Not sure, but I can see how it may influence people's decision making process...Bring on the Ho's... Music Dirty song lyrics can prompt early teen sex Degrading messages influence sexual behavior, study finds Teens whose iPods are full of music with raunchy, sexual lyrics start having sex sooner than those who prefer other songs, a study found. Whether it’s hip-hop, rap, pop or rock, much of popular music aimed at teens contains sexual overtones. Its influence on their behavior appears to depend on how the sex is portrayed, researchers found. Songs depicting men as “sex-driven studs,” women as sex objects and with explicit references to sex acts are more likely to trigger early sexual behavior than those where sexual references are more veiled and relationships appear more committed, the study found. Teens who said they listened to lots of music with degrading sexual messages were almost twice as likely to start having intercourse or other sexual activities within the following two years as were teens who listened to little or no sexually degrading music. Among heavy listeners, 51 percent started having sex within two years, versus 29 percent of those who said they listened to little or no sexually degrading music. 'Cool thing to do' Exposure to lots of sexually degrading music “gives them a specific message about sex,” said lead author Steven Martino, a researcher for Rand Corp. in Pittsburgh. Boys learn they should be relentless in pursuit of women and girls learn to view themselves as sex objects, he said. “We think that really lowers kids’ inhibitions and makes them less thoughtful” about sexual decisions and may influence them to make decisions they regret, he said. The study, based on telephone interviews with 1,461 participants aged 12 to 17, appears in the August issue of Pediatrics, being released Monday. Most participants were virgins when they were first questioned in 2001. Follow-up interviews were done in 2002 and 2004 to see if music choice had influenced subsequent behavior. Natasha Ramsey, a 17-year-old from New Brunswick, N.J., said she and other teens sometimes listen to sexually explicit songs because they like the beat. “I won’t really realize that the person is talking about having sex or raping a girl,” she said. Even so, the message “is being beaten into the teens’ heads,” she said. “We don’t even really realize how much.” “A lot of teens think that’s the way they’re supposed to be, they think that’s the cool thing to do. Because it’s so common, it’s accepted,” said Ramsey, a teen editor for Sexetc.org, a teen sexual health Web site produced at Rutgers University. “Teens will try to deny it, they’ll say ‘No, it’s not the music,’ but it IS the music. That has one of the biggest impacts on our lives,” Ramsey said. The Recording Industry Association of America, which represents the U.S. recording industry, declined to comment on the findings. Benjamin Chavis, chief executive officer of the Hip-Hip Summit Action Network, a coalition of hip-hop musicians and recording industry executives, said explicit music lyrics are a cultural expression that reflect “social and economic realities.” “We caution rushing to judgment that music more than any other factor is a causative factor” for teens initiating sex, Chavis said. Healthy home atmosphere Martino said the researchers tried to account for other factors that could affect teens’ sexual behavior, including parental permissiveness, and still found explicit lyrics had a strong influence. However, Yvonne K. Fulbright, a New York-based sex researcher and author, said factors including peer pressure, self-esteem and home environment are probably more influential than the research suggests. “It’s a little dangerous to just pinpoint one thing. You have to look at everything that’s going on in a young person’s life,” she said. “When somebody has a healthy sense of themselves, they don’t take these lyrics too seriously.” David Walsh, a psychologist who heads the National Institute on Media and the Family, said the results make sense, and echo research on the influence of videos and other visual media. The brain’s impulse-control center undergoes “major construction” during the teen years at the same time that an interest in sex starts to blossom, he said. Add sexually arousing lyrics and “it’s not that surprising that a kid with a heavier diet of that ... would be at greater risk for sexual behavior,” Walsh said. Martino said parents, educators and teens themselves need to think more critically about messages in music lyrics. Fulbright agreed. “A healthy home atmosphere is one that allows a child to investigate what pop culture has to offer and at the same time say ‘I know this is a fun song but you know that it’s not right to treat women this way or this isn’t a good person to have as a role model,”’ she said.
