‘“Baby, It’s Cold Outside”- DJs Have Been Spinning Hundreds Of Date Rape Hits For Decades | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Arts Entertainment

Forget 'Baby, It’s Cold Outside' — DJs Have Been Spinning Hundreds Of Date Rape Hits For Decades

It's not just a song; it's a culture.

114
Forget 'Baby, It’s Cold Outside' — DJs Have Been Spinning Hundreds Of Date Rape Hits For Decades
https://www.maxpixel.net/Happiness-Couple-Winter-Snow-Just-Married-Ukraine-3134557

I know you want it. You like the attention and you get what you like. I'm just watching and waiting. I hear you saying what you won't do, but you know we probably gonna do.

Creepy, right? No these aren't lines from hit drama "Law & Order: SVU". These are all lyrics from some of pop music's biggest songs.

If anyone were to recite the lyrics of G-Eazy's "Wicked" or Robin Thicke's "Blurred Lines" to a woman in a regular voice, a police officer would certainly get involved (oh wait, 63 percent of sexual assaults go unreported to law enforcement).

This begs the question as to why such blatant sexually aggressive comments are acceptable under the guise of a good beat and melody. "Blurred Lines"- a song undeniably about a woman declining to have sex with a man who will not take "no" for an answer- topped the pop charts and was even remade by "Kidz Bop".

Let that sink in for a moment. Children covered a sexually explicit song where the sex wasn't even consensual. The precedent has been set that it is okay for our boys to grow up to be sexually aggressive towards someone's clear rejections.

This is why a song is not just a song. Music and the lyrics going along to it make up our culture. Music has permeated every environment, whether it FM radio in the car or on the soundtrack to kids' shows.

Much like Robin Thicke's message, whether you're a willing and conscious participant or not, music finds a way into our minds. More commonly known as an earworm, when the brain hears something especially catchy, spontaneous cognition occurs and saves portions of the song into a memory.

In an age like today where strides are finally being taken to empower sexual harassment/assault survivors to speak out for justice, we need to be especially scrutinizing about what we deem acceptable to be a part of pop culture.

Surely "Baby, it's cold outside" is cemented into the soundtrack of the American holiday season, so it may seem a bit too late to erase the tune. However, we can use it as a jumpoff point to say this era of misogynistic, sexual misconduct promoting music is no more palatable for the world's ear.

It is already a harsh reality for women that if they find the courage to decline a man, he will seldom listen. Even men who identify as feminists and liberals have fallen down the "Baby, it's cold outside" rabbit hole.

Aziz Ansari, a critically acclaimed actor, and comedian, was in the headlines because of a situation with a woman. Ansari- who has even written a book on dating in the modern world- went on a date with a woman who he brought back to his apartment.

According to the woman, she was inclined to leave his apartment when it became late in the evening, but after Ansari's persistent objections, she stayed and did engage in sexual activity with the actor.

These scenarios happen way too often because society has created a gray area about whether or not to respect a woman's rejection.

It is on the consumers to tell the Robin Thicke's, G-Eazy's and Dean Martin's: she doesn't want it; she wasn't asking for it; she can't stay.

From Your Site Articles
Related Articles Around the Web
Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Student Life

The 5 Painfully True Stages Of Camping Out At The Library

For those long nights that turn into mornings when the struggle is real.

121
woman reading a book while sitting on black leather 3-seat couch
Photo by Seven Shooter on Unsplash

And so it begins.

1. Walk in motivated and ready to rock

Camping out at the library is not for the faint of heart. You need to go in as a warrior. You usually have brought supplies (laptop, chargers, and textbooks) and sustenance (water, snacks, and blanket/sweatpants) since the battle will be for an undetermined length of time. Perhaps it is one assignment or perhaps it's four. You are motivated and prepared; you don’t doubt the assignment(s) will take time, but you know it couldn’t be that long.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

The 14 Stages Of The Last Week Of Class

You need sleep, but also have 13 things due in the span of 4 days.

221
black marker on notebook

December... it's full of finals, due dates, Mariah Carey, and the holidays. It's the worst time of the year, but the best because after finals, you get to not think about classes for a month and catch up on all the sleep you lost throughout the semester. But what's worse than finals week is the last week of classes, when all the due dates you've put off can no longer be put off anymore.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

28 Daily Thoughts of College Students

"I want to thank Google, Wikipedia, and whoever else invented copy and paste. Thank you."

799
group of people sitting on bench near trees duting daytime

I know every college student has daily thoughts throughout their day. Whether you're walking on campus or attending class, we always have thoughts running a mile a minute through our heads. We may be wondering why we even showed up to class because we'd rather be sleeping, or when the professor announces that we have a test and you have an immediate panic attack.

Keep Reading...Show less
Lifestyle

The Great Christmas Movie Debate

"A Christmas Story" is the star on top of the tree.

2104
The Great Christmas Movie Debate
Mental Floss

One staple of the Christmas season is sitting around the television watching a Christmas movie with family and friends. But of the seemingly hundreds of movies, which one is the star on the tree? Some share stories of Santa to children ("Santa Claus Is Coming to Town"), others want to spread the Christmas joy to adults ("It's a Wonderful Life"), and a select few are made to get laughs ("Elf"). All good movies, but merely ornaments on the Christmas tree of the best movies. What tops the tree is a movie that bridges the gap between these three movies, and makes it a great watch for anyone who chooses to watch it. Enter the timeless Christmas classic, "A Christmas Story." Created in 1983, this movie holds the tradition of capturing both young and old eyes for 24 straight hours on its Christmas Day marathon. It gets the most coverage out of all holiday movies, but the sheer amount of times it's on television does not make it the greatest. Why is it,
then? A Christmas Story does not try to tell the tale of a Christmas miracle or use Christmas magic to move the story. What it does do though is tell the real story of Christmas. It is relatable and brings out the unmatched excitement of children on Christmas in everyone who watches. Every one becomes a child again when they watch "A Christmas Story."

Keep Reading...Show less
student thinking about finals in library
StableDiffusion

As this semester wraps up, students can’t help but be stressed about finals. After all, our GPAs depends on these grades! What student isn’t worrying about their finals right now? It’s “goodbye social life, hello library” time from now until the end of finals week.

1. Finals are weeks away, I’m sure I’ll be ready for them when they come.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments