As my daughter was making a break across the field with the soccer ball, a
ringtone went off from the soccer mom’s chair next to me. It’s T.I.’s new #1
song,
"Whatever you Like." I guess it’s not surprising to hear it as a
ringtone. It is the #1 downloaded ringtone on iTunes right now, as well as the
#1 song from his #1 album
MTV keeps a list they boast as the MOST POPULAR ARTISTS, the hottest of the hot. If you check iTunes, Billboard… and your kids’ iPods, you’ll find that MTV’s list is right on the money. These are the artists that are capturing our kids’ attention.
An hour later at Wal Mart I hear Rihanna being
played in the store speakers, at least until I got to the audio video section,
where a Britney Spears video was playing on the big plasma screens mounted
throughout the section. One more stop—the grocery store. Christina
Aguilera’s song
"Keeps Getting’ Better" is playing, a song
currently at the #2 spot on iTunes.
Who are these artists whose tunes are being heard ubiquitously throughout our
grocery stores and soccer fields… yes, even heard by our homeschooled kids!
MTV keeps a list they boast as the MOST POPULAR ARTISTS, the hottest of the hot.
If you check iTunes, Billboard… and your kids’ iPods, you’ll find that MTV’s
list is right on the money. These are the artists that are capturing our kids’
attention.
Curious to know a little more about them? Here’s some history… along with my
two cents:
- Lil Wayne was born Dwayne Michael
Carter, Jr. on September 27, 1982 in New Orleans, LA. Although
adults may know him as “that scary looking guy with no shirt and his
entire butt hanging out of his pants,” in some circles he is known for
being an charismatic southern rapper. Lil Wayne became famous at a young
age. He joined the Cash Money Records group as a teenager. Get It How U
Live! by Hot
Boys (1997) marked Lil Wayne’s album debut (at age 18).
Now, a decade later, Lil Wayne is not only MTV’s #1 MOST POPULAR ARTIST,
he’s featured all over the charts. Currently, he’s got songs at #8, #12,
#22, #24, #25, and #30 of Billboard’s Hot 100. And that doesn’t even
include #47, Lollipop, a song still hanging on after 28 weeks on the
chart, peaking at #1 for over a month.
Here’s a glimpse of the lyrics of his hit song, Lollipop:
Man, she ain't never had a love like mine
And man I ain't never seen an ass like hers
And that pu**y in my mouth had me loss for words
Told her back it up like erp erp
And I made that ass jump like jerk, jerk
And that's when she lick me like a lollipop (oh yeah I like that)
This young role model has been
in and
out of jail on various
charges, the most recent being in January 2008 when the DEA searched his
vehicle, turning up 105 grams of marijuana, 29 grams of cocaine and 41 grams of
ecstasy and $22,000 belonging to the rapper. At least it wasn’t anything major!
And to think… he is one of the number one role models right now.
- T.I. grasps MTV’s number 2 spot
as MOST POPULAR ARTIST, and many of you would agree, his music does sound
like “number two.” T.I. was born Clifford Harris in Atlanta, GA on
September 25, 1980. He was once called “the Jay-Z of the South”
by Pharrell Williams. He established himself as one of rap’s “greats” as
an MC during the early 2000s. He was in the cast of American
Gangster a
movie directed by Ridley Scott, and was given BET’s award for best male
hip-hop artist in ’06 and ’07. He currently has several
Billboard Hot 100 hits with #1 “Whatever You Like”, and he has #22 with ”Swagga
Like Us”,
and ”T.I. Vs T.I.P.” at #57 (which has been on the charts for 65 weeks
and peaked at #1)
T.I. performed his current #1 hit ”Whatever You Like” at the recent MTV Video Music Awards, draping diamonds and furs
across his lady as he sang the TV version of his lyrics, “I said you
could have whatever you like (you like). Yeah. Late night sex so wet it's
so tight.”
That song not only hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, it also
is on iTunes as the #1 song, ringtone, and album (but the video holds a
measly spot at #4).
- Britney Spears, MTV’s number 3 MOST POPULAR
ARTIST, was born December 2, 1981 in the small town of Kentwood,
LA. At age 11 she joined the cast of The New Mickey Mouse Club
(although the show was canceled after only its second season). She is
known for being the driving force behind the return of teen pop in the
late ‘90s. (And the demise of jeans that actually covered a girl’s waist!)
Brittany’s first hit was “Baby One More Time” which released in late
1998. It entered the charts at #1 and stayed there for six
weeks. Her first three albums all topped the charts. Brittany
wasn’t just a star she was a “pop phenomenon.”
Like Madonna, Brittany has always used the power of sex appeal. In other
words, Brittany isn’t afraid to “ho” it up. If you’ve seen any of her
music videos, no explanation is needed.
Brittany swept the awards at the recent MTV Video Music Awards with her racy video “Piece
of Me,”
which, oddly enough, reveals several pieces of her. Her album “Blackout”
currently
resides in The Billboard 200 at #176 and her single “Piece of Me” at #64 in the Hot Digital
Songs chart. Piece of Me also claims the #43 spot on iTunes music videos.
