Philipino Music: Legitimizing Sexism And Misogyny In Rap
Music has been used as a medium of self-expression. Adams et. al. , (2006) argued that music reflects the cultural and political environment from which it is born. The emergence of rap music became an aesthetic cultural expression of experiences of marginalization, brutality, and oppression especially in the African and Black American communities. Over time, rap music evolved into different forms, one main content of this is sexism primarily address to women. Sexism and misogyny in rap music is the prejudice, stereotyping, or discrimination, objectification, typically against women. Adams and Fuller (2006) even argues that misogyny is the hatred or disdain of women. It is an ideology that reduces women to objects for men’s ownership, use, or abuse. It diminishes women to expendable beings. This ideology is widespread and common throughout society. This constant featuring of women sexism and misogyny is also evident in Original Pilipino Rap Music which we will research in "Pilipino Music: Legitimizing Sexism And Misogyny In Rap Essay".
Pilipinos are into music. Mainstream songs are highly valued in the Philippine music industry including Original Pilipino Rap Music. Famous Pilipino rappers such as Francis Magalona, Andrew E. , and Gloc 9 contributed greatly to OPM, their songs are still heard today. Magalona is famous for his politically relevant songs, notably his songs Mga Kababayan Ko and Tayo’y mga Pinoy that talks about embracing the Pilipino identity. On the contrary, as rap music transforms over time, this prominent ‘nationalistic’ characteristic of Philippine rap music turned into an oppressive medium. There seems to be a definite trend nowadays among many rap artists, where sexism and misogynistic themes are used in variety of forms, from mild to extreme or excessive blatant defamations.
Nik Makino’s Neneng B is sexualizing a woman’s body by giving metaphors such as “sorbetes ka ba? Kasi gusto mong dinidilaan ka. ” The woman whom the artist refers to as Neneng B is Sam Pinto, a Filipino actress and model. The leading woman in the song is compared to Neneng B having a perfect body that makes him get attracted to and became lustful. In addition, a stanza in the song describes women as bitch and chicks analogous to some animals.
Hannah Lois Vecino, a student from Bukidnon said that “the song has a catchy vibe and rhythm that is good to listen to. ” Even in the social media, many Pilipinos made tiktok videos dancing to Neneng B and even gets viral. A female dancer in her teens named Leng made a tiktok video dancing to Neneng B and gets 14,000 views. Majority in the comment section gives lustful reactions about Leng, saying “boom ang sarap kainin” or sending sexually offensive pictures. A netizen commented that the song is degrading the women’s image and should not be used for dancing. My roommate would sing a part of the song, blurting out words like “Boom!,” or “parang Neneng B ang kanyang katawan” and the rest would be humming without knowing its content.
Cue C is one of the Pilipino rappers creating songs that contains women sexualisation. His song Ganda mo explicitly sexualizing women with vivid description on what he would like to do. While browsing on YouTube to look for this song, a girl commented that she didn’t understand the song until she read the lyrics. She even used to play it on her phone. I sent the song to my friend, Ryzel Pat-I, and he said that “it’s too gruesome and overly sexualizing women. Kids even know the song and it’s not good. ”
Another song created by Cue C is titled Kung Sa Pwet Nalang and Pepeng Mataba shows how he refers the woman as someone lower than him and even objectifying her for his sexual desires. The song Kung sa Pwet Nalang also shows strong physical violence on women such as “hiniwa” and “sinira” referring the woman’s vagina.
Misogyny and sexism are not new themes in rap music. Even early 2000s, Andrew E made songs portraying women as sexual objects, for instance his songs Banyo Queen and Sinabmarin. While searching these songs on YouTube, I’ve read similar comments about them listening to these songs before but didn’t understood what the song means. They only realized the content years later. Probably that these people first heard these songs during their childhood years. Despite of knowing this, netizens are praising Andrew E and are still into his songs. Comments for instance, “I’m into Tagalog rap these days, nostalgic! Love it!,” “lodi talaga. ” “idol walang kupas nag iisang dirty rap” are just few.
Content Analysis
Adams and Fuller (2006) assert that rap music reduces women to objects “that are only good for sex and abuse,” which “perpetuate ideas, values, beliefs, and stereotypes that debase women. ” The usage of the words “bitch” and “chicks,” to portray them justifies women oppression. Images formed in the raps presented reduces women empowerment and boxes them as subordinates of men. Unconsciously, this idea is widely spread in the social media that even underage girls became vulnerable to this. This very action whether intentionally or not, puts harm on women in any age groups, blatantly attacking and obliterating their freedom of expression even on how to dress themselves. Furthermore, rap music is a male oriented medium manipulating images of women. It promotes masculinity that sustain and encourage misogyny. This is supported by Adams and Fuller (2006) who argued that images of masculinity in rap music for the most part, agreed by scholars, portray images of manhood that are hypersexual, misogynistic, and violent.
