asserting her female empowerment by
pointing out that nobody talked about Thicke grinding up on her and calling out the double
standard. Cyrus whole new persona emphasizes the concept of being your own person no matter
what anybody thinks or says, no matter how provocative, and believes that kids would get
educational value from attending one of her concerts.
Male artists who also try to follow the lead of sharing empowering messages through
provocative ways include Jason Derulos Wiggle who tries to make it clear that there is no shame
in females having thicker bottoms when he says Shake what your mama gave you you know

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what to do with that big fat butt, and are, to him, preferred. In Blurred Lines, Robin Thicke tries
to mock the use of naked women in the music industry and its unnecessary involvement of the
objectification of a females body by in fact using half naked women in the background. Instead
of showing representations of self-confidence and female empowerment in both videos, Derulo
and Thicke used the female backup dancers as objects. All self-confident and empowerment
messages are lost in the shock factor of the tasteless music videos and catchy tunes.
Many would argue that not all female and beauty empowerment or independence-based
songs come from artists who hide their message under provocativeness. Colbie Caillats Try
clearly states its self-confidence and independence message, You dont have to try, throughout
the entire song. The video shows nothing but the faces of many woman of different ages,
including herself, trying to live up to the beauty standards females feel obligated to follow. In the
end, all the participants of the video break free from the expectations and stand in front of the
camera without makeup, without fancy clothes, and without their hair done.
Other songs clearly stating their messages with little to no provocativeness in their music
videos and in the songs themselves are Meghan Trainors All About That Base, Im here to tell
you every inch of you is perfect from the bottom to the top, Sara Bareilles Brave, Say what
you wanna say, and let the words fall out, honestly I wanna see you be brave, and Taylor
Swifts Shake It Off, The players gonna play.. And the haters gonna hate Im just gonna
shake it off. All of these songs embrace confidence, empowerment, and beauty of all kinds and
do not try to hide the messages behind revealing clothes and sexual visuals of any kind. So why
is it that other artists could not share their empowering messages without the use of inappropriate
behaviors?

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In conclusion, many artists are bringing attention to positive messages towards selfconfidence, independence, and female empowerment through their songs but are showing the
messages in provocative ways. Nicki Minaj uses half naked women and the chopping of fruits to
promote female empowerment. Miley Cryus twerks her way to assert her independence. Jason
Derulo, and Robin Thicke presented their messages through women objectification. These artists
are only a few of the artists whose videos did not show much evidence of representing the
positive messages clearly. Like Colbie Caillat, there are various artists whose music videos are
based solely on the representation of female empowerment, self-acceptance, and individuality
that are not being talked about all day because it was not shocking. Artists that use provocative
acts and behaviors, as well as language, to promote deeper meaning should stop relying on the
actions and reactions of the video and start relying on the message they are trying to get across.
When there are so many twerking backup dancers, half-naked females, and sexual behaviors
towards fruits, how is one supposed to catch that one verse of self-confidence messages?

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Works Cited
Eells, Josh. "Good Golly Miss Miley!." Rolling Stone 1193 (2013): 40-46. Academic Search
Premier. Web. 29 Oct. 2014

Hughes, T. (2014, Feb 24). A twerk of art: Miley cyrus finds own performances
'educational'. Daily Star (Online)

Nicki minaj: Anaconda is a normal video. (2014, Oct 22).

Rothman, Lily. "Why People Are Angry About Lily Allen's New Video." Time.Com (2013): 1.
Academic Search Premier. Web. 29 Oct. 2014.

Figure 1

Figure 2