Brittany has always been a controversial figure because of her position as
a role model for young girls. But Brittany chimed in on that years ago.
"These parents, they think I'm a role model for
their kids, that their kids look at me as some sort of idol. But it's the parents'
job to make sure their kids don't turn out that shallow. That's not my
responsibility. I'm not responsible for your kid.”
(Britney Spears, Entertainment Weekly, November 21, 2003)
I think the big question now is… who is responsible for
her kids?
- >Rihanna was born Robyn Rihanna Fenty
on February 20, 1988 in St. Michael, Barbados. She started out her
dance-pop career with her debut hit “Pon de Replay” in the summer of 2005, “S.O.S” in 2006, and then “Umbrella” in 2007… eh.. eh…eh. ”Umbrella” is what really defined her
as a pop icon. It was the 2007 MTV VMA winner for the “Monster Single
of the Year,”
and held the number one Billboard and iTunes spot for… like one million
years!
Rihanna has had 11 Billboard chart entries, and has three songs that have
made record leaps to number one.
She currently has a hit, “Disturbia” at #4, and “Take A Bow” at #27 in The Billboard Hot
100. Her album Good Girl Gone Bad still resides in The Billboard 200 at #14.
Rihanna is one to watch. I’ve blogged about her before. Her songs
aren’t flat out raunchy like many of her MOST POPULAR ARTIST counterparts.
If her videos would have aired twenty years ago, conservatives would have
gasped, but now they are probably deemed nothing more than “a little bit
racy.”
- >Chris Brown was born May 5, 1989 in
Tappahannock, Virginia. This teen heartthrob is a pop-oriented R&B
vocalist. He debuted with “Run It!” at only 16 years old in 2005. His smooth
vocals and crazy ability on the dance floor launched him to immediate
stardom. In 2007 Chris dropped jaws to the floor with his amazing dance routine at the Grammys. Boy’s got
skills!
Currently, his song “Forever” is #13 on The Billboard Hot 100 chart, and #35 on
iTunes.
- >Jonas Brothers probably need no introduction.
These three brothers (Joseph, Kevin, and Nicholas Jonas) are originally
from Wyckoff, New Jersey. They are one of the most popular teen-affiliated
groups of the 2000s. Think “New Kids on the Block” of the new Millennium.
Nicholas began writing original material with the help from his two
brothers early on. The brothers' songs impressed the president of Columbia
(the record company, not the country), who ultimately signed the trio in
2005. In 2007 they released their second album “Jonas Brothers”
with Hollywood Records (a Disney-owned label). This album is
currently number 42 on The Billboard 200 album chart. They currently have
songs at #58 and #76 on iTunes as well.
We’ve written a whole article about these three preacher’s kids here.
- Pink, the #7 MOST POPULAR ARTIST
on MTV's coveted list, has been around for a while. In 2000, Pink's name
became known when she jumped into the Top Five of the charts with her hit
song, "Get the Party Started." She's bounced around the
charts since, recently rising to #1 with her angry new song, "So
What"
that she performed live at the recent MTV Video Music Awards. Now "So What," a song expressing Pink's
reaction to hurt, is #2 in the Billboard Hot 100, #5 iTunes song, #3
iTunes video, and #3 iTunes Top Ringtone.
I wrote a MUSIC DISCUSSION using this belligerent new video of hers to talk with kids about ‘dealing with
hurt.’
- >T-Pain, born Faheem Jajm, is an MC
and vocalist who went pro as a solo R&B artist after he recorded “I’m
F**ked Up”
in response to Akon’s top ten hit “Locked Up.” Akon heard the
recording and personally guided T-Pain into a contract with
Jive-distributed Konvict Muzik label. He currently has “Can’t
Believe It” at
#7 in The Billobard Hot 100, he also has an album Epiphany in the Top R&B/Hip-Hop
Albums chart at #87 (it peaked at #1 and has been in the chart for 61
weeks). He has two songs on iTunes right now at #20 (with Lil Wayne) and
#67 (with Ludacris).
It’s hard for me to even comment about T-Pain. I grew up listening to hip
hop… and can’t seem to figure out what people see in this guy. In all
honesty, when I watch this video (especially Lil Wayne’s little section), I am
amazed that people pay to hear someone this shallow. Here’s just a sample
of the “poetry” from his recent hit, ”Can’t Believe It”:
Now I can put yo ass out,
Oooo keep runnin your mouth,
And if your girls come trippen I'm a show em wat these tear drops 4,
Shawty I was just playin,
Ooo but I could take u to the burnin... islands have u
Screamin and hollerin,
Gone be makin love on the beach
The people see wat we doin,
Aww they pointin and ooooin aww but we gone keep on doin, it like it just me
and u ain't no one else around…
It’s a hit. Wow. I “can’t believe it.”