Yeah...whatever happened to good ole' music with sexual overtones that were disguised or metaphoric? You got the peaches I got the cream Sweet to taste, exactly Cuz' I'm hot, hot (so hot) Sticky Sweet From my head (yeah yeah) to my feet
Yes. Those good old fashioned subtle lyrics. I've been really tryin', baby Tryin' to hold back this feelin' for so long And if you feel like I feel, baby Then come on, oh, come on Whoo, let's get it on Ah, babe, let's get it on Let's love, baby Let's get it on, sugar Let's get it on Whoo-ooh-ooh We're all sensitive people With so much to give Understand me, sugar Since we got to be Let's live I love you There's nothin' wrong With me lovin' you Baby, no, no And givin' yourself to me can never be wrong If the love is true Oh, babe, ooh, ooh Don't you know How sweet and wonderful life can be? Whoo-ooh I'm askin' you, baby To get it on with me Ooh, ooh, ooh I ain't gonna worry, I ain't gonna push Won't push you, baby So come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, baby Stop beatin' 'round the bush, hey Let's get it on, ooh, ooh Let's get it on You know what I'm talkin' 'bout Come on, baby, hey, hey Let your love come out If you believe in love Let's get it on, ooh, ooh Let's get it on, baby This minute, oh yeah Let's get it on Please, please, get it on Hey, hey I know you know What I've been dreamin' of Don't you, baby? My whole body is in love Whoo I ain't gonna worry, no, I ain't gonna push I won't push you, baby, whoo Come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, darlin' Stop beatin' 'round the bush, hey Gonna get it on Beggin' you, baby, I want to get it on You don't have to worry that it's wrong If the spirit moves you, let me groove you good Let your love come down Oh, get it on, come on, baby Do you know I mean it? I've been sanctified Hey, hey Girl, you give me good feelings, so good Nothin' wrong with love If you want to love me Just let yourself go Oh, baby Let's get it on
I can see lyrics affecting behavior. It is a significant element in a person's cultural context. I have to wonder about how they can show causality though. Couldn't it be that listeners with a certain disposition toward sex seek out sexualized music?
Agreed to a certain extent...I mean, if the beat is good, I listen to it, just as others do...The problem is a lot of the music has sexual content..That song by Nelly Furtado, Promiscuous has a good beat, but my 9 year old likes that song and she doesn't know what it means...
Music definitely has an influence, but to think it is the primary motivator in a majority of cases is silly. Music is a reflection of the society from where it was born. Artists don't write songs about things that don't exist and popularize the ideas. They take things that are out there and shine light on them. It doesn't mean that message won't have an audience or that some in that audience won't act on that message. But, the greatest influence on a child is that of the people closest to him/her - parents, friends, relatives, teachers, etc. There is always a call to blame music and movies and television for the problems with kids, but the reality is that the better the role models around the kids, the less chance there will be that they will do things that could hurt them later regardless of the influence.
"There are more love songs than anything else. If songs could make you do something, we'd all love one another." Frank Zappa
i absolutely agree with everything you just said. i don't believe it's THE factor in behavior. i think it can be A factor. it's why people have played music to worship God for generations...it's why we've seen countless threads about "mood music" for getting lucky here on this very forum. because music is deeply powerful. i'll also say this. art is a reflection of culture...but the reverse can be true, too. it also leads culture. think of how much we've been desensitized by various media in the last 100 years. imagine how what was so shocking just 20 years ago on TV is so commonplace now. is that entirely because culture changed on its own, independent of any media influence? isn't the media playing to advertisers who are trying to influence behavior, ultimately...to change behavior? do you not think that our culture changes much more quickly now in a media-saturated age than it did before? just random thoughts.
"I wrote a song about dental floss but did anyone's teeth get cleaner?" Frank Zappa, Senate Hearing on "p*rn Rock" Sorry, this one was just too funny not to post...
Music's influence is largely subconcious. As a kid growing up my parents would always be on me about the music I listened to being "unacceptable" and this and that... but I seem to be fine now. that's if you excuse my many addictions...that I like to perform to the music of my youth.
From reading the article, I don't think the study showed causality, just relationship. I find the latter to be quite credible. Just the same way it's shown that there's a relationship between video game violence and violent behavior in kids. But causality is freaking impossible to prove without large-scale, long-term study. Of course, proving only relationship never stopped the media from drawing conclusions about anything. And I wouldn't be surprised some group/lawmakers will try to use it to start censoring music to minors.
Some of the wildest sex I've ever had involved girls who grew up in sheltered and religious homes. Hormones, not culture, will out.
You just aren't digging hard enough. The problem with today is that it isn't easy to find the good music out there. It used to be that you could find decent music on the radio. Not necessarily every song was great, but it wasn't maybe a 50/50 proposition. Today, the radio has the most boring, middle of the road crap ever. Radio is dying a slow, painful death when it comes to pushing music. The best stuff out there isn't on MTV (they don't even show videos anyway) or on radio. You have to check out satellite radio and MySpace and do searches on iTunes, read interesting magazines and listen to streams of podcasts and streaming indie stations. Some people don't want to do that much work and I totally understand. I don't even like doing it all the time. But, there is PLENTY of great music available if you want to find it. Flipping on commercial radio just isn't the way to find it.