While some Pilipino think of these as songs having good rhythmic value, and that are even easy to remember, in a feminist perspective, this type of songs are highly condemned. Feminists would counter this with arguments that should be: promoting women’s right to assert their own desires for sexual fulfilment and pleasure apart from meeting the needs of men or being controlled by them, resist patterns of sexual objectification, promote women’s independence and economic prowess, provide critiques of male dominance, and sexual and domestic violence that is according to Papadaki (2015). Immanuel Kant thought that sexuality is extremely problematic when exercised outside the context of monogamous marriage, arguing that in such instances it leads to objectification. He characteristically writes in the Lectures on Ethics that “sexual love makes of the loved person an object of appetite; as soon as that appetite has been stilled, the person is cast aside as one casts away a lemon which has been sucked dry. … as soon as a person becomes an object of appetite for another, all motives of moral relationship cease to function, because as an object of appetite for another a person becomes a thing and can be treated and used as such by everyone” (Kant Lectures on Ethics, 163). Kant thought that in theory both men and women can be objectified, but he was well aware that in practice women are the most common victims of objectification. This is obvious in Kant's discussions of prostitution. Exercise of sexuality within these morally problematic sexual contexts leads to the reduction of women (prostitutes and concubines) to men's objects of appetite. It has been pointed out by some feminist thinkers that women in our society are more identified and associated with their bodies than are men, and, to a greater extent than men, they are valued for how they look (Bordo 1993, Bartky 1990).
It is worth noting that ever since the song rose to its popularity, dialogues on the issues of objectification and sexualism had been circulating the internet. Still, it managed to get at this point wherein children are blindly singing along with its lyrics without careful thought, and even procured dance moves that might downplay its real issue (and its actual purpose) to mere entertainment. Rap music now became an avenue to justify women’s oppression and to normalize misogyny and sexism. Last, misogynistic music also serves as a means to desensitize individuals to sexual harassment, exploitation, abuse, and violence toward women. In addition, it serves as an ideological support mechanism that legitimizes the mistreatment and degradation of women. Every time an artist who uses misogynistic overtones is given a platform (e. g. , T. V. award shows) to spout misogynistic ideas, this ideology is furthered legitimated—and the listener or viewer is further desensitized. Furthermore, each time music critics or the like refer to misogynistic rappers as “an innovator in the music industry,” further legitimization and desensitization is given to this ideology.
Although the verdict is still out on the direct effects of lewd rap lyrics, some social scientists contend that this medium of music can have a negative effect on individual attitudes. Wester, Crown, Quatman, and Heesacker (1997) report that after respondents with little prior exposure to gangsta rap music were exposed to the music, they exhibited greater “adversarial sexual beliefs” than those who were not exposed to such lyrics. My informant Lyra Marcito said that having these kind of songs makes her uncomfortable especially when directed towards her. “It seems like a threat to me as a woman. Men might even use these kind of songs to catcall me. It’s disturbing. ”
Like the misogynistic music before it, misogynistic rap has been accepted and allowed to flourish, generating wealth for some of the artists and the music industry as a whole. Some artists use such lyrics to gain status, recognition, and high volume sales—when they may not personally believe in what they espouse. The idea of reproducing such type of song refutes the idea of disavowal or disinterestedness of the artist, based on Pierre Bourdieu’s production of belief. Song writing in this sense is only created for capitalism. If we try to examine the rhythm of these songs, there are similarities that we can point as if there’s no such distinction made for every artist. Nik Makino’s Neneng B is under criticisms because of Roko Tensei, a music producer from Europe, accused Nik of stealing the beat of his song. Tensei plans to take legal action against Nik.
It is now the rap artists and record producers’ part to assume complete responsibility for the lyrics they produce. The ultimate burden of responsibility must be placed on them who normalizes this ideology for capitalistic ventures. Only through challenging and changing these aspects of social life will misogynistic ideology be able to be dealt with in a realistic and truthful manner. If misogyny continues to be ignored, it will only continue to manifest itself in all arenas of social life. Rape, spousal abuse, and other violent acts against women are all manifestations of misogynistic ideology.
