A Primer on House Music (It’s Not Just About Fist Pumping)

It’s a bit surprising to me that I can now hear house music when I turn on the radio in my car. I used to have to hunt down those rich beats in vacant warehouses and tents set up in the middle of nowhere, with generators powering the lights and, more importantly, the giant speakers.  Since hearing that music with a few hundred (or thousand) fellow “house heads” was so rare, the nights would only end when the first grays from the morning sun greeted us as we walked back to our cars, exhausted and satisfied. And no, we did not look like this guy:

House music is not just about drunk guys with too much gel in their hair fist pumping while they try and yell in some mini-skirted girl’s ear how sexy they look in hopes of taking them home for a smash session. Believe it or not, house music is about community and solidarity.  I am by no means an expert, but I know a little bit about the history. Much more than the average youngin’ figuring out how to dance to it today.

House music came out of disco, which many people think of as cheasy and outdated. But disco music gave a lot of marginalized communities places to congregate. The dance floor was their church. When disco died, the music and the communities moved underground…and house music was born. Some of it became very mechanical, with a lot of basic computer-generated sounds; and some of it became very soulful, following closely in the tradition of disco. In the true meaning of a congregation, house music itself was often revered with songs of house’s origination like “Let There be House.” Many songs talked about falling in love, which was important because the marginalized community most affilated with house music at the time was the gay (mostly gay Black) community, and their love stories were nowhere to be found in mainstream music (much like today). One of my favorites is the more current, “The Music Sounds Better With You.” (Because if someone makes house music sound better…they must be pretty damn special!) There were also many songs that had clips from MLK’s “I have a Dream” speech, because these communities hoped that one day they would be able to love whoever they wanted in public and not be condemned for it; someday…we would all be free.

That soulful type of disco seems to be the inspiration for much of the music we hear today. One of the most obvious examples is “Good Feeling” by rapper Flo Rida:

It seems almost profane to me that the video implies that Flo Rida is getting his “good feeling” simply from his own accomplishments, which are almost all extravagant purchases and trips to far-off places. House music was initially created for people who wanted to love who they were with, wherever they were. It wasn’t about money, fame, or fortune. Even though DJs were starting to get more popular and garner followings, they mostly moved the music along because they loved it. (For example, DJs started creating longer and longer tracks to blend into one another so they could keep the party going until the wee hours of the morning) Not because it got them to perform at awards shows (**cough**David **cough**Guetta).

But true house music hasn’t gone anywhere even though it’s adolescent cousin is hanging out with the likes of Britney Spears, Usher, and Rihanna.  It’s still alive and strong right under our very noses. Ironically, even though house music was born in the dark underground, now it might be that the only way to experience true house music without the possibility of getting elbowed in the eye is out in the open air, as you can see from this short “dance-a-mentary” on house music today (note the love all the DJs have for the community):

So the next time you’re at the club and the guy next to you is pumping away at the latest house-pop jam just remember that house music is about love and community.  You might want to deck him, but real house music fans will know to give him a hug.

Spotify’s Mandatory Facebook Link Reminds Us: Music is Personal

Since I’m always trying to enter the “cool kids” crowd, I decided to join the new music service “Spotify.” I’d heard from many people that it was better than Pandora, and that you had much more control over what you listened to, which could be just about anything. I’d also seen the updates on Facebook showing me what my various cool friends were listening to on their Spotify accounts.

Upon downloading the program and trying to use it, the login screen informed that I could either log in with my Facebook account or with my Spotify account. I didn’t want to use my Facebook account. I am actively against any program that connects to my Facebook account, mostly because I don’t see the need for it other than a) they want to gather information that I have let Facebook use or b) they want to use my account to promote themselves. And I’m not really down with either one of those. So I tried to create a Spotify account. Then I ran into this screen:

As you can see, the Spotify website conveniently grabbed all of my information from my Facebook account to make it oh-so-easy for me to sign up. And you can see that Mark Zuckerberg has put his stamp of approval on the program with the boring endorsement “Spotify is so good.”

