No love for Yoshi in the Yolo meme

He dies hundreds of times each game play by millions of users. No one has died as much as Yoshi, and this is the first time he gets referenced in the Yolo meme. You know the one where they say Yolo and show faces of characters that have died a couple dozen times? Yoshi Wins, hands down.

Help Me Understand

Help Me Understand

I find myself so lost in the round-a-bout,
I can't find my way out
I can't forget the past,
I can't seem to make love last
I cry inside but never down my face,
What's left of my heart is a disgrace
Broken battered and bruised,
I feel just so used
The night is my friend and enemy,
When it caresses as it suffocates me
The nights are long and the days so cold,
I look so young but I feel so old
It been so long since I felt a man's touch,
Even then it wasn't that much
I need to let it go,
But when the lights are out I can't stop the show
My thoughts will wander,
Where there's rain there's thunder
The words won't leave,
Must I always grieve
Someone take my hand,
Someone help me understand
My heart is my token,
Even lost and broken.....

If You Love Me (Break Me Still)

If You Love Me (Break Me Still)

If you love me:
Could you see my soul?
Would you risk it all?
Am I just another face?
Will you leave without a trace?

I've been there before, and I want so much more.
So if you can and you will, please don't say so then break me still

Would you make me want to cry?
Will you say goodbye?
Could you shatter my heart?
Are you just playing a part?

I've been there before, and I want so much more.
So if you can and you will, please don't say so then break me still

Is it all a game?  
Do you know my name?
Am I just a fling?  
Would I lose everything?
Could you forgive my past? Would your love last?

I've been there before, and I want so much more.
So if you can and you will, please don't say so then break me still

Disgrace

Disgrace

Just a name just a face
Nothing but a disgrace
Noone sees noone cares
Its like you're not even there

Chorus:

Why can't you see me
Why can't you hear me
Have I just dissapeared...
Of all the things I feared
I never expected this

Hear the words hear the song
But I can't seem to sing along
Feel my wounds feel my heart
It just shattered when I fell apart

Chorus

Think of pain think of anger
All the people with unfair favor
Hurts to live hurts to die
So why can't I say goodbye?

Chorus

Circus

Circus

Everything a myth, fantasy
When it comes to reality
Chaos comes wherever you go
Curtain up time for the show

Chorus:
Behind the mask that only I see
The truth the lies the hypocrisy
Hell in a handbasket all going down
Circus is here you are the clown
Round round the merry go round
Ashes ashes we all fall down


No change it stays the same
I lose when I start the game
This movie is stuck on repeat
Actors change in same old scenes
The players keep changing teams

Chorus

Hate to love and love to hate
The very things you create
Slave-less mind or mindless slave
Souls offered up for trade
What’s mine is not yours
Traps behind closed doors

Chorus

Opened mouths and closed minds
No honor of the ties that bind
The circus has come to town
You are taking us all down
Just going round and round
Ashes ashes we all fall down

What You Don't Let Walk Away

What You Don't Let Walk Away

She was twenty when she married him
He was twenty six his name was Jim
In a moment of anger he left her side
Now all she has left is her pride

Chorus:
In a moment it all just fell apart
She went and lost her heart
Sometimes it's not the words you say
It’s what you don't let walk away

All those pictures how they remind
But she pretends that she's blind
He takes it a step at a time
Afraid of what he might find

Chorus

It was rainy and it was dark
When he saw her in the park
She was crying when she saw him
He held out his hand and said, “my name is Jim”

Chorus


It's what you don't let walk away

Sex and Gender Roles in Rock

This is my midterm paper. It is on Sex and Gender roles in Rock and the music industry in general. It is a very long read, and very intellectual in nature, so some people might find it hard to read.  I am very proud of the work I did. You don't have to read the bibliography, that is just so I don't get slammed for plagiarism. :) Btw, we had to take an unbiased standpoint in the research, so no views or opinions of my own are given.

