If there’s a reason to censor a Christina Aguilera song, it’s because THE SONG IS BAD, not because it contains some reference to the derailing pop star kissing up on other chicks. But that was enough for Canada’s 280-location GoodLife Fitness gym to edit the lyrics of “Not Myself Tonight.” The line that appears in the song goes, “I’m kissing all the boys and the girls”; in GoodLife’s new body-pump class, “and the girls” is missing. It’s enough to have gym-goer Beth Spratt, who noticed the censorship, threaten to rescind her membership — but not before failed attempts to get the fitness company to explain itself. Spratt’s girlfriend Susana Romero, meanwhile, says she noticed Katy Pery’s “Hot And Cold” had the word “PMS” removed from the gym’s version.
At last GoodLife responded with an official statement, saying all the gym’s music is “created, produced and licensed in New Zealand though Les Mills International. Les Mills provides music to 1,300 clubs in 75 countries, which means what may (or may not) be offensive in one country may not (or may) be offensive somewhere else. The program directors for all Les Mills disciplines work hard to ensure that they are inclusive to everyone while attempting to keep in mind the individual requests from around the world.” Based on that, a GoodLife manager says he’s instructing all gym locations to pull the edited Aguilera song, which is gonna be painful, because “that song is used for the squat track, so it’s a pretty integral song. So it’s not one we can just remove, but we can replace it with another. I do wonder sometimes [with Les Mills]. If you can’t use a song as is, why not just choose another song?”
Thank goodness they didn’t play the music video for the class, because damn, that’s a lot of girl-on-girl right there.
sam
I found this lyric offensive too. Not because it was about a woman wanting to kiss a woman but because it was done in a way which suggests whorish, attention-seeking behavior on the part of the singer, namely Christina Aguilera.
As far as I know, Christina has traded on this boner dyke image throughout her career. I find it offensive from two perspectives:
a) It’s not designed to further the cause of GLBT rights but, rather, to appeal to sleazy straight guys who don’t really like us gay men.
Think about the demographic that Hugh Hefner and pornographers in general appeal to. Their incessant use of girl-girl images appeals to guys who enjoy referring to us gays as faggots.
b) Christina is clearly exploiting the music industry’s double standard which says that a female singer can sing songs like this but a man can’t. Imagine if Bruce Springsteen sang lyrics like “I want to kiss all the boys and the girls”. He wouldn’t even be allowed to put it on the CD.
Francis
I agree with Sam, however this is homophobia from the New Zealand company, and it’s good that the Canadian gym is pulling the entire song instead of playing the censored version. The excuse for the censorship is bullshit. Catering to homophobia is bullshit.
j
@sam: …Jason, is that you?
~PR~
@tim: She is female and allegedly bisexual. Thus, it should be no shock that she chooses to highlight girl-on-girl action over boy-on-boy. Considering the song is about her not being her typical self (if you listen to the lyics, you must wonder if she is aware that people know of her antics) it is not much of a stretch that she’d focus more on the femanine element. C’mon now, many of the openly gay singers don’t do the full spectrum of sexual representation (the song Faggoty Attention, anyone?) in their songs and music videos… why, someone tell me, are we trying to hold her and other pop starlets to different standards.
lickmyballS
Lame article like SAM.
Adonis-of-Fire
Christina is nothing but a strained tone deaf fat drunken slut unfit mother.
SKOC211
Poor XXLTina. She used to have such a powerful voice. Now she looks like she’s in pain when she’s singing and she sounds like a croaking toad half the time. Hopefully home girl will take some time off, rest, and re-evaluate her vocal technique because it sounds like she’s hurting herself.
Jeffree
Last I heard, Christina was heading to rehab.
This whole business of censoring parts of songs to “adapt” to global markets isn’t just lazy & crazy. Play the whole song or don’t use it.
If they want to only play upbeat, wholesome songs to “squat to” then they should stick to instrumentals or songs from Sesame Street!
Melanie
I agree with Sam and Tim.
Corrinne
I do agree that this song is more sleezy and exploitative, but in the “Beautiful” music video, I thought it was pretty awesome to include two men kissing. It was pretty controversial when it came out.
Mike
Ugh, this article is about censorship of same-sex sexual references in music played at a gym, NOT whether you think Christina Aguilera is a “drunken slut” or “disgusting conformist”. Good for Ms. Spratt to point this out and stir the pot. We don’t need gym music censored to reinforce heteronormative behaviour.
Soupy
I’m always impressed when Jason can assume the pigeon english of Max.
Melanie
Soupy you are stupid!)))
John1
Soupy is a “bisexual” girl.
~PR~
@Max Campbell: so… are you both normal and a woman? I’d assume so since you are speaking for them.
You are wrong. Your views are skewed with some bizarre undercurrent of loathing towards the female sex. It’s a pity… the feminine movemnet has been quite helpful towards the gay cause but your vaginaphobia prevents you from seeing that. Oh well… your loss.
Gerda
I’m straight girl and I dislike this video. Why everything makes for straight men?
I want to watch sexy bi guys and their kisses.
Jeffree
@Gerda: Everything makes for straight men because exists more straight men in world than gay or bi guys. Cannot you undertand rule of majority? Hi to Olga, Irina, and Maxima Abamova Campbellova.
@Soupy: Attempts of Jason in linguistics are not successful because its knowledge of syntax of slavic tongues is like smelly vile turd! Very funny for watching. You are lesbian homophobe, dude!
The sane Francis
Gelda, we live in a patriarchal society and world. Straight men are given advantages in the USA, on pretty much everything. If you’re white and religious, you get even more of a heads up. Things have gotten partially better, but not to a major extent. Misogyny is an extreme problem worldwide. Also, as Jeffree put it, straight men exist in more numbers than bi/gay men, and straight men who enjoy 2 girls exist in more numbers than straight girls who enjoy 2 guys. So, therefore, music videos cater to straight men and what they enjoy, which is basically women being made into pieces of meat for their sexual pleasure. That’s STARTING to change with Gaga, Lambert among others openly reaching out to the gay community, or the Green Day band leader who is openly bisexual, but it’s going to take more visibility to break down the doors completely.
Jeffree
@TheSaneFrancis:
Well said, even if your English sounds, well, foreigh 🙂
The change in music lyrics & videos to embrace even non-gay guy on guy affection will be slow. That darn “ick” factor toward anything that seems gay still plays role in our pop culture.
The Adam Lamberts of the world are still a niche item, and Michael Stipe’s lyrics are still so oblique that if there were references to anything bi in there it’s going be over most people’s heads.
Like so many attitudinal changes, women will precede men in acceptance. Sounds sexist to say it, but women will have to help change their husbands’, boyfriends’ and sons’ attitudes.
sam
I’m sorry but I am sick of women who whore themselves out to the sleazy voyeuristic fantasies of men. Fuck off, girls. We don’t want you in our movement nor do we want you polluting the public.
Straight-identifying men form less than 50% of the population. Yet their sleazy fantasies seem to dominate our culture in an almost 100% way. It’s a disproportionate influence. Part of the reason for this is that women in America have dropped the ball. These women have decided that they’d rather be man-pleasing whore-cunts than truly empowered individuals on their own terms.
Women who wear skimpy clothing or who engage in lesbian behavior to please a male are whore-cunts. There’s no other way of putting it. These women need to be given the boot. I don’t care whether they’re teenagers or middle-aged. They’re harming us.
John1
Geffree, you are idiot. Majority of pop music fans are gays and straight women. Put your illusions in your ass!
Soupy
Jeffree, you lovable lesbian ass eater! You make funny laughs. This vile lesbian pig laugh at you.
Soupy
Tim, you is vile lesbian biphobic dude part of conspiracy to hurt good bisexual men. You are stripper or porn star who make lesbian porn for straight men. You are pig-idiot who should go to the hell.
Jeffree
@Max: See post 27 for answer to your question on str8 women. Not a joke.
@Sam: Hello Jason!
Jeffree
@Max: See post 27 for answer to your question on str8 women. Not a joke.
Women must help men to change views.
@Sam: Hello Jason! You forgot to mention “long, flowing hair”.
Olga
The sane Francis, but porn industry imposes this fashion.
It means that gays need to develop a similar fetish “2 bi-guys for 1 girl”.
Melanie
Vaginophobia? Do I have it? oh yes! :))) I do. I’m not afraid of it … I just don’t want to watch it. I have pretty much the same so there is nothing new for me to see there.
You just have to be fair.
When the male bisexuality would be ?? acceptable, free and common as female one then and only then there will be the equality not only in words but in deed!
Jeffree
I don’t watch bisexual porn, straight porn or any porn with women in it because I am gay, not bi.
I love women, just not in a sexual manner. I believe most gay men have similar beliefs.
If women want to make out with each other for their own satisfaction, that’s fine. But if they do it only to please a straight guy, that ‘s messed up.
Elle
Are you people for real? Who cares what Christina does? If she says she’s bisexual then she’s bisexual. You can’t know how a person feels unless you are that person. I’m bisexual and I resent the fact that people think that when celebrities show girl on girl kisses that it’s only for the men. I think that any celebrity who advocates for equality should be allowed to do that, especially since she is bisexual. Anyways, we are in an era where everything is sexual so I think everyone needs to lay off. If you don’t like it don’t watch it