I tried for about 20 minutes to work around this problem and create a Spotify-only account. After much searching on their website I finally just googled it (as I do with everything) and came upon the longest page of comments about a specific issue that I have ever seen. One person asked the simple question of whether it was possible to have an un-Facebook-linked account and the Spotify team replied with:

“To us, this integration is all about creating an amazing new world of music discovery. As most of our users are already social and have already connected to Facebook, it seemed logical to integrate Spotify and Facebook logins. We already use Facebook as part of our backend to power our social features and by adopting Facebook’s login, we’ve created a simple and seamless social experience.”

So at one point it was possible, but no longer. There are now over 1500 enraged responses at this mandatory link. With a conservative estimate that 1 in 10 people who read a post actually comment, we can guess that at least 15,000 people have viewed this page, likely by googling the same question I did. One must also take into account that not everyone who is angry at this marriage is finding this page. So in all, there are a whole bunch of pissed off people. Most of the comments can be grouped into three major frustrations:

• Some people really, really, really, really hate Facebook. They will have no part in its domination of the entire world.
• Some people buy Spotify accounts (there are free and paid versions) for parents and others who don’t have Facebook and would not benefit from having an account on the site. Or they work in places where Facebook is blocked.
• Finally, there is a general unease with the posting of the songs a person has listened to on Facebook. While this service is optional, the default is to have the systems linked and it resets to the default after a certain number of hours of listening.

It’s this third point that really caught my attention. Commenter Chris Lowth put it this way: “I dont want a ‘social experience’. I want to listen to the music I like without spamming any FB friends I may have. I dont want MY fb wall filled up with “Fred is listening to the Rolling Stones” messages – and I dont see why my friends would want have theirs filled up with mine.”

Many people complained about the Facebook posts that announce what a person has been listening to on Spotify. There were various reasons listed including: they clog up Facebook walls, I may promote an artist I’m only trying out but don’t end up liking, and frankly it’s no one’s damn business what I’m listening to. And this is where I realized that just like it is for me, listening to music for most of these commentators is a very private experience. While I love to promote musicians I like (see my reviews) what I listen to in the comfort of my own home/office/ears while I’m writing this blog post is not necessarily information I want announced to the world. And I am not the only one. Why? Because music, my friend, says a lot (sometimes too much) about who we are.

Think about it. Aren’t there some songs or artists that just seem to speak to the exact experiences you’ve had in your life? Doesn’t sharing the information that you identify with it therefore say something about you or what you’ve been through? But we don’t feel that way about ALL the music we listen to. So when I tell people, “You know that song by Selena Gomez? I really like it!” people could incorrectly infer that I identify with Selena Gomez and feel that my life is superficial enough to be expressed by a 19-year-old who doesn’t write her own lyrics. (And yes, I do like the song.) And there are times when we’re trying to work through an emotion and music helps us along. But if we’re listening to Adele non-stop we might not want to announce to the world just how sad we are that it didn’t end up working out with loser-what’s-his-face or that we missed happy hour at the bar (see below).

Spotify claims that it makes the Facebook link mandatory because they want to create a social experience. But the problem for many people is that music is TOO social. It carries a lot of information that is socially understood like what our values, goals, and motivations are. What makes this all that much more interesting is that not too long ago, we literally could not experience music by ourselves. Before recording devices someone had to play an instrument or sing so that another person could experience music at all. Weird, right? Now music can be an incredibly private experience. One that we might not want to share with every one of our Facebook friends.

Although a good number of people have complained about this (and many are talking with their wallets and canceling subscription accounts) it’s doubtful that it will make a dent big enough to change Spotify’s policy. So until then, I at least will keep on listening to Pandora.

TV Hates Therapy – Let’s Dig Deeper Shall We?

Since I’ve decided to do away with cable and only live my pop culture life using the interwebs, sometimes I get behind on tv. The other night I was watching Up All Night, the episode where Reagan’s parents pop by unexpectedly and Reagan completely freaks out at the thought of having to spend even one second with her mother.

Her mother Angie, it turns out, has written a book about mother-daughter relationships which is a slap in the face to Reagan, who doesn’t really think she was all-that-and-a-bag-of-chips as a mother, even if she does have a PhD in psychology. To add insult to said injury the UCLA Psychology Department is throwing her mother a party in honor of the wonderful book she’s written. If you haven’t seen the episode you should know that all of the other psychologists are fawning all over Angie talking about how her book has transformed the field.

They’re a bunch of dorks.