 

Sex and Gender Roles in Rock

Katie J. Anderson

Anoka Ramsey Community College- Rock and Roll History

Sex and gender roles have been said to be clearly defined. This paper will examine if this is true. Male and female role models are said to have certain expectations, yet there are many cases of androgynous role models in rock.  This paper will address these presumptions to establish what the proposed roles of sex and gender are, against the argument of androgynous models that break these presumptions. We will examine two roles: The masculine roles of being rebels, more into performances, and degrading to women; and the feminine roles of  not belonging in rock, appearing more motherly or feminine in nature, and being ignored by research and the people in general. The counterpoint to this argument will be the roles of androgynous  rock stars that not only break the rules, but have had wide success using them. The proposal of this paper is that further studies of sex and gender roles versus a mix of the two must be made.

Male roles in rock have been suggested to be clearly defined.  Simon Frith and Angela McRobbie (as cited in Martin, 1955) wrote, “works with conventions of masculinity and femininity that situate both performers and audiences along clear gender lines: males as active participants.” (p.53) Males are expected to be fully into a performance. They are supposed to be the center of attention, the more ludicrous the performance, the more the band was loved.. They are also supposed to be the rebels. Reynolds and Press (1966) stated that, “there are rebels who look for causes to validate their insurrectionary temperament. What, if anything, unites these boys, these men? Precisely their masculinity.” (p. 2.) In order for men to be considered masculine, they must rebel. This present a clear idea that men must be ‘manly’ men. It is also suggested that men should treat women as sex objects. This idea is presented vastly in media. Vincent, Davis and Boruszkowski (1987) did a random sample of 110 music videos on MTV, and found that, “56.9% of observations were given the highest rating of sexism—Level I—where the women were portrayed in condescending ways, as less than human or as sex objects.” (P.7) They were expected to be aggressive and women as lower than them. They were the kings and the women the peasants. Rebellion and hatred towards anyone unlike them was rampant and idolized.

Women’s Roles in rock seem to also be clearly defined. Women faced sexism from every direction. Rhodes (2005) wrote that many women faced hostility and resentment. Women were initially unwelcome in the scene, or had to have a specific code of conduct. Many were faced with losing their careers if they did not conform.  Women were supposed to be the more motherly figures.  Seidman (2009), in another random sampling of 182 music videos, stated that, “females were more affectionate, dependent, nurturing, and fearful than males.” (p.209-216) Women must be soft and feminine, always looking up to the men. The paragraph above discusses the first set of music videos we are talking about, showing that women were being shown as submissive to men.. Even scientific research has been affected by the gender stereotype. Groce and Cooper (1990) wrote, “Social Scientistists have investigated many facets of popular music over the last 25 years. The vast majority of these efforts have been on men… a traditionally male-centered and male-dominated activity. “ Women seem to have been tossed out of the mix, or slighted, these would all suggest. We still have to take into consideration, the gender bending roles.

Androgyny roles have been popular for a long time in Rock. Androgyny is when no clear gender or sex is shown or preferred. Tilla (as presented by Seidman, 2010) writes that the artist prince (or the artist formerly known as prince), “uses popular iconography to blur the distinctions between spirituality and sexuality.” Prince defies gender roles and sex stereotypes. The ‘king of pop’ Michael Jackson also defies the stereotype.  Michael Jackson was around for decades in the music scene before his death. Berman (as told by Kaufman, 1982) wrote, “(Michael Jackson) gives you the sense that you can play with anything--with being a man or a woman, black or white, scared or scary, or some funny combination of all of them.”  (P. 113.) Michael Jackson broke all the rules, and one of his albums is the number one bestselling albums of all time. David Bowie is another great example of gender bending.  He created the fictional character of Ziggy Stardust and performed as the character. Erlewine (n.d.) wrote, “Bowie succeeds not in spite of his pretensions but because of them, and Ziggy Stardust -- familiar in structure, but alien in performance -- is the first time his vision and execution met in such a grand, sweeping fashion.” David Bowie was also the star of the Cult Classic Film the Labyrinth. Madonna is also known for using androgyny in her music videos. Madonna is also known as a cultural icon. If so many big stars can gender bend, is there really a gender or sex role? If androgyny is so widely used, this contradicts the feminine/masculine roles and stereotypes.

