In Defense of Boy Bands: Why True Love is worth the Wait
Summary: Music critics and the general population are quick to scoff at pop music and boy bands in particular because their lyrics are considered cheesy and overly sentimental and set unrealistic expectations for what to expect with love in the real world. But I argue that this is not the case.
In Defense of Boy Bands: Why True Love is worth the Wait
I admit that