I like Up All Night a lot. It’s a great show with a fantastically cute couple with a stay at home dad and a working mom that talks out their problems in hilarious ways. I will not stop watching just because they portrayed my field in such a bad light.

But damn, am I getting sick of it.

The show Whitney (how is this show still on the air?) just had its own episode titled “Up All Night” that featured Chelsea Handler as a judgmental psychiatrist that makes fun of Whitney for having so many psychological issues, aka her “greatest hits,” and for being so thick she can’t figure out her own obvious hang-ups.  The Big Bang Theory (a show I love love love) also has a psychologist mother character who doesn’t actually know how to emotionally connect with her son, Leonard. Lisa Kudrow had a “comeback” with a web series titled Web Therapy in which she plays a therapist who conducts her sessions online. From what I understand (to be honest I could only stomach a few episodes) the patients are played by guest actors and it’s sort of done improv style. One of her first patients is her own ex-boyfriend and we learn that Kudrow’s character has some  issues of her own. It’s the typical stereotype of the therapist who has more issues than the people she’s supposedly helping.

From Frasier to Mad Men we see again and again the uselessness of therapy, and the social stigma of psychology and mental illness rears its ugly head. Since most people think that serious illnesses like depression and bipolar disorder aren’t “real” illnesses it makes sense that the people who treat those illnesses are portrayed as ridiculous and pointless. That may be why we see therapists as some combination of: emotionally rigid or emotional wrecks, judgmental, useless, idiotic, or too involved with their patients (Sopranos).

It’s gotten to the point that the question, “How does that make you feel?” is considered a joke, expressing our social discomfort with actually knowing when another person feels bad and our belief that those who do care aren’t actually asking anything worthwhile.

While I am not a therapist, I am a psychologist. This blows a lot of people’s minds. So let me explain. I am a research psychologist. In general, a person who studies psychology is interested in the mind. Not all psychologists are interested in human minds; some study animals. Of those who study humans, some study basic processes like: vision, emotions, language, etc. Others study how humans interact with one another to produce things like: social norms and values (this is me), competition, and cooperation. Some study what happens when something in the mind causes distress in the individual or those around them, such as emotional pain and mental disorders and illnesses. What therapists do is apply what we know about how the mind works to help people stop feeling emotional pain or to alleviate their mental disorder or illness. They are often compassionate people who dedicate their lives to helping others around them. Not all therapists are helpful (just like not all doctors, firefighters, or animal shelter volunteers are) but many do a lot to help a lot of people in real pain.

So while I am not a therapist, we all consider ourselves psychologists who concentrate on different aspects of the human experience. And I’m hoping one day that a show will come around that acknowledges the fantastic (and truly fascinating) work we all do.

Smartie Snacks 12/07/11

In case you’re looking to waste some time and feed your brain, here are some SMARTIE SNACKS!

A young man pleas to Iowa lawmakers not to restrict marriage to heterosexual couples: Two Lesbians Raised a Baby and This is What They Got

This is a commentary on that video that I completely agree with: A Mexican Immigrant and a 1st generation Chicana raised a baby and this is what they got

If you’re thinking of going to graduate school, you may want to read this first. (FYI, it’s actually not that exaggerated.)

H&M makes women feel even worse about their bodies by hiring models with almost unattainable bodies, then pasting their heads on digitally created (read: really unattainable) bodies. *sigh*

My girl Nicki Minaj (and Taylor Swift who technically was Woman of the Year) were honored at Billboard’s Women in Music Event.

Considering we’re still in a major recession, it’s astonishing that Vogue put this list of ideal Christmas presents out. And they wonder what Occupy Wall Street people are griping about.

Happy reading!

Rihanna Makes Clear: She’s DTF

For those who haven’t had the pleasure of listening to Rihanna’s Talk That Talk, I should probably warn you that if you do sit down and listen to it, try not to do so in a public place like a coffee shop. It’s what some people might call “baby making music.”

Rihanna is letting the world know, she is D – T – F.*

You really don’t have to listen to the songs though, since the cover pretty much says it all. Do you really expect me to believe that’s just white cigarette smoke spilling out of your mouth and onto your cheek Rihanna?? Ew…I feel dirty just typing that.

Another image for the album is just as suggestive of oral sex. (Yeah, I said it.)

