The Sound of Culture Settling In

Blog article for classroom session on February 27, 2012: Cultural Songs

For our discussion in class, Sir Contreras made us listen to three songs which had very huge cultural impacts. They were songs which had meanings. At first, these songs possibly would not even make an impact to us but when the lyrics is analyzed, understood and put into consideration, we will hear that these songs actually serve as cultural products which promulgate ideas, ideologies, and thoughts.

For my personal reflection, I sorted to go the other way around. In our class, we listened to songs which influence culture in some ways. For this entry, I will try to analyze how culture influence the songs.

I always had the liking for music and songs and they say it was my elder brother's great influence on me. This is also the reason why most of the time, my colleagues and peers do not entirely agree of my musical choices. I believe that this is partly I do not base my favorites on its popularity nor the popularity of the singer/band who produced it. I HATE having to like something because everyone else likes it. As a child, I always saw to it that if I like something, it has to be something no one else really like. But also, I think my disagreement with my peers about my kind of music is because of me and my elder brother's age difference. We are six (6) years apart and although it seemed like a small gap, our years of birth can explain this dilemma further.

My brother was born in 1985 and I on 1991. Clearly, he started his journey in the 80's era and I on the 90's. The 80's and the 90's, although only ten (10) years apart, had obvious differences in so many fields, and music is one of them.

When 1980's boomed society, gone are the days of Disco and Punk Rock both in music and in fashion. The decade of the 1980's then saw the emergence of pop, dance music and new wave. Music in the early 80's were very much associated with synthesizers and electronic instruments thus also paving the way for new genres such as Electro, Techno, House and Freestyle. However, as the decade comes nearer to its end, R&B, Hip hop, Alternative and Urban styles became the main thing. My brother was into the 80's music as he was growing up. He bought mix tapes and listned to the radio all the time. Having to stay with him every night, I definitely was able to absorb his likes and favorites as well.

Music in the decade of the 1990's grew not too far from that of the previous decade however it definitely became more of the Popular or Pop style. The musical era of the 1990's was one filled with a variety of Pop, Rap and Alternative music artists. It was a time when musical taste was as varied as the events that were happening at that time.

Music can definitely evolve in just a span of ten short years. If this is said to be true, what more for twenty, thirty, forty or fifty years? I would like to emphasize this point by siting two examples - songs from different decades portraying different thoughts and therefore promulgating opposing ideologies parallel to that of the the culture which dominated the specific era.

I Wanna Hold Your Hand

Written by: John Lennon (50%) and Paul McCartney (50%) (credited as Lennon-McCartney)
Recorded: October 17, 1963 (Studio 2, Abbey Road Studios, London, England)
Mixed: October 21, 1963
Length: 2:26
First released: November 29, 1963 (UK: Parlophone R5084), December 26, 1964 (US: Capitol 5112)

Oh yeah I tell you something

I think you'll understand

When I say that something

I wanna hold your hand

I wanna hold your hand

I wanna hold your hand

Oh please say to me

You'll let me be your man

And please say to me

You'll let me hold your hand

Now let me hold your hand

I wanna hold your hand

And when I touch you I feel happy inside

It's such a feeling that my love, I can't hide

I can't hide, I can't hide

Yeah you

Got that something

I think you'll understand

When you say that something

I wanna hold your hand

I wanna hold your hand

I wanna hold your hand

And when I touch you I feel happy inside

It's such a feeling that my love, I can't hide

I can't hide, I can't hide

Yeah you

Got that something

I think you'll understand

When you say that something

I wanna hold your hand

I wanna hold your hand

I wanna hold your hand

A classic song from a classic band, released in the 1960's, taking about how the singer longs for one simple touch on the hands of the person he deeply admires. A simple longing stated in simple words and sang without malice or any hint of lust. This type of song, whose message is very subtle and very modest, reflects the culture of the 1960's. Men are starting to profess publicly and "touching" is now involved in songs and other cultural products. The intention is clear but the profession is demure and tamed.

Now let us fast forward to 40 years later to the decade of 2011 onwards. When the world already became a very liberal one as compared to that of the 60's. We will analyze a song which also professes love in a different manner and general theme.

I Just Had Sex

Written by: Akiva Schaffer, Jorma Taccone and Andy Samberg in collaboration with Akon
Recorded: May 2010
Length: 2:56
First Released: December 19, 2010

Sometimes (Oh-oh-ohhh)

Sometimes beautiful happens in this world (Akon!)

You don't know how to express yourself, so (And Lonely Island!)

You just gotta sing

I just had sex (Ay!)

And it felt so good (Felt so good)

A woman let me put my penis inside of her (Her!)

I just had se-ay-ee-ex

And I'll never go back (Never go back)

To the not-haven't-sex ways of the past

Have you ever had sex? I have, it felt great (Yeah!)

It felt so good when I did with my penis (Yeah!)

A girl let me do it, it literally just happened

Having sex should make a nice man out the meanest

Never guess where I just came from, I had sex

If I had to describe the feelin', it was the best

When I had the sex, man, my penis felt great

And I called my parents right after I was done

Oh hey, didn't see you there, guess what I just did?

Had sex, undressed, saw her boobies and the rest

(Was sure nice of her to let you do that thing)

Nice of any girl ever (Now sing!)

I just had sex (Ay!)

And it felt so good (Felt so good)

A woman let me put my penis inside of her (Her!)

I wanna tell the world

To be honest, I'm surprised she even wanted me to do it

(Doesn't really make sense) But man, screw it

(I ain't one to argue with a good thing) She could be my wife!

(That good?) The best thirty seconds of my life

I'm so humbled by a girl's ability to let me do her

'Cause honestly, I'd have sex with a pile of manure

With that in mind, a soft, nice-smellin'-girl's better

Plus she let me wear my chain and my turtleneck sweaters

So this one's dedicated to them girls

That let us flop around on top of them

If you're near or far, whether short or tall

We wanna thank you all for lettin' us fuck you

She kept lookin' at her watch (Doesn't matter, had sex!)

But I cried the whole time (Doesn't matter, had sex!)

I think she might've been a racist (Doesn't matter, had sex!)

She put a bag on my head (Still counts!)

I just had sex (Ay!)

And my dreams came true (Dreams came true)

So if you had sex in the last thirty minutes

Then you qualified to sing with me

I just had sex (Everybody sing!!)

And it felt so good (We all had sex!)

A woman let me put my penis inside of her 

I just had se-ay-ee-ex (I just had sex)

And I'll never go back (Never go back)

To the not-haven't-sex ways of the past

This very vulgar song simply tells the world that the singer just made a provocative and sensual activity and that he is very happy and proud about it. Such vulgarity and bluntness is definitely considered a common notion already in the decade of 2010 as culture became more liberated and open to just about anything and everything even subjects which were considered inappropriate and shall not be discussed in public from several decades ago. This song might also show some hints of the developments to delicate pressing issues in the years before such as: Women's rights, Sexuality and even Racism. 

It's nice to see how culture is projected in songs and to have a glimpse and understand how it was back then as compared to how it is now.

♥ Reese Corpuz