Blame it on the College Culture

At every club, every party, every get-together where there is a bunch of college students, two things can almost always be found: alcohol and music. From games such as "flaming shots" to "Beer pong" (in which the beer is often replaced by vodka or other hard liquor), students never fail to find a way to have fun with alcohol.

But where does the fun end? And what does music have to do with it? These are two separate concerns that I wish to address. At most college parties, music blasts through a stereo or DJ equipment. And at all-ages clubs, music is the only element holding the party together. Today's popular clubbing and rap/hip-hop music has some good beats, but awful lyrics. What's worse is that the lyrics are not only shallow, but they convey a negative message to its targeted listeners.

Let me show this through example. These are lyrics to a popular rap song that was playing the last time I was at a party:

N**** why you babysittin' only 2 or 3 shots?
I'ma show you how to turn it up a notch
First you get a swimming pool full of liquor, then you dive in it
Pool full of liquor, then you dive in it
I wave a few bottles, then I watch em all flock
All the girls wanna play Baywatch...

Pour up, drank, head shot, drank
Sit down, drank, stand up, drank
Pass out, drank, wake up, drank
Faded, drank, faded, drank

Swimming Pools (Drank)- Kendrick Lamar

The song encourages and supports drinking over your limit, deeming that it is uncool to drink a few shots. The song melodiously repeats "pass out, drank, wake up, drank" as if passing out from alcohol is a common occurrence at parties. It only gets worse with other lyrics.

I'm in the club so damn gone

I lost my friends and I lost my phone

I'm staggering all by my lone'

I don't even know how I'm getting home

But it’s OK, it’s alright

I'm so fresh yes, I'm so fly

I swore last night I’d give up drinking

Such a lie, what was I thinking?...

Your place or mine a case of wine

Baby stop wasting time, so take a flight…

Last Night- Ian Carrey ft. Snoop Dogg

Again, overdrinking is encouraged in a club setting. Alcohol and girls/sex are put hand in hand. The song promotes alcoholism, as it is suggested that the man drinks on a daily basis and finds it impossible to resist alcohol. Lastly is the most shameful, but popular, song that I could find:

Girl, I know you feel good

Just like you look, couple more shots

You open up like a book, I ain't trippin 'cause I'ma read ya

[Girl], I ain't trippin', I jus' wanna please ya

I'ma take a shot of Nuvo, [girl], then you know

It's going down, we can go kick it like Judo

You know what I mean[girl] got drunk, thought it all was a dream

So I made her say I, I...

Blame it on the vodka, blame it on the henny

Blame it on the blue tap, got you feeling dizzy

Blame it on the a-a-alcohol

Blame it on the a-a-alcohol

Blame It- Jamie Foxx

This song was one of the most popular songs of 2009 and is still played at many college and high school parties. People sing along to it. Perhaps if the song’s lyrics were written in prose instead of rap, the true meaning would shine through. Here is my summary of this song:

A man is at a bar talking to a woman. Both of them are drinking. The man encourages her to drink more, then he touches her sexually; he is happily surprised that she does not resist his touch. Later on in the night, he is certain that she is tipsy. He takes her to his car and tells her that he wants to please her. He tells her to forget about her boyfriend. She complies with his sexual commands, and when she wakes up she thinks that it was all a dream (implying that she passed out). And, of course, the man blames his primitive, cruel actions on the alcohol, as it got both him and her feeling “dizzy.”

This sounds like a case of sexual assault. If the woman is unaware of her circumstances, and if she has drank enough to be blacked out, then she is unable to consent to any sexual favours. The song makes this serious matter seem like a joke, a typical night at the bar, or an “accomplishment” for the man. In reality, the blame is not on the alcohol or the woman; the man is the only one who can be blamed for consciously taking advantage of a woman who is unable to consent.

What is troubling is that these songs are a part of mainstream music. They are played on the radio and at parties. They are played during Frosh week. They are played at clubs. I even have these songs on my iPod.

College culture has openly accepted the messages that these songs convey. The higher your alcohol tolerance, the cooler you are. If you know how to mix drinks, you’re a star. A party with no booze? I’m not coming. I’ve heard many male students boast about taking advantage of “easy drunk girls”.

This brings me to my second point: when does the fun end? The answer is that it doesn’t. Sexual assaults go unreported. Some students need to be hospitalized for overdrinking. I’m not blaming the music industry for the corrupt college culture, but it certainly does not help to solve an increasingly menacing problem across many campuses. It makes students confused about the definition of consent:

Consent is defined as a voluntary agreement of the complainant to engage in the sexual activity in question. (Criminal Code of Canada)

And what exactly is sexual assault?

Sexual Assault is defined as an assault of a sexual nature that violates the sexual integrity of the victim. (Supreme Court of Canada)

If a person is blacked out or drunk to the point of passing out, then he/she cannot consent to anything. There are serious consequences for sexual assault, including probation and imprisonment.

Music is art. It is different from real life. There are real life consequences for behaving like the characters that many pop and rap performers sing about. If you want to be a truly well educated college student, read up on the law. In real life, you cannot blame alcohol for unruly, reckless, or criminal behaviour.

Watch the video!

Blame it- Jamie Foxx ft. T-Pain