Nothin’ On California Girls
I know I am out of tune with pop-culture as a whole, so my opinion likely will not register and certainly won’t be the downfall of Katy Perry’s career but her latest chart topper combines much of what tips the scale on my peeve meter in regards to trends in modern music. 
(Peeve is the correct spelling, not to be confused with peev which as an acronym stands for People Enraged by the Eating of Vegetables) If I were to describe “California Girls” in one word it would be forced. The lyrics, the delivery, the Snoop-Dog cash-it-in cameo, the overt sexuality and even the bee-bop chorus sounds like a dying animal crying out for a mercy shot – “Ooooh oh ooooh”.
Does anyone still wear daisy dukes? Even sweaty roofers got the memo by ‘92 and last I checked fellow pop diva Jessica Simpson is all but M.I.A. after her bout with the fashion item’s cinematic namesake. I enjoy fun and nonsensical tunes as much as anyone but my introduction to the “Girls” came as a musical tidal wave that spun me through the deep end of desolation with its obnoxious vanilla-pop.
In contrast I think there have been a handful of recent songs of note that have craftily combined entertainment with constructive elements in their content. B.O.B. even worked a cameo from the soon archived Nintendo 64, with their jam “Nothin On You” which extols, “Beautiful girls all over the world I could be chasing but my time would be wasted. They got nothin’ on you babe.” In a note of introspection one verse references having spent life chasing skirts, “This is how I lost more than I had ever won and honestly I ended up with none.” Without glossing over all its pimples and personally inserting a monogamous pretext, B.O.B. scratches at the contrast between the emptiness of living for your own pleasure and finding satisfaction in the depth of commitment.
Perhaps a flip side of the coin carries over in Beyonce’s “Single Ladies” which has enjoyed a resurgence in our house thanks in part to The Chipmunks Squeakquel. I enjoy hearing my daughters sing and dance to the simple lyric of, “If you liked it then you should have put a ring on it.” Not that Beyonce is a poster child for virtue or that I want my 7 and 1 year old daughter to run out and get married anytime soon, but I hope that they have the moral grounding to expect a certain ethic in their future relationships. I pray that I won’t have to explain to my daughters that if your boyfriend hasn’t proposed after two years or if you are in your third year of serial engagement, you may need to look elsewhere if you expect a sincere commitment. Not to harp on a Dr. Lauraism, but if you are in the position of giving it up for free sans-covenant, you will not find a dude who respects you until you respect yourself enough to demand better.
While Califonia girls may be unforgettable I believe the quality and potential impact from songs with a more positive embrace will long outlast the easily forgettable blah-blah-blah of the repetitive bareness which spring up like weeds upon the pop landscape. I don’t expect entertainers to articulate or fan a moral flame, but those instances in which they do are quite refreshing. Say what you will but I enjoy when music dares to explore its potential rather than cycling through rehashes of the same script.
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