Some of the highlights from the album:

Cockiness (Love It): Even though Rihanna seems to be the one giving pleasure in her pictures, she sure does a lot of singing (or as one person said it, “holding notes”) about receiving it. Lyrics: Suck my cockiness, lick my persuasion/Eat my words and then swallow your pride down down

(Is it getting warm in here or is it just me?)

Birthday Cake: This is more of an interlude. Basically for Cockiness. Rihanna couldn’t be happier that it’s not even her birthday but you wanna lick the icing off her cake. Awww, how sweet.

Watch n Learn: Lots of watching and learning going on here.

Red Lipstick: She’s so busy doing all kinds of stuff her red lipstick “ain’t up on my face no more.”

Roc Me Out: While RiRi’s DTF she’s not about to take it, ahem, lying down. She’s going to tell you just how she wants it. If you take too long, she might just “finish it out” on her own.

Okay, to be fair there are some more “lovey dovey” tracks but I doubt anyone is listening to them. Other than maybe “We Found Love.” I’m not even going to waste my time telling you what they are. It’s like commenting on how good the articles are in Playboy .

In case you want some visuals to go with Rihanna talking that talk on the album, you can check out her Esquire Magazine pics from the “2011 Sexiest Woman Alive” shoot:

 

As for my commentary on this album.

To be honest, I’m a little torn. I credit my own feminist ways in part to growing up with pop icons like Madonna and Janet, who obviously took control in their careers which manifested in songs about taking control in the bedroom (“Express Yourself” and “If” to name a couple examples). But at the same time, I know that a lot of young people are listening to the album after having heard “We Found Love” and probably having a feeling similar to that of a teenager coming across their uncle’s secret porn stash. A little wrong but overall really, really curious. How this might affect them I’m just not sure, but at least young women are hearing that sex is not something just for men to enjoy. And maybe more importantly, young men are hearing it too. Either way, Rihanna has the right to grow up and be a woman in charge of her sex life. But whether she really is or if she is simply following the formula set up by her predecessors is really an open question.

For her sake, I hope that she also follows their example in the boardroom, not just the proverbial bedroom.

 

 

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*DTF is a phrase made famous by the boys on Jersey Shore. A woman who is DTF is willing to have casual sex or is “down to F.” (By the way, when you google “Jersey Shore DTF” you get a paid ad for Ashley Madison, the website that allows married people to find other people who are willing to have an affair.  Ashley Madison’s ad firm is not stupid.)

What Do Rental Cars and Politics Have in Common? Progressive Advertising

[For all my regulars, sorry I've dropped the ball. Not having cable makes it hard to write about pop culture. But if there's anything in particular you want me to watch/comment on let me know in the comments section!]

Today I just wanted to post a couple of advertisements that I’ll deem “progressive” but for very different reasons. The first is an advertisement for Enterprise, the rental car company. This commercial caught my eye for one reason: the people. It’s a group of normal-looking people (as in I could see knowing them as my friends) AND it’s incredibly diverse. Every single person gets a speaking line. Companies always claim that they can’t make diverse ads/tv shows/movies because it’s basically not a good business strategy. For example, many women’s fashion magazines claim that whenever a Black woman graces the cover their sales go down.  But it seems that Enterprise is really trying to milk the “everyperson” factor in this ad – these are people that are likely to look like the very same ones that will actually help you. Especially if you live in a diverse place. And I for one was made to feel very comfortable with that. So hooray Enterprise!

The other commercial is one made in Australia.Watch it below first if you can without reading the rest of the story.

I’m sorry if I’m ruining the punchline but this video is also about diversity. In this case it’s a commercial in favor of marriage equality. I was touched watching it, mostly because it uses a storyline that many people are familiar with: meeting someone (who happens to very attractive), the honeymoon phase, meeting friends/family, the proposal, etc. I’m not going to lie, this commercial is in line with my political beliefs. But the campaigns for same-sex marriage are not without flaws. And I think this type of message really hits home whether you’re on one side or the other. The heartstrings so to speak, as opposed to saying, “I’m right, dammit.” And that’s just a fantastic case for diversity!

