Exaggeration of Explicit Lyrics

Rania Suleiman, section editor

Today, lyrics are seen as artistic and even masterful. They can just be simple sentences that let people relate deeply or connect on an emotional level, but that has not always been the case. 

In the 1980’s, the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC) was a group of conservative parents who disagreed with crude language in songs due to their religious beliefs. It was a large Evangelical movement that accused rock and heavy metal music of having satanic values. The committee was founded by four women known as the “Washington Wives.” It was a reference to their husbands’ connection to the government, which gave them upper hand power. This group strongly believed the rise of rock and heavy metal music would be the downfall of future generations. They created the “Filthy Fifteen” list which had 15 songs with lyrics they deemed sexually explicit, drug related and violent. Songs like “Darling Nikki” by Prince and “Eat Me Alive” by Judas Priest made the list.  

“I am religious, but I still listen to heavy metal. So, I don’t think those two things are mutually exclusive at all. The fact that the music content is screaming and some darker themes does not make it satanic. However, there are bands that market themselves as satanic and embrace it. But also, music is a way to express your opinions, and then there are a lot of ways in metal that people express themselves through darker themes and lyrics, they aren’t satanic, but they just express what they think,” says senior Rett Bush. 

This opened a debate on whether song writers had artistical freedom or need to follow set rules. All of this depends on the strength of the First Amendment, which is the right to freedom of speech in America. In cases against musicians for using profanity, the Courts have been collectively in favor of free music expression, citing the First Amendment. The only exceptions for music to be fully banned by the government would be if there were harmful threats towards somebody or violent tendencies towards a specific group. The community must unite to also decide if they want a song to be banned. However, even if the government cannot ban it, private entities can. Artists may face consequences if their music isn’t played on the radio or in stores, since their music isn’t getting views or interactions, they could lose fame and money. 

In 1990, explicit labels had been placed on any song that used crude language. While this may seem shameful, artists decided to take this in a positive and more marketable route. Explicit labels started becoming statements and were turned into badges of authenticity and rebellion. People put explicit labels over album cover faces for a mysterious look or even put it on the Mona Lisa for an edgy look. They became so popular and trendy that kids in the 90s wanted to buy record players with an explicit label or buy posters to hang on their wall. 

There is no way to prove if these lyrics made future generations more violent, but it continues to be discussed today as new songs can have explicit language. Especially today songs in the rap industry have lyrics that objectify women and romanticize drug use.