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Bridget Shackelford

Shackelford was a 2006-2007 Viewpoint columnist.

Lyrics from T-Pain's "Buy U a Drank"

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[Verse 1:]
Baby Girl
Whats Your Name
Let Me Talk To You
Let Me Buy You A Drink
I'm T-Pain, You Know Me
Konvict Music Have Every Boy Like Ohh Wee
I Know The Club Close At 3
Whats The Chance A You Rollin Wit Me
Back To The Crib
Show You How I Live
Lets Get Drunk Forget What We Did

[Chorus:]
Imma Buy You A Drank
Then Imma Take You Home With Me
I Got Money In The Bank
Shawty Whachu Think Bout That
Find Me In The Grey Cadillac
We In The Bed Like
Ooh Ooh Ohh, Ooh Ooh
We In The Bed Like
Ooh Ooh Ooh, Ooh Ooh
[Verse 2:]
Talk To Me, I Talk Back
Lets Talk Money, I Top That
Crunk Juice Bottle
Oakly Shades
Shawty Got Class
Oh Behave
Lets Get Gone
Walk It Out (Walk It Out)
Just Like That
That's What I'm Talkin' Bout
We Gone Have Fun
You Gone See
On That Patron
You Should Get Like Me

[Chorus:]
Imma Buy You A Drank
Then Imma Take You Home With Me
I Got Money In The Bank

Shawty Whachu Think Bout That
Find Me In The Grey Cadillac
We In The Bed Like
Ooh Ooh Ohh, Ooh Ooh
We In The Bed Like
Ooh Ooh Ooh, Ooh Ooh

[Verse 3: Young Joc]
Wont You Meet Me At The Bar
Respect Big Pimpin'
Tell Me How You Feel
Mama Tell Me What You Sippin'
A Certified Dime Piece
Deserve Louy 1-3
150 A Shot
3 For You And 3 For Me
I'm Checkin' Yo Body Language
I Love The Conversation
And When You Lick Your Lips
I Get A Tinglin' Sensation
Now Were Both Bout Tipsy
You Say You In The Mood
All I Need Is Bout A Hour
Better Yet Maybe Two
Let Me Take You Where I Live
Ferrari Switch Gears
When I Whisper In Ya Ear
Ya Legs Hit The Chandleer
Passion Fruit And Sex
All In The Atmosphere
Imma Let T-Pain Sing It
So He Can Make It Clear

[Chorus:]
Imma Buy You A Drank
Then Imma Take You Home With Me
I Got Money In The Bank
Shawty Whachu Think Bout That
Find Me In The Grey Cadillac
We In The Bed Like
Ooh Ooh Ohh, Ooh Ooh
We In The Bed Like
Ooh Ooh Ooh, Ooh Ooh

[Verse 4:]
Lets Get Gone
Walk It Out
(Now Walk It Out Bang Yo Body, Aaahhh Snap)
Now Rock Rock Rock Rock
You Can Do It All By Yo'self
[x2]

[Chorus:]
Imma Buy You A Drank
Then Imma Take You Home With Me
I Got Money In The Bank
Shawty Whachu Think Bout That
Find Me In The Grey Cadillac
We In The Bed Like
Ooh Ooh Ohh, Ooh Ohh
We In The Bed Like
Ooh Ooh Ooh, Ooh Ooh

On any typical night out at a club, the music blasting through the speakers has a message to say about women, and it’s not a very positive one. Yet everyone on the dance floor is enthusiastically singing and dancing away.

These dance songs are often hit singles on the radio, and because expletives are edited out for the most part, these songs are apparently appropriate for the impressionable masses.

As listeners, however, we have a responsibility to pay attention to the songs we play. The next time you hear a rap song about dancing in a club, pay close attention to the lyrics. Chances are, women are shed in a negative light.

Kyla Howe, a fourth-year Spanish linguistics student, has an issue with the message toward women.

“It’s surprising when you hear a misogynistic lyric in another type of music, but in rap music it’s just the norm,” she said.

One song in particular that offended Howe is the popular single “Smack That” by Eminem and Akon. The chorus of the song is “Smack that, all on the floor, smack that give me some more, smack that till you get sore.”

“It literally says you’re going to be sore because of how hard I’m hitting you,” she said.

Howe heard her friend’s pre-teen sister singing along to the lyrics and found it disturbing.

The lyrics of the songs do affect children, even if they may not know the exact meaning.

“It’s creeping into their consciousness,” Howe said.

Rappers often have a “hunter/prey mentality” and the general theme of the song is “I have a bunch of money – you will be having sex with me tonight.”

Take the song “Rock Her Hips” by Crime Mob. The song doesn’t say anything particularly violent about women, but only comments on her sexuality in a rather vulgar way: “God damn lil’ buddy take off your clothes and let me see that apple bottom and that brown booty.”

The rapper T-Pain has two singles including “Buy U a Drank” and “Bartender.” In the first, he tells a woman he has money in the bank, he buys her a “drank,” and later on they have sex. In “Bartender,” he sees a bartender, gets drunk, and says they’re going to “have fun at my spot tonight.”

With lyrics like this, why don’t women protest radio stations and refuse to support artists with offensive music? Is it just because they are extremely catchy and fun to dance to?

I know there are female rappers who turn the tables and sing about men in a similar manner, such as Lil’ Kim and the rapper Peaches, but they’re no match for the number of male rappers who sing about women.

The American Journal of Public Health conducted a study about the effects of rap music exposure on black women between the ages of 14 and 18 who had been sexually active in the past six months.

Those who have had more exposure to rap music videos are prone to higher rates of violence, to arrests, to acting out violence toward sexual partners, to contracting sexually transmitted diseases, and to higher consumption of alcohol.

Not all rap music is degrading to women or other groups. There are many artists out there who are doing a wonderful job making music that appeals to the masses, and I enjoy a lot of what’s out there. We, however, should not accept the portrayal of women as sexual objects.

Our intelligence and character are questioned in these popular songs, perpetuating archaic and false stereotypes. Women have fought too hard and too long to continue to be oppressed by popular music. We need to carefully listen to the music we play and ask ourselves what kind of a message we are supporting.