Zachary Quinto Comes Out After Another Gay Teen Suicide

Zachary Quinto, who many of you know as Sylar from Heroes and/or Spock from Star Trek, has recently come out publicly (in the New York magazine) as a gay man. On his blog he points to the recent suicide of Jamey Rodemeyer as the catalyst for his coming out, since Jamey recently made an “It Gets Better” video but could not bear the constant bullying he was going through because of his sexual orientation (he identified as bisexual). Quinto also released a video for the cause that you can see below:

Okay umm so here’s the thing. I really, really, really appreciate his public confession that he is indeed gay (many people already knew this). BUT I think part of the reason we are seeing such a dramatic increase in suicide for this particular group (young LGBT folk) is because to some extent it has been glorified, and this might be adding to it.

Oh please don’t hate me for this.

Here’s what I know. There’s evidence that when famous people kill themselves suicides tend to go up, as well as single occupant car crashes (which may also be suicides). It’s believed that suicide becomes a more real option for people who are dealing with a lot and they see it as a way out. But when the suicide is talked about as a morally wrong act or even a dumb act, this effect tends to go away.

So when a young kid kills himself and someone steps up and says, “Now I will be braver,” it *might* send the message that killing yourself is an act of courage and will make a positive difference in the world. So for me, Mr. Quinto’s coming out is bittersweet.

Here’s the other thing, I’m not really sure how to address this. On the one hand no child should be committing suicide because of being bullied, so these issues definitely need to be addressed. But on the other hand we don’t want to make it seem like it’s a viable option if you ARE getting bullied and teased. *sigh*

Any ideas?

(On a side note I LOVE Zachary Quinto, I was completely in love with Sylar…yes even though he was psychotic. Did you see the picture up there??)

Las Vegas Brings Etiquette to Facebook

In my Psychology of Social Media class I taught my students that it is psychologically difficult to understand how what you post on Facebook is accessible to people beyond the group that you think of as your friends. Because the medium is used mostly to communicate with close others it becomes difficult to realize that even if it’s intended for one audience it goes out to a whole set of different (and sometimes non-overlapping) audiences. Facebook “helps” with this problem because their algorithms decide who to show you and who not to, so it feels like you’re surrounded by confidantes, letting you easily forget that you friended a co-worker, professor, boss, or people on the other side of the political spectrum (they keep those FAR from you).

Some people took this to be just “the way of Facebook,” and something that we’ll just have to deal with as it happens, time and time again. Katy Perry sings about this in “Last Friday Night” when she says (not sings) “Pictures of lastnight ended up online…OH WELL.”  My students struggled with ideas to change people’s behavior about this, especially since much of it happens in the wee hours of the morning with a combination of lack of sleep and possibly alcohol (or worse).  In the middle of our class, we actually got word that a few students in other classes (this was a special summer course) were dismissed from their program because they posted pictures of themselves drinking on Facebook. They were high schoolers. My students had actually warned them that the directors would see, to which the drinkers said, “It’s only Facebook.” Famous last words.

What my class decided, perhaps with a little nudging from me, is that it would take strong social norms to change this behavior. People who posted obviously inappropriate photos would need to be shunned so that when people thought of posting they would have to realize they were being “that guy” or “that girl” or “that friend.” You know, the one no one wants to be.

Who ever thought that shunning would come from the very place that produces many of these inappropriate photos? Vegas.

In their new ad campaign, they show/talk about “that friend” who always goes too far in posting pictures online. They are ostracized or talked about behind their back. It makes sense, Vegas’s only etiquette rule is: “what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.” Facebook is cramping their style. You can even take the oath to “Protect the Moment” on their Facebook page. Funny.

I for one, am all for this. Etiquette has to come to Facebook someway or another. I’m a little surprised that it’s Sin City. But whatever works!

Who Needs Marriage? J.Lo is Raking it In

Jennifer Lopez made headlines recently because she and her husband of seven years, Marc Anthony, are getting divorced. But since that announcement was made I feel like I’ve seen more and more of that J.Lo booty all over my tv screen. When I sat down and thought about it, I realized that she must be making money hand over fist right now. If the rumors are true that Marc Anthony was too controlling and couldn’t handle a powerful woman, I could see why the sheer dollar, dollar bills she was bringing into the family would be a problem.

