| shorts | novels | opinions | journal | hosted | vote

GENERATION: MTV

"I believe that children are our future

Teach them well and let them lead the way"

[The Greatest Love] Whitney Houston

I was watching an “Extended” version of Michael Jackson’s 30th Anniversary Special tonight, and I would be lying if I told you I wasn’t disturbed by Lil’ Romeo’s rap rendition of the Jackson 5’s  ‘ABC’.

Okay, I know I’m nineteen, and I’m still a damn kid in most thirty or something- middle aged person’s eyes, but I can’t say this without sounding patronizing.

‘Women, and girlfriends who want to marry me”?

This line comes from something a very promising rap artist was singing- and guess what, he hasn’t even hit puberty. What happened to those days when Dionne Warrick and Bing Crosby made a living singing (by today’s standards) mediocre lyrics, praising the love of one woman to one man, or simply how a prettier than a picture woman would capture the eye of one man only? At least they were legal to vote, had no curfew and well… quite frankly, probably married.

Now, if you’ve actually got enough hair to shave, legally allowed to drink and vote, can legally move out of home, and well, can have sex whenever, wherever you want- you’re considered ancient for the industry.

And if I didn’t actually know for a fact that Lil Romeo himself hadn’t even hit puberty, I would have thought it was Gary Coleman in an ‘over glittered, five sizes too big, wearing my dad’s shirt’ outfit if I was just channel surfing. After hours and hours of watching endless rap videos on Saturday commercial TV (Video Hits and Rage), I would have to say, Lil Romeo moves like Nelly, raps like Puff Daddy (Diddy, whatever) and well, to put it bluntly, like a thirty year old in a nine year old body.

Haley Joel Osment, the kid who saw dead people in the Sixth Sense, once started an answer with “when I was little…”

That scared the hell out of me.

I mean, if he could say “When I was a child….” at eleven years old, then Lord help me, I’m over the hill.

And when Billy Gilman won the new artist award at the AMAs this year? Man, his acceptance speech was- say polished is only starting.

“I wanna thank my managers, My PR _________, without you, I wouldn’t be here today”

Have they watched the Oscars too much or something?

I know I’m only referring to industry kids, but I’m afraid kids of our generation- ‘naughties’ and kids born in the nineties are affected by this.

Take for example, a special segment on kids directly affected by the Sept 11 attacks by NBC on the 19th  December 2001.

There was this one little girl who lost her father, a security guard who worked at the Pentagon. He lost his life hours after he went to work.

The little girl loved J-Lo, so NBC arranged so she could hang out with her for an entire day on a video shoot. Not only did the girl meet her, but she also got a makeover (complete with make up, J-Lo-esque pigtails, a J-LO shirt and tight, tight pants….) She was friggin eight years old!

NBC also convinced her to sing a few bars of ‘I’m Real’- not just the original, but the damn remix with Ja Rule- and you know how explicit that is. If she is listening to lyrics like that at eight, I’d hate to know what could happen in the future. And if J-Lo is her role model, wearing skimpy shirts, skirts and some of the things they do in the video clips… I’d be worried.

Is our society as we know it, growing up faster; and if so, is it speeding at a pace we can’t seem to stop? Or are we just letting these innocent minds be corrupted by the media because we’re inclined to turn a blind eye?

Has our fascination with commercialism reached the point of no return? Do we still own our minds or has the media contorted us to believe what isn’t really there?

I want to believe that children are our future too. But it can't be done until we censor some aspects, or control what children watch. And even if we don't, there will be repercussions; it will come back to us, no matter what we do.

"Show them all the beauty they possess inside

Give them a sense of pride

To make it easier

Let all the children's laughter

Remind us how we used to be"

Don't you want that for our society?

 

© sayamaru and 'Bittersweet Rhapsodies' 2001-02

No part of this website may be reproduced in part or in whole without permission of the author/webmistress.

All ideas, graphics and layouts and backgrounds and stories are copyright of sayamaru and Bittersweet Rhapsodies. I am in no way affiliated with the Backstreet Boys, their management wives/girlfriends or the girls used in these stories.