Let me preface by saying that I'm a super fan of Rihanna's new song, and I haven't said that since I became slightly obsessed with "Disturbia" a couple years back. "Man Down", short and to the point, is the story of Rihanna shooting, well, a man down. The song exists within the realm of some sort of guilt, since she spends a good portion of the song wishing she hadn't done it but still makes plans to leave the country
1, just in case. The song also marks the (maybe) temporary return to her Caribbean roots, just in time for summer.
But what all the pop culture and media ruckus is about is the video for this new single, which premiered on BET yesterday:
The twist here is that Rihanna kills the man of the titular down because he rapes her. Now, this brings into all sorts of awful context (you know, that whole Chris Brown thing) that the media and fans are dissecting and saying that, hey, Rihanna, you shouldn't kill Chris Brown. You shouldn't kill your rapist, you should seek help. Set a good example!
Except... Rihanna isn't required to set a good example. Remember, we place a lot of emphasis on good model-ship on our pop stars, but what if, in the end, this is just a music video? No one jumped on Lady Gaga for burning a man alive for purchasing her from a futuristic Russian brothel or poisoning Alexander Skaarsgard for attempting to kill her OR helping Beyoncé murder her abusive and totally douchey boyfriend (as well as an entire diner and sadly, two Great Danes
2). This is probably owed to the fact that, Oh, she's Lady Gaga. She's crazy like that. Maybe Rihanna is just channeling her anger, what she cannot do, through her music.
Melissa Henson, from the Parent's Television Council, said in a formal statement, “Rihanna’s personal story and status as a celebrity superstar provided a golden opportunity for the singer to send an important message to female victims of rape and domestic violence. Instead of telling victims they should seek help, Rihanna released a music video that gives retaliation in the form of premeditated murder the imprimatur of acceptability.”
And you can't really blame the PTC for being angry. Shooting rapists is not how people want to go about solving rape. But, I for one would never condone a woman for killing her rapist (oops, I'm a bad person, sorry). I know it isn't morally right, but sure as hell feels justified from a superficial standpoint
3.
Okay, I feel like I'm digging myself into a hole here. Let's all just watch the video and listen to Rihanna's new song. Let's appreciate them for what they are. Don't kill rapists. But let's just remember something:
60% of rapes are never reported to the police. And I'm willing to bet that these 60% aren't due to the fact that the victim killed the rapist. Maybe there's a connection here with the abhorrence of rape culture, but I'm not sure what it is. Either, way, this video is a good excuse to remind everyone that rape or domestic abuse is never the victim's fault.
1. Paraguay, Rihanna, Paraguay! I learned on
Psych they won't extradite for murder.
2.
RIP my dear.3. This would probably be a good time to mention that my favorite movie is
Kill Bill and I adore Quentin Tarantino's roaring rampages of revenge movies.
Did you know surf noir was a genre? I learned this last night, and I realized that this attractively named genre is my new summer obsession. Enter Lana del Rey, aka Lizzie Grant. I had an older track by this girl in my iTunes library already, under her actual name, but I just learned over the weekend of her continuation of singing the beautiful genre of surf noir. Part 60's babydoll pop, part sweet ocean breezes, part social commentary, Lana del Rey's vintage voice is bound to have you wishing to visit the coast, be it the beach, the shore, or the cape (which one you pick is very important).