- Christina Aguilera was born Christina Maria
Aguilera on December 18, 1980 on Staten Island. Her father’s military
career kept her family moving a lot during her childhood. Christina began
performing in talent shows at age six. She, like Britney Spears, joined
the cast of The New Mickey Mouse Club in 1992. In 1998 she recorded the song “Reflection” for the Disney movie Mulan. In the summer of 1999 she
released her debut album and the lead single “Genie in a Bottle” was at the top of the charts
for five weeks. The album sold over 8 million copies in the US
alone.
She is well known for her start as a popular female pop sensation of the
late ‘90s, her powerful voice and technical skills as a singer. She is
probably even more known for being risqué. When she guest starred on NBC’s
Saturday Night Live, they did an entire sketch joking about how “skanky” she was.
(Wow, if Saturday Night Live labels you skanky, you must be SKANKY!)
Currently, her single, “Keeps Gettin’ Better,” is #2 on iTunes, and #21
on the Billboard Pop 100 Airplay chart.
- Travis Barker was born in 1975 in Fontana,
CA. He started in the punk-pop genre as a drummer with the
Aquabats. He later joined the highly successful band Blink-182 in the late
‘90s. He released a number of remixes in 2007, putting his
personal touch on Rihanna’s “Umbrella” and Soulja Boy Tell Em’s “Crank
That” (both
spending significant time at the #1 slot on the charts). Barker
currently has a remix in the Hot Digital Tracks chart called “Soulja
Boy Tell ‘em Crank That.”
Barker was one of the survivors of the recent plane crash in Columbia, South Carolina
that injured him and DJ AM, and left four others dead.
Now What?
These ten artists have our kids’ attention, and most of our kids don’t see any
danger it. 73% of church kids that we surveyed confessed that they would still
listen to the music they like regardless of the content. (You can read that
entire article
here.) That’s pretty
scary, especially when you read reports like the 2007 study from
The
American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) revealing that “teens who listened to lots
of music with degrading sexual messages were almost twice as likely to start
having intercourse…as teens who listened to little or no sexually degrading
music.” (More of this study in my blog
here).
So what can we do about this?
- Dialogue: I think one of the best ways
to make an impact in the lives of our kids and their music choices is to
dialogue with them about the subject. Music is dear to many of their
hearts. Most of them like talking about it. We can use music as a doorway
to meaningful conversation.
Our ministry provides a tool for these types of discussions on our MUSIC DISCUSSIONS page (imagine that). This page
takes current songs and uses them as springboards for discussion. Every
one of these discussions (written over the past two years) uses a music
video or lyrics to jumpstart discussion about a certain topic. The
discussions provide relevant scriptures, questions about the scriptures
and wrap up talks. They are designed for a youth group setting, but can be
also adapted for one-on-one time with our kids.
I constantly try to use questions from pop culture to jumpstart
discussions with our kids. When Miley Cyrus was in the news a few months
ago after taking those controversial pictures for Vanity Fair, I provided
relevant discussion questions on my blog. Keep an eye out for these
kinds of opportunities.
- Ask Questions, Don’t
Preach: I
have witnessed many a small group where an adult lectures on and on… basically saying, “Trust
me, this music is bad! Burn those CD’s and just listen to Christian Music!” Not a bad message, but the
delivery is usually met with a brick wall.
Learn to ask questions instead of lecturing. Kids love to talk, more than
that, they love to be heard. Feel free to ask them questions about their
music. If you are tempted to lecture, search for a question you can ask
that might lead them to the conclusion themselves.
For example. If you’re a female youth worker sitting with a girl, you
might find an opportunity to talk about what she’s listening to in her
iPod. Let’s say that she shares with you how much she loves hip hop. You
ask to see her iPod and you scroll through her list of favorites. As you
encounter songs you don’t know, you ask, “What is this song about?” (If
it’s hip hop, it’s most likely about one of three things: 1. I’m better
than you. 2. Money brings happiness. 3. You’re a ho
and I want to treat you like an object.) If the song was Lil Wayne’s ”Lollipop”, you could ask what he means
when he says “she licked me like a lollipop.” If the song has the words “bitches
and ho’s” in it, ask what she thinks of being referred to as a bitch or a
ho?” Ask her to describe the kind of guy that she would like to date, and
compare that to the artist who calls women “bitches and ho’s.”
In the same way we can use situations we see about celebrities in the news
to ask kids questions, like the Miley example above. If you are meeting
with a boy you could ask him, “Did you see that Kanye West got arrested this week? Why do you
think he chose to react that way? How do you think he should have reacted?
How can we react when people frustrate us?”
Jesus often answered questions with another question. We can do the same.
Kids don’t need another lecture. But stimulating questions can really help
them think.
Keep dialoguing with
our kids about music and the artists that have their attention. This subject is
an open door to meaningful discussions.
When’s the last time you had a meaningful discussion with one of your kids?
Jonathan McKee, president of The
Source for Youth Ministry, is the author of numerous youth ministry books
including the brand new
10-Minute Talks, and the award
winning books
Do They Run When They See You
Coming? and
Getting Students to Show Up. He
speaks and
trains at camps, conferences, and events across North
America., and provides free resources for youth workers internationally on his
website,
TheSource4YM.com.
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