If you have been living in Vancouver (I cannot speak for the rest of the world) since 2008 then you have no doubt heard the dance-pop-R&B song “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)” by Beyoncé Knowles. The music video[1] and dance routine associated with the song started the “first major dance craze” of the millennium and of the internet age[2]. Countless YouTube videos circulated individuals’ own attempts at dancing the ‘Single Ladies’ dance or coming up with their own version of it. Actor Tom Hanks aptly described the upbeat song as being highly “infectious” and declared it his favourite song of the year[3]. Other (male) celebrities loved the song so much that they donned the (lady) leotards and danced around Beyoncé in a well-received Saturday Night Live parody video[4].
One reuse of “Single Ladies” featured seven-year-old girls performing the song at a dance recital[5] and its appearance on YouTube opened the floor for some very heated debates.
How do we determine whether the reuse of media will be considered acceptable or unacceptable? There is no rulebook written on the subject, no formula a person can follow to avoid sparking controversy. People must consider the specific socio-cultural context of their remediation and its implications, and if they do not then many others certainly will. While there are many factors that can contribute to an unacceptable remix – such as power dynamics, race, reinterpretation, recorded vs. live performance – for the sake of brevity here I will focus on one instance where age plays a major role.
A group of seven-year-old girls dance onto the stage of their recital to the sounds of “Single Ladies” and begin their dance routine. The dance routine is different than Beyoncé’s and so are the outfits. The girls’ costumes resemble lingerie and their dance moves (while performed with great skill) resemble those of a Burlesque show. David Novak provides valuable insight into the subject of remediation. He has observed that appropriation is a “creative act” (42[6]). Well, the girls are “creative”; they’re doing different dance moves and wearing different costumes. Novak says, “remediation also makes contemporary cosmopolitan subjects” (41). In the discourse surrounding this video, we see a newly emerging cosmopolitan subject: the little girl who can wear lingerie onstage and is immune to criticism because it is, as one of the girls’ parents described it, her “dance outfit”[7]. So what is it about this video that has so many people offended? As I have said, there is no set formula a person can follow to avoid being deemed unacceptable, but in this case, might I suggest the following formula:
Minors + Lingerie + Sexually Suggestive Dance Moves = Controversy
In the SNL parody, Justin Timberlake and Andy Samberg join Beyoncé, clad in black leotards, in dancing her original dance routine(Watch the full routine here). Beyoncé objects, “this song is called ‘Single Ladies’ so I imagined the dancers would be strong beautiful women”. These last three words are key: strong beautiful women. In the dance recital version of this song, the subjects are not strong beautiful women but unaware children. While many criticisms have been launched in the direction of these children (words have appeared in the comments such as ‘whore’, ‘slutty’) can they really be faulted for a reinterpretation that would have been initiated by an adult choreographer and was applauded by their adult caregivers? Certain elements of Beyoncé’s original video are directly translated, such as the talent and enjoyment demonstrated by the girls. The girls’ young age and lack of awareness has resulted in their reinterpretation being deemed unacceptable by many people. These ‘single ladies’ are not yet fully developed social beings capable of demonstrating the same agency employed by others who have danced “Single Ladies”.
[1] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4m1EFMoRFvY
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single_Ladies_%28Put_a_Ring_on_It%29
[3] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h33ApIwU2eI
[4] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBC7pilGoPc&feature=related
[5] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ir8BO4-7DkM
[6] Novak, David 2010 Cosmopolitanism, Remediation, and the Ghost World of Bollywood. Cultural Anthropology 25(1):40-72.
[7] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMF4KDJm5ms&feature=related
No comments:
Post a Comment