Tina Arena: Unchained
We could all learn a lot from Tina Arena. Her perspectives are so profound that...
Lesbianism: The New Black
A report in the Sydney Morning Herald last week rated the Top 10 global trends currently sweeping the world. And what do you think number one is? Forget street wear, fluoro or fauxhawks, the number one worldwide trend at the moment: lesbian culture.
Singer Katy Perry has, completely unexpectedly, just spent her seventh consecutive week at #1 on the US charts with I Kissed A Girl. It is expected to do the same in the UK and around the world and has drawn criticism from both sides of the sexual fence for its treatment of lesbianism. Conservatives argue that it glamorises same-sex attraction, whilst others argue it is, by its lyrics, inherently homophobic. Either way, it has somehow struck a chord with mainstream audiences who think it’s “like, so outrageous” to kiss a girl. All quite innocent, if only true same-sex attraction was seen in such a sweet light.
Katy Perry’s image is carefully being crafted around this faux-lesbian attraction. But she must point out, very clearly in the lyrics and interviews, that she’s just a simple, heterosexual girl singing a funny song. Her album One Of The Boys (again intentionally blurring gender lines), even features the song Ur So Gay with the line “You’re so gay, but you don’t even like boys”. Exploiting a minority for her own fame and wealth? No wonder they’re calling her the next Madonna.
Closer to home, The Veronicas’ Jess Origlasso can’t go a day without the Daily Telegraph breathlessly reporting on her relationship with MTV VJ Ruby Rose. They’ve just released the video for their next single, Take Me On The Floor and try to guess why it’s causing a controversy! With lyrics like “I want to kiss a girl”, it’s little wonder that the perfectly manufactured clip has Jess making out with another girl and is receiving many column inches in exchange. Is it just me, or is the timing of her blossoming relationships remarkably in sync with the release of their album in Australia and – shock horror – in the US where Katy Perry is printing dollar bills for singing about kissing girls. Surprise surprise.
This is not a new phenomenon. For decades, pop stars have been exploiting faux-lesbianism for album sales. Madonna, Britney and Christina all got “married” at the MTV Video Music Awards (yes, it’s hilarious to mock something that we are denied so celebrities can get noticed). Perhaps, most famously however, were Russian pop duo t.A.T.u. They were packaged and sold as a lesbian couple, but their 2003 documentary, Anatomy Of t.A.T.u made it clear that this was just part of the their image, and that they were not lesbians at all. You see, deception is nothing new when dollars are involved.
It’s not just the musical world that has fallen under the female spell. Former teen princess Lindsay Lohan ditched her string of high-profile male partners for a lesbian DJ Samantha Ronson. The fact that Lohan is one of the most admired stars of 10 to 15 year-old girls around the world means that this is a scene that will most likely be played over in schoolyards for years to come. You can almost see the squeals now: “I kissed a girl – and I liked it!”
The mainstreaming of lesbian culture raises very interesting questions. The “acceptance” is a temporary pass that is expected to be handed back when the fad reaches its use-by date. Making out is hot, but doing it for too long is gross. Girls kissing girls is cool, but boys doing the same is grounds for violence. This is lesbianism seen through the eyes of straight men pulling the strings. It’s pretty. It’s titilating. It’s easy to digest.
But what happens when the camera bulbs fade and pop culture moves on but the sexuality of the lesbian and gay community remains steadfastly unchanged? When each of these stars inevitably break up with their “girlfriends” once the headlines have died down (hello Anne Heche), they will leave behind the broken shards of real lesbianism – a genetic attraction based on human, rather than marketing, instinct – floundering in no-woman’s land.
With Madonna too busy working on her new face to spend time culturally raping minorities any more, it’s up to the new breed of singers like Katy Perry to take what they can from the lesbian scene and milk it for all it’s worth before its value runs out.
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video865
said on the 23rd Sep, 2008