In conclusion, we have shown the traditional roles of males and females in the music industry. The two traditional roles are: Males are supposed to be more aggressive and manly, and higher then everyone else; while the women are supposed to be neither seen nor heard, and if they are, they must be motherly or feminine. We have counterpointed these stereotypes and roles with androgynous stars that have made a career out of breaking these rules successfully. If the rules can be broken, are they truly rules? If the standard still exists do the cases to counterpoint just prove an exception to these rules? Are men and women always expected to have these roles no matter what the circumstances, and the exceptions just the ones that got lucky? Or do rules and roles not apply at all, and this is just a thing of the past? Too many questions still remain unanswered and not enough scientific data exists.  No conclusion can be made from these, except that more research would have to be done to endorse any of the standpoints.

References

Berman, M (1982) All that is solid melts into air. Simon and Schuster. pg.69-80. DOI: 10.1080/13617671003666761 http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/beautiful-minds/200912/george-and-lennox-gaga-and-lambert-androgyny-creativity-and-pop-culture

Erlwine, S.T. (N.D.) David Bowie-The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-rise-and-fall-of-ziggy-stardust-and-the-spiders-from-mars-mw0000626129

Groce, S. & Cooper (1990) M. GENDER &SOCIETY Vol. 4 No.2, p.220-229. http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/189613?uid=3739736&uid=2&uid=4&uid=3739256&sid=47699117790767

Martin, C.  (1955) The Naturalized Gender Order of Rock and Roll Journal of Communication Inquiry. vol. 19 pg. 53. http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/66933/2/10.1177_019685999501900104.pdf

Reynolds, S. & Press, J. (1966) The sex revolts: Gender, Rebellion and Rock n’ Roll. Pg. 2 Harvard University Press. http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=Acq7ZOYd_AcC&oi=fnd&pg=PT14&dq=The+sex+revolts:+Gender,+Rebellion+and+Rock+n%E2%80%99+Roll&ots=fBVwSf-CB2&sig=XBuLfDCnpU_E7DxsQu9ETsWeYMk#v=onepage&q=The%20sex%20revolts%3A%20Gender%2C%20Rebellion%20and%20Rock%20n%E2%80%99%20Roll&f=false

Rhodes, L. (2005) Electric Ladyland: Women and Rock Culture. University of Pennsylvania Press. http://www.upenn.edu/pennpress/book/14155.html

Seidman, S. (1992) Profile: An investigation of sex‐role stereotyping in music videos.  Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media Volume 36, Issue 2. DOI: 10.1080/08838159209364168. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/08838159209364168

Tilla, R. (2010)  Pop stars and idolatry: an investigation of the worship of popular music icons, and the music and cult of Prince. Journal of Beliefs & Values: Studies in Religion & Education. Volume 31, Issue 1. DOI:  10.1080/13617671003666761

Vincent, Richard     C, Davis,    Dennis K., and Boruszkowski, Lilly Ann "Sexism on MTV: The Portrayal Of Women in Rock Videos.", Journalism Quarterly; Winter87, Vol. 64 Issue 4, p750-941, 7p

Cyborg Fluffy

Love is Like a Storm

This one was written long before it was published on myspace in 2009, but I don't remember when it originally got written.


Can anyone just tell me why
The sky always seems so dry
Do you ever sit alone and wonder
Why you almost miss the thunder
-Chorus-
Because love is like a storm
Sometimes it's cold sometimes it warm
Sometimes it takes you by surprise
the clouds in front of your eyes
Sometimes it can just dissipate
And leave the ruins in its wake
Yeah, love is like a storm.


It's been still for way too long
But you can't seem to move on
Have you felt like you're in a drought
Pray for the rain you've heard about....Chorus

I would lift my face to the rain
If someone would call my name
Sometimes its cold sometimes it warm
love is like a storm, waiting for the thunder
Even if I'm pulled under
I would still hope and pray....
For just one cloudy day

Snackadoodledo!

The oreos have formed an alliance with the brownies so I must make a deal with the devil and form an alliance with zebra cakes to take them down! As always, the muffins have remained neutral, but we might be boming them with fruit gushers next week. Stay tuned to this station for further details......
*beep beep* -breaking news- The pies have now gone on strike in protest and some of the candy corn are now holding hershey's hostage. This situation is really getting out of hand here and it's speculated the Three musketeers bars may be called in to do damage control. This station will continue to follow this story, stay tuned for further details. *Beep*