“Lip Gloss”-Lil’ Mama
1. What is the song basically saying about how to live a good life? Paraphrase the main idea.
The song is basically saying how you should look like in this society to be able to fit in (to have a good life). In the very beginning of the music video, she is trying to fit in to the “cool crowd”, so she will be poppin’. After she got the lip gloss, she changed totally from self-diffident to self-confident to represent she fits in the group now, and she is cool. Throughout the whole video, it constantly sends the message to people that they have to look good and cool by using expensive products to be able to have a good life (power) in this society , because they fit in the group and they are being part of the popularity. Also it helps you to get sexual attention from the opposite sex and being the representative of the same sex at the same time.The pop culture in this society is sending out the message that YOU have to follow the trend and update yourself to be able to get the center attention. Or else, you will not be on the same level as the other. In other word, you will not be attached to the society that you are in.
2. What lyrics particularly speak to that perspective? Use quotes as evidence.
The whole video consistently speaks to this perspective because they are concluding what things should be like into people’s eyes. “I say my lip gloss is cool. My lip gloss be poppin’, I'm standing at my locker and all the boys keep stopping”. These sentences in the lyric indicate that people follow the trend because it helps them to look poppin’ and it helps them to attract boys in the school. In other word, the “lip gloss” is a way to help people to get the center-attention from the others. Significantly, people are filling the emptiness of their own life to make it meaningful.
3. How do the video images support, re-orient, or challenge the dominant theme of the lyrics? Analyze.
In the video, when they show the images of Lil' Mama on the computer, and voting for the class president, and even the teacher wants it, it shows that using expsenive product really helps you to get the center attention and power/authority over the others. In this society, sometimes things are hard to determine what is right/wrong or good/bad. Therefore, the pop culture determines it for you and keeps sending out the message of what is RIGHT or GOOD to everybody. When something is in the trend, everybody follows. People act this way because they get the feeling of being part of, and they have something in common as the others. That's what cool is all about. More importantly, people born with the thought: I have to have what somebody else has. Most people in this world live with other’s opinion, and they cannot really separate themselves away from what others’ think. People live a good life base on other people’s comment and when others said is good, then people will automatically feel good about it. Thus, people will keep speaking to this perspective to help the other to feel better about them like putting a mask on the real self.
4. What else do you notice that's interesting? Look for internal contradictions, aspects of the message that resonate with other messages from the pop culture, points that connect to your own perspective, etc. Analyze squared.
After watching the video, I found few things that are contradictive about the people who are following the trend and the video itself. The first thought it came to my mind was that, even though the “lip gloss” makes you look good and it helps you to be the center-attention of everybody, isn’t it just a “mask” that helps you to cover your real self? In another word, only the ones who are bad, that’s why they cover it. It also reflects that people in this world often like the fantasy more than reality. This shows that people who try to be noticeable are the ones who are afraid to face reality, so do you look good/cool anymore?
Another thought that I have about the video is that “then what?”. Even though you got what you want and people admire who you are, THEN WHAT?! IS IT REALLY THAT GOOD WHEN YOU ARE THE ONLY ONE ON THE TOP? Sometimes when you are the #1 of something, you lose a lot because you are the only one. So is it really worth it to have the center attention from everybody?
Also an interesting thought that I have was what is really happiness that makes your life meaningful? When you were a kid and just asking for a toy to now that you are trying to have the best looking, why you are not happy anymore when you have the toy? Isn’t that happiness once when you were young? Or are there values in happiness?
Some contradiction about the video is that the lyric, “It ain’t my fault but I can upgrade you, show you how to use nice things with nice flavors”. In the video, the girl is using an expensive product to show she is cool, and that’s the method that helps her to get the center attention. It also said that she is going to upgrade others, which had show the contradiction that she wants to be the center attention (only one), but at the same time, she wants to be part of the cool crowd in the beginning.
The distinction in the video reflects that people often want to be center attention, but at the same time, they want to be part of the group. When you are being part of, you are in the crowd, not the only one anymore. Then how should we distinguish being part of, and center attention then?
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