In this particular song, Monae’s character is trapped in an asylum in which dancing is outlawed for its magical effects. As she dances she transcends the walls of her room/cell, gaining access to a multicolored world of self-expression. Ultimately, she is defeated by demons who have mirrors for faces, symbolizing how those who confine you […]
Google defines “goblin” as “a mischievous, ugly, dwarflike creature of folklore.” And this song, whose video includes Tyler swallowing a bug, subsequently vomiting, and then eventually hanging himself, comes on Tyler the Creator’s debut studio album, Goblin. At play here, then, are certain foundational elements of Uri McMillan’s notion of avatars,which “act as mediums — between […]
In the music video “Bitch Better Have My Money” Rihanna does what she does best and completely flips the script of black femininity. She portrays a gangster of sorts, abducting a white female whose husband owes Rihanna’s character a hefty sum of money. However, this piece of information is not made known to the […]
In Ciara’s “Like A Boy”, she sings about what she could do differently in her relationship if she was the man. “Wish we could switch up the roles and I could be that; Tell you I love you, but when you call, I never get back; Would you ask them questions like me, like where […]
In the music video for Janelle Monáe’s song “Q.U.E.E.N.” Monáe is described as a “rebel that time travels” and the notorious leader of a “musical weapons program.” In the beginning of the video, several groups of people who represent different musical eras are frozen in history, and when the music starts, all the people in […]
It’s easy to say that Rihanna’s music video for her hit single “Pour it Up” is yet again further sexualizing the black female body – with her revealing outfit, provocative dance moves, and four, dressed equally as alluring, black female back-up pole dancers. However, we can argue that Rihanna’s video (which she co-directed) is empowering […]
Pendulum by FKA twigs is a song about overcoming a challenging relationship, and the video is a piece of performance art. The video begins with the a shot of the artist’s mouth as she sings the opening lyric “I’m a sweet, little love maker.” Her position is revealed slowly; she’s suspended in the air bound tightly by […]
I remember this Ludacris music video being one of the first “hip-hop/rap videos” shown to me. I don’t recall the exact context but I remember thinking it was as strange as the rappers name. The overt oversexualization of the girls dancing almost felt comical how wrong it was. The scantily-clad dressing and objectification, both in […]
“I am Jazz” is a TLC show that depicts the life of Jazz Jennings. Jazz is a transgender girl who, with the support of her parents and family, decided at a young age that she was born in the wrong body and wanted to live life a girl. In the show, we see her day […]
Anita Hill is an iconic figure in the history of women and sexual harassment. The documentary, Anita, is an expose on her journey of coming out with her story of the abuse she received from Clarence Thomas, a Supreme Court nominee. She presented her story to an all-white, all-male Senate Judiciary Committee who accused Hill […]
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