Do you remember when love songs of the R&B variety weren't about strippers? You know, before R&B slow and mid-tempo jams were infused with hip hop vernacular and swagger? Don't get me wrong, I enjoy well-crafted hip hop songs and the pop culture-laden, wink wink lyrics of many modern day R&B artists. Chris Brown's, "You're like Jordans on Saturday," line comes to mind.
That said, doesn't a squarely romantic R&B song seem like a faint memory when you're listening to the radio nowadays? I don't get it. A woman would have to be able to relate to a woman who would "make love in this club" in order to swoon and daydream along to one of these songs. Is this who you have to be to get a song written about you? Are these the songs men are dedicating to their girlfriends? Who are these girlfriends? It's whore-able.
Let me tell you something. Not too long ago, Mr. Wyclef Jean passed me on the street outside The Hit Factory in NYC. I didn't say anything to him. However, had I somehow managed to summon the nerve, I might have sarcastically said, "Hey, Mr. Jean. I have an idea. Why don't you write a song about a stripper?" Granted, his stripper songs are more cautionary tales, "real talk" about the trials and tribulations associated with stripper life, but, in case you haven't noticed, this awesomely talented man (Gone Till November is still one of my favorite tracks ever) has about five songs in his repertoire that are about those who shake their money-makers.
It seems a little unbalanced, if you ask me, especially when you consider the myriad of topics one in his position could potentially write about. I guess it would be fine if he were the only one recording these ditties, but there are a slew of other writers and producers out there who are just banging these things out and cashing their checks one after another. It never ends. It's like a stripper song franchise. Ho's for Ho's, I suppose.
And these songs creep up on you, don't they? You can be driving along in your car, listening to a beautiful melody with beautiful sentiments being beautifully expressed ever-so-sincerely via the most seductive male singing voice on the planet, thinking, Hey, this could be about me. Someone could love me this way someday. What a lovely song with such...BOOM! The ass lyric. The reference to the pole. The shaking it. The dollar dollar bill. The letdown. This isn't about me.
So, in my spare time I like to make up parody songs with awful stripper-centric lyrics that I perform for friends and family. The thing is, even the most ridiculous lyrics I can conjure up seem like they could actually be the lyrics to some of these songs that are so pervasive.
Example:
Girl, I been lovin' you so much for so long
Ain't no way I gon' stop it
Cuz, girl, the love I feel for you is so strong
When you pop ya ass and drop it
Insanely stupid, right? And yet, utterly plausible. Maybe this already is in a song. Who knows. (Sigh) Maybe I'm just getting old or something. Maybe, since they are wildly popular, I'm the only one who takes issue with these songs. Still, while this may very well be the case, don't you sometimes wonder what songs couples will be choosing as their wedding songs in the very near future? After all, the guy who sings about being "in love with a stripper" will probably need a tune to slow dance to on his big day...when he marries the preacher's daughter.
That said, doesn't a squarely romantic R&B song seem like a faint memory when you're listening to the radio nowadays? I don't get it. A woman would have to be able to relate to a woman who would "make love in this club" in order to swoon and daydream along to one of these songs. Is this who you have to be to get a song written about you? Are these the songs men are dedicating to their girlfriends? Who are these girlfriends? It's whore-able.
Let me tell you something. Not too long ago, Mr. Wyclef Jean passed me on the street outside The Hit Factory in NYC. I didn't say anything to him. However, had I somehow managed to summon the nerve, I might have sarcastically said, "Hey, Mr. Jean. I have an idea. Why don't you write a song about a stripper?" Granted, his stripper songs are more cautionary tales, "real talk" about the trials and tribulations associated with stripper life, but, in case you haven't noticed, this awesomely talented man (Gone Till November is still one of my favorite tracks ever) has about five songs in his repertoire that are about those who shake their money-makers.
It seems a little unbalanced, if you ask me, especially when you consider the myriad of topics one in his position could potentially write about. I guess it would be fine if he were the only one recording these ditties, but there are a slew of other writers and producers out there who are just banging these things out and cashing their checks one after another. It never ends. It's like a stripper song franchise. Ho's for Ho's, I suppose.
And these songs creep up on you, don't they? You can be driving along in your car, listening to a beautiful melody with beautiful sentiments being beautifully expressed ever-so-sincerely via the most seductive male singing voice on the planet, thinking, Hey, this could be about me. Someone could love me this way someday. What a lovely song with such...BOOM! The ass lyric. The reference to the pole. The shaking it. The dollar dollar bill. The letdown. This isn't about me.
So, in my spare time I like to make up parody songs with awful stripper-centric lyrics that I perform for friends and family. The thing is, even the most ridiculous lyrics I can conjure up seem like they could actually be the lyrics to some of these songs that are so pervasive.
Example:
Girl, I been lovin' you so much for so long
Ain't no way I gon' stop it
Cuz, girl, the love I feel for you is so strong
When you pop ya ass and drop it
Insanely stupid, right? And yet, utterly plausible. Maybe this already is in a song. Who knows. (Sigh) Maybe I'm just getting old or something. Maybe, since they are wildly popular, I'm the only one who takes issue with these songs. Still, while this may very well be the case, don't you sometimes wonder what songs couples will be choosing as their wedding songs in the very near future? After all, the guy who sings about being "in love with a stripper" will probably need a tune to slow dance to on his big day...when he marries the preacher's daughter.
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