Deconstructing Britney - Hilath's Home Page

I wasn't surprised at my cousin being demonized because, even earlier, I had personally come across incidents where "Britney-haters" (or haters of manufactured, ready-made boy bands or girl bands for that matter) had made scathing remarks on those who didn't share their same taste in music. Now, should that be a problem?

As human beings, each is an individual. As individuals, each is different from the other. One's outlooks on life, beliefs, views and opinions will differ from the other. That's what makes us human after all. Otherwise we cannot be termed as "individuals." We could resemble something like the aliens in Toy Story 3 which are linked by a "uni-mind" and therefore have the same uniform thoughts and tastes-God forbid!

Once, I and a friend were strolling through a flea market in Kuala Lumpur where I spied some cheap CDs on sale. At the time, rival boy bands 'N Sync and Backstreet Boys had just released new albums, and out of curiosity I was looking through the song list of 'N Sync's No Strings Attached album. As soon as my friend saw me looking at the 'N Sync CD, he commented: "I'll never buy that. I never listen to those."

I didn't even ask him for his opinion. Why should he make that comment? Then of course I realized why he said that: he was self-righteously declaring himself not a member of the "boy band club." He was professing himself as an "intellectual"-a person of great taste and class. In his opinion, those who listened to Backstreet Boys or 'N Sync or any other boy band for that matter "had no taste" or "class" and therefore he had quite a low opinion of them.

"Popular (pop) culture" vs. "Intellectual culture" is not a debate that is ongoing only in Maldives or Malaysia. It is the hottest debate everywhere. But did anyone actually stop and really think what this debate is about? Did anybody care to find out what makes "pop culture" pop culture and what makes "intellectual culture" intellectual culture. In the case of music, what makes "pop" and what makes "intellectual" (or "art")?

Mass communication scholars claim that the differentiating factor between "intellectual" and "pop" is "critical thinking." Hence, a piece of music becomes "pop" when it is manufactured, played, or sung, in a way that do not demand any "critical thinking" on the part of the listener. In such a case, the purpose of the listener is totally different from that of the "intellectual listener". The casual listener listens to the music as a hobby, as a pastime, while away his or her time, or as pure, simple pleasure. My cousin fits into this category. Her purpose of listening to Britney Spears (the contemporary face of pop) is because she gets a kick out of it; she likes to dance to Britney's catchy beats. She says the fast music helps her do her work at home at a fast pace. And she adds that Britney's music provides "good background noise."

So there it is. We now understand the purpose of boy bands' or girl bands' music. It doesn't demand anything from us. It is so casual.

Which may be why it is also considered "superficial" by the "intellectuals." For "intellectuals"', a piece of music becomes "intellectual" when the music, lyrics or vocals have deeper meanings, is thought-provoking and demand the listener to employ "critical thinking." No problem with that, too.

So let's just leave everyone in peace. You can't say pop is bad and rock is good. Similarly, you cannot say that rock is bad and pop is good either! In a world where everything is subjective, nobody can define what is "good" or "bad." It is just a way of looking at things. One person's perception might be different from the other's. That doesn't necessarily make a thing either "good" or "bad." Ultimately, it all depends on our personal tastes, our personal likes and dislikes. George Michael and Bono once said that "pop music is about good, beautiful songs with great hooks." So why should anyone have a problem with pop songs? They are quite beautiful to listen to. Although most of the boy bands and girl bands are artificially assembled and "manufactured", and even though they themselves are not well-versed in singing or playing musical instruments, the music and tracks produced for boy bands and girl bands come from famous-and respected-DJs. Hence, it is not surprising that Britney and the rest of the pack do make the top of the charts everytime they release a single or an album.

We can never force someone to like something that he or she does not like. Similarly, we cannot make him or her dislike something that he or she likes. But then I guess the "intellectuals" will never be happy by simply keeping quiet from here. They see it as a social or moral responsibility upon themselves to help lift the "illiterate" classes, to help them develop "high cultural tastes," to help them like and understand "art."

This surely brings to mind a sad chapter in the recent history of the world-when Western colonialists saw it as a duty to help "civilize" the rest of the world. The result? They conquered our lands and destroyed our local cultures. They justified their actions because of their false belief that Western civilizations had attained the peak of "civilization" and that the rest of the world were still in the Dark Ages. They never realized that there is no such thing as "high" culture or "low" culture.

Culture is a way of life that is defined over time by a particular way of living. Nobody can say one is good and the other is bad. If only the colonialists had an open mind then would they have realized the gross wrongs and injustices they caused to their colonies. Only now, in recent times, are open-minded scholars understanding what meaning different ways of life have for different cultures. For instance, a Westerner might think that eating with the hands is distasteful. This is a habit some Muslims follow because it is part of our culture. However much civilized we become, however much technical innovations take place, however much we are exposed to other cultures, I can bet that Muslims truly conscious about their culture will not think that eating with hands is "distasteful."

Hence, ultimately, all things are subject to perception. "Good" and "bad" are defined by an individual's personal perception.

Critics may claim that this is a fantastic way of looking at life, that we are ignoring harsh realities of life that is the subject of many thought-provoking songs by respected rock, grunge and other artists. Critics may claim that by promoting pop culture, we are presenting to young people only a rosy picture of life-a fantasy picture devoid of any conflict; that by promoting pop culture, we are closing the door that should otherwise be left open for the youth to wake up from their slumber and open their eyes to the real world-to the realities of life.

But the question is, are the pop-loving youth ready for this? We might have this noble intention of persuading our young people to open their eyes into the real world. But that doesn't mean we have the right to force anything upon them. During the period when our young people are entering their teens and adolescence, what they are looking for is quite different from what adults look for in life. Although they certainly know that life is not a bed of roses, either they are not ready yet or they do not want to be bothered yet with the harsh realities of life. And although we may be appalled by this attitude of the youth, there is no reason to fear for them because certainly over time and age, they will outgrow "pop" culture. Hence, there is no reason for us at this stage to play Big Brother by monitoring what they listen to or forcing them to like certain music which we may deem "intellectual." Let them grow out of "pop" culture at their own pace. My cousin may love Britney for now but I am sure that once she is past the age where she is awestruck by the goatee-bearing boy bands, she would grow to love bands such as Nirvana.

I remember myself as a kid reading Famous Five. Over the years, I made so many transitions; from Enid Blyton to Hardy Boys and on to Sidney Sheldon. But now I prefer Annie Proulx, David Gutterson, Michael Ondaatje-the so-called intellectual crowd. I am way past Famous Five or Hardy Boys (although I still cherish their memories because they were part of my growing up). It wasn't a conscious decision. I didn't wake up one day and decide: "OK, from now on I will read only Booker Prize- and Pulitzer Prize-winning authors." The transition was made unconsciously because I outgrew them. The transition from "pop culture" to "intellectual culture" therefore is not a deliberate, conscious decision. The transition comes when you want something more and when you are always on the lookout for something more.

Everything is part of the growing-up process. If everyone follows the same policy of "Live and Let Live," without demonizing everyone we come across as different from us, I'm sure this world will be a much happier place where everybody minds his or her own business and everybody will be able to live their lives the way they want.

(This article was published in Haveeru Daily on Feb 1, 2001. You can access it on Haveeru Daily Online at the link: http://www.haveeru.com.mv/english/features/britney.htm)

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(Britney Graphic for Haveeru by Ibrahim Neesham)