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about Latino/Latina representation on television. I feel that more and more we are seeing Asian Americans on tv (especially in commercials and mostly East Asian Americans) but not as many Latino Americans, especially given that The George Lopez Show is off the air. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all about diversity so a big yay for Asian American representation, but considering that Latino Americans are the fastest growing population in the United States (as all of the newspapers wrote about in alarm a few months ago) and Asian Americans make up 4% of the population it seems weird that we’re not getting a few Latinos here and there. I mean, there is SO much television these days now that cable channels are cashing in on their ability to make original sitcoms and dramas  that statistically I’m pretty sure Latinos are even less represented than African Americans related to their percentage in the population, which is saying something.

So how do I feel about Ms. Lopez being the ambassador for Latinos on American television? I feel good about it, because she’s always expressed her pride in being a Latina (except for that one time she played an Italian woman but it was a movie role so whatever). But I do think that more representation is needed with the up-and-coming, advertisement, and sitcom actors. That way, it would seem normal to think of Latinos as American, which many people have a hard time doing (I can cite studies if you’d like). Perhaps Ms. Lopez is raking it in so she can bring them all up herself, and that would definitely make her a powerful woman.

Here’s a quick list of Jennifer Lopez contracts I could think of:

Gillette (Venus):

L’Oreal:

American Idol (just confirmed a 2nd season):

Q’Viva! – A new show like American Idol but for Latin singers with ex-hubby Marc:

She has a new line at Kohl’s:

Of course we can’t forget her album – Love?:

AND she’s a spokesperson for the new Fiat 500:

I guess that’s what happens when you’re named The World’s Most Beautiful Person by People Magazine.  And I guess it’s also what lets you drop a cool $18 mil on a new house post-divorce. This whole situation reminds me of her song My Love Don’t Cost a Thing, since now if she wants to floss she REALLY has her own! Keep on keepin’ on J.Lo!

Violence OK in Music, If it’s Not Rap

I was in my car listening to the radio (you know that thing with knobs that gets music via radio waves – not internet?) and a song I like called “Bottoms Up” came on. It’s by Trey Songz with Nicki Minaj. You may know it, it goes like this:

Bottoms up, bottoms up, every single cup/

Got a couple bottles, but a couple ain’t enough

At some point though Trey says “We drunk so let me be yo alcohol hero.” To my surprise the word “alcohol” was censored out. What? I don’t even know what “alcohol hero” MEANS. If I had to, I would guess Trey is trying to be my bartender because he’s intoxicated and thinks he can mix drinks. Or he’s trying to sleep with me. Whatever, my point here is it is definitely not clear what he’s talking about.

Which brings me to my larger point: censorship is stupid.

And I don’t mean the philosophy of censorship, I mean the act of censorship in which someone has to decide what should and should not be allowed on the air. Every city has its own version of censorship (as I learned driving up and down California) and even within a city different radio stations censor different things. It’s ridiculous and completely nonsensical. But if you’re not a rap, hip-hop, or R&B artist you should be pretty safe from any censorship at all.

One of the big summer hits this year is a song called “Pumped Up Kicks” by Foster The People. I hadn’t heard the song but a friend of mine (thanks S!) informed on a roadtrip to Vegas that it was from the point of view of a school shooter:

All the other kids with the pumped up kicks you’d better run, better run, outrun my gun.
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks you’d better run, better run, faster than my bullet.

Now, I have heard this song MANY times on the same radio station that sensors “alcohol” from Songz’ lyrics but lets this song play AS IS with the phrases “outrun my gun” and “outrun my bullet” easily discernible. Instead of serving as a catalyst for White mothers to enforce a sticker be placed on their music for potentially offensive lyrics (see here) it has become a favorite because of it’s upbeat well…beats and simple melody (you can even whistle along if you’d like, as if you were strolling say through a high school campus). But because this song is not about sex and it’s not about violence in rap form (in other words. the singers are not deviant/Black) it is not scrutinized and demonized; instead it is analyzed:

“This radically unstable perspective is what makes ‘Pumped Up Kicks’ the ideal summer song for a crash-and-bounce year.” (Ann Powers of NPR)

See? The song isn’t about gun violence at all! It is about the violence that is happening to the White kids of America with this volatile economy and stress of wars halfway around the world they are not fighting.

Spare me.

If you’re going to censor music, censor it across the board.  Or don’t at all.  Just have it make sense.