Lucky for us American women, we could take a time out from the heaviness of injustice, coups, massacres and murders, and recharge with a healthy dose of feminine flavor.
VH-1 kicked off the week with Hip Hop Honors, the TV special which celebrates old school hip hop artists and rappers by bringing in new artists to perform their hits and wax poetically about how the pioneers have inspired and influenced their music. The 8th show aired Monday July 11th, and was the first to celebrate an all-female lineup of Queen Latifah, Salt Peppa and Spinderella, Lil Kim and Missy Elliott. These ladies are all true hip hop royalty and have each proved capable of holding their own in a male dominated industry. Every single one of them used their lyrics to assert themselves as more than just sex objects and attacked prevalent female stereotypes as early as the 80’s. You must google Queen Latifah’s introduction and acceptance speech if only to watch Betty White spit a few bars of U.N.I.T.Y and ask “ Who you calling a bitch?” Greatness.
While on the subject of attacking female stereotypes, Jennifer Aniston was finally so fed up that she masterfully penned a piece for the Huffington Post and reminded us we are perfect just the way we are. She goes on record to say “I am not pregnant,” but goes further to attack the societal assumption that a woman is somehow incomplete without a husband and or children. She points out that we do not have to justify or explain the course of our lives, and we especially don’t need to explain why we are single or why we are childless. We need to stop tying a woman’s worth onto an arbitrary social norm that may not be right for everyone. As a single mother of a 6 year old, I feel it too. The minute I mention I have a child, most often the next question is, “What does your husband do?” to which I have to explain that I am not and never was married to her father. It is not something I take personally, but it is annoying. The funniest of all are the letters from my daughter’s school addressed to Mr. and Mrs. Jennifer Pinson. I never called to correct it because it actually makes me giggle. Do yourself a favor and read the article. So much yes. Time for someone to speak up on this, but what a shame that it came from painful public scrutiny.
And speaking of challenging social norms, did you hear they gave Amber Rose a talk show? The gorgeous single mom, famous for her famous exes, and her signature platinum buzz cut has a new show that talks all things sex. Now before you write her off, stop and hear her out. She attacks the preconceived notion that a woman who embraces her sexuality or sexiness is without virtue. She is standing up saying à la Fergie, that moms are sexy too. She brings attention to the fact that women are idolized in the media as sex symbols, but those who step over the imaginary “too sexy” line in real life are labeled as slutty and dismissed as dirty hoes. If you’ve ever been told your shirt was too low cut or your skirt was too short at work, you feel me. She's saying to do what feels right for you and be unapologetic about it. Be yourself, like what you like and never send nudes. I dig it. The show itself is full of campy jokes that fall a little flat, but her point of view is refreshing. You can be sexy, smart, wholesome and sexually adventurous. I hope it catches on. #AskMuva
And last, but certainly not least, we have Lady Ghostbusters in the theaters! The reboot has faced an ugly public backlash since before the trailer hit the interwebs, and maybe it won’t be a box office smash, but it is fun and silly. The story revolves around four funny and undeniably smart women out to catch some ghosts who stumble upon a plot to open the gates of the underworld. My favorite scene is when McCarthy’s Abby is trying to convince Whig’s Erin that she does not have to prove herself to anyone, she should let her work speak for itself when it’s ready, especially because she could release an actual demon just to prove it exists. A woman trying to prove to a man her work is worth merit - sounds familiar, right? Utterly refreshing is Kate McKinnon’s wacky mad physicist Holtzman whose constant tinkering and penchant for destruction gave the girls the power tools necessary to blow up some ghosts. Leslie Jones’ Patty was funny and probably the most believable character of all. Opening weekend isn’t over, yet I predict it won’t be the bomb the haters wanted. So, as the dean would say, suck it.
Peace Love & Happiness
