Soapbox Aborted

That which seems the height of absurdity in one generation often becomes the height of wisdom in another. ~Adlai Stevenson

If a thing isn't worth saying, you sing it. - Pierre Beaumarchais

While driving home from school with Daughter yesterday, I began to step onto the proverbial soapbox to blast the music of today for my next blog entry. This was prompted by a song entitled Laffy Taffy by D4L. No, this genius of the music world is NOT singing about the chewy candy that so many of us know….he is using it to refer to some part of the human anatomy. The refrain is so intellectually stimulating: “Gurl shake dat laffy taffy Dat laffy taffy Shake dat laffy taffy Dat laffy taffy Gurl shake dat laffy taffy Dat laffy taffy Dat laffy taffy[candy gurl] Dat laffy taffy.” Not so bad. Kids like that type of beat, not to mention the reference to Laffy Taffy. However, as I listened to the lyrics, I adopted a frequency often used by Edna Garrett on the Facts of Life shrieking, “What?!” I KNOW I just didn’t hear what I think I heard! God bless the Internet and the ability to obtain song lyrics at the drop of a hat. Indeed I HAD heard what I thought I had heard: “Gurlz call me Jolly Rancher Cuz i stay so hard You can suck me for a long time.” Now I am no prude, but YIKES! That song was GONE! My fault for straying from Radio Disney and venturing into the hip tunes of late on 20 on 20 on the XM.

You may have noticed at the outset of this entry that I used the word ‘began’ when I mentioned stepping upon the soapbox. It seems that I have succeeded in blasting the Laffy Taffy song quite well, but read on. I am not content to listen to just one station when I listen to the radio or the XM. Much to the chagrin of Hubby, I constantly search for a better song, evaluating all of my options before selecting just one. While searching for the perfect tune, what did I find? You’ve got it Laffy Taffy! My mind wandered back to exactly how I could blast this vulgar music that is so popular today. Then, I selected the 90’s station on the XM. YAY! A fun song that my college friends and I adored! I traveled back in time to my days at UNC while listening to Bel Biv Devoe’s Do Me. Momentarily forgetting the 10 year old in the backseat, I chimed in with the lyrics that are ingrained in my head: “Backstage, underage, adolescent, Fine she replied, I like to do the wild thing….” Wait a minute! This is nasty! An epiphany! I am beyond-a-shadow-of-a-doubt certain that back in the 90’s some parent was cursing the music that I was now using as a vehicle to reminisce about my youth. Conclusions: Sadly, I have become an adult (OK, I knew this before, but I don’t like being reminded). There will always be musicians that pen questionable lyrics that are embraced by youth while scorned by adults. Yes, deep thoughts, indeed.