timepiececlock (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
timepiececlock) wrote2003-03-05 07:36 pm
timepiececlock) wrote2003-03-05 07:36 pm
Tatu - "All the Things She Said"
I love seeing moments where images or words of homosexuality are accepted into popular media. Especialy things like television. It's an old topic on film-- in fact it almost seems a requirement in movies these days-- have the comedic gay neighbor. But you don't see it on things like MTV much at all. And if you do, its rarely presented as normal-- there's always some hype, some "thing" about it, some reason for it to be portrayed instead of a heterosexual relationship.
So when I do see things like that, and it's not on a
"TV Special", it's just there, I'm extremely pleased.
I don't know why. I'm not homosexual-- it's not even something I've ever wondered. SO it doens't have an overt presence in my life. I don't seek out slash fanfiction (yaoi or yuri in anime). I've never seen Queer As Folk, though people say its good. I've never done a particular thing to reach out and see more of the things in entertainment world that deal with sexual orientation beyond what's in my immediate average american teenager view.
And yet, when I see something like to young men making out very sweetly on a video by a pop princess, I get a little thrill. I want to run around to people and say "Oh my god, did you see that! I saw two guys making out on MTV, in glossy technicolor! In a major artist's music video! And it was sweetly done, too! That's great! Isn't it great? To see images like that breaking into something as coporate and mainstream and censored as MTV?!!"
I tried to have this conversation with my dad two weeks ago. He didn't understand what the big deal was. I was trying to explain that I'd never seen that on M-T-V before, and that made the difference. He just sort of shrugged.
So I was watching music videos on MTV-2 yesterday, while cleaning the kitchen. There was a new music video on, a kind of dance/pop-ish song with a fast beat and an odd lyrical rythm. Not something I instantly loved, but not bad.
What tripped me out though, was that the song was so outright-- I'm tempted to use the fandom word "slashy" here, because I'm not sure if I know a better one (though there probably is). But it was sexy, in a very girl-girl way. There was rain, and shadows, and other stuff that said the two girls on the screen weren't sisterly. And what really caught my attention was that they looked about high school age. The two guys in the Christina Aguilera video were definitely men-- in their twenties. The singer and the other girl in this video were girls. In school uniforms. It weirdly reminded me of Britney Spears' first "hit me baby one more time" video, thoguh not nearly as slutty. That was a hyper-sexed-up image, this was a sweet-&-angsty-yet-sexy image. I thought "Wow, this is different."
It was a pretty video-- well directed. Lots of images of water and rain and streets. Lots of green coloring. I love how they walk away holding hands together at the end.
I heard the song on the radio this morning (for the first time), and I listened carefully to the words. Then just now I looked up the lyrics. And I was right -- it was definitely about a lesbian relationship. And way more fun to listen to than "Aida"-- I'm still not sure if that's what that song was about, as Sarah McLachlan's married.
I'm downloading the song now. Because it's a decent song, with a catchy chorus. And I can't help but like anything that flies in the face of the norm-- especially when it's done cool.
ETA: Just brought this up with my mom, and she had a good question. She asked if, after seeing this video, that next time I saw the singer if I would mentally label her as being gay. I thought about it for a long time, and decided that no, not really. 1) because of how the video was presented-- it wasn't flaming or butch, it didn't say "look at me, I'm gay"-- it was just a song about a relationship. 2) because it wasn't particularly the singer who interested me in the video, it was the iamge the video presented as a whole. The singer could be strait who was just doing this song with this theme because someone paid her to sing it, and I'd get the same kick out of seeing it.
So when I do see things like that, and it's not on a
"TV Special", it's just there, I'm extremely pleased.
I don't know why. I'm not homosexual-- it's not even something I've ever wondered. SO it doens't have an overt presence in my life. I don't seek out slash fanfiction (yaoi or yuri in anime). I've never seen Queer As Folk, though people say its good. I've never done a particular thing to reach out and see more of the things in entertainment world that deal with sexual orientation beyond what's in my immediate average american teenager view.
And yet, when I see something like to young men making out very sweetly on a video by a pop princess, I get a little thrill. I want to run around to people and say "Oh my god, did you see that! I saw two guys making out on MTV, in glossy technicolor! In a major artist's music video! And it was sweetly done, too! That's great! Isn't it great? To see images like that breaking into something as coporate and mainstream and censored as MTV?!!"
I tried to have this conversation with my dad two weeks ago. He didn't understand what the big deal was. I was trying to explain that I'd never seen that on M-T-V before, and that made the difference. He just sort of shrugged.
So I was watching music videos on MTV-2 yesterday, while cleaning the kitchen. There was a new music video on, a kind of dance/pop-ish song with a fast beat and an odd lyrical rythm. Not something I instantly loved, but not bad.
What tripped me out though, was that the song was so outright-- I'm tempted to use the fandom word "slashy" here, because I'm not sure if I know a better one (though there probably is). But it was sexy, in a very girl-girl way. There was rain, and shadows, and other stuff that said the two girls on the screen weren't sisterly. And what really caught my attention was that they looked about high school age. The two guys in the Christina Aguilera video were definitely men-- in their twenties. The singer and the other girl in this video were girls. In school uniforms. It weirdly reminded me of Britney Spears' first "hit me baby one more time" video, thoguh not nearly as slutty. That was a hyper-sexed-up image, this was a sweet-&-angsty-yet-sexy image. I thought "Wow, this is different."
It was a pretty video-- well directed. Lots of images of water and rain and streets. Lots of green coloring. I love how they walk away holding hands together at the end.
I heard the song on the radio this morning (for the first time), and I listened carefully to the words. Then just now I looked up the lyrics. And I was right -- it was definitely about a lesbian relationship. And way more fun to listen to than "Aida"-- I'm still not sure if that's what that song was about, as Sarah McLachlan's married.
I'm downloading the song now. Because it's a decent song, with a catchy chorus. And I can't help but like anything that flies in the face of the norm-- especially when it's done cool.
ETA: Just brought this up with my mom, and she had a good question. She asked if, after seeing this video, that next time I saw the singer if I would mentally label her as being gay. I thought about it for a long time, and decided that no, not really. 1) because of how the video was presented-- it wasn't flaming or butch, it didn't say "look at me, I'm gay"-- it was just a song about a relationship. 2) because it wasn't particularly the singer who interested me in the video, it was the iamge the video presented as a whole. The singer could be strait who was just doing this song with this theme because someone paid her to sing it, and I'd get the same kick out of seeing it.
no subject
As for the video, yeah it's beautifully directed but the cynical side of me thinks it's just a gimick.
"Ok, we need to get this song to sell. I know we'll have two lesbian schoolgirls getting all wet in the the rain. That's every teenage boys fantasy."
And it worked. I would estimate that a very high percentage of people who bought this song bought it because of the video. If it had been just a regular singer I'm not so sure it would have done as well.
People are buying it because of the video AND because it's controversial. There have been a lot of complaints about it over here and that has just boosted sales.
Oddly though, no one has complained about the two men in Christina's video
Re: