Katy Perry has revealed that she would rewrite her hit song 'I Kissed A Girl' if she were to release it today.
The song, about a woman who kisses another woman for the first time and likes it, was praised as positive for the LGBTQ+ community when it was released.
However, since then critics have drawn attention to the song's lyrics, which contain some harmful tropes.
The song includes lines like 'you're my experimental game' and 'just wanna try you on', as well as 'I hope my boyfriend don't mind it'.
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One critic said that the lyrics "reflect the trivialization of queer female sexuality and the cultural norms which state that female sexuality exists for the pleasure of men.”
The song could also be said to be portraying a bisexual woman as only dipping her toe in the LGBTQ+ community as she's not fully committed, she's just playing an 'experimental game'.
Themes such as these are frequently highlighted by bisexual activists as suggesting that bisexual people are not 'truly' LGBTQ+, particularly if they are in a straight-presenting relationship.
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With that in mind, you could argue that it's difficult to see the song as representative of an LGBTQ+ experience, despite initially being praised as 'lesbian friendly' back in 2008.
In fairness, given the culture of the noughties maybe it's best we don't view that time as a moral authority on anything!
Now, Perry has acknowledged that the song contains some harmful ideas.
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She told Glamour: "We've really changed, conversationally, in the past 10 years. We've come a long way. Bisexuality wasn't as talked about back then, or any type of fluidity.
"If I had to write that song again, I probably would make an edit on it. Lyrically, it has a couple of stereotypes in it.
"Your mind changes so much in 10 years, and you grow so much. What's true for you can evolve."
Since the song was released, dialogue around bisexuality has increased significantly.
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Many bisexual and pansexual people have opened up about feeling threatened because of their LGBTQ+ identity, as well as feeling alienated from the LGBTQ+ community itself for not being 'queer enough'.
Despite there now being more awareness of these challenges, many harmful tropes still persist. This could be that bisexual people are seen as 'untrustworthy', or more likely to cheat because of their partner.
With all that in mind, it's great that Perry has acknowledged that the song does perpetuate those stereotypes... Maybe she should release a new version of the song?
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That would be an absolute banger.
Topics: LGBTQ, Music, Katy Perry
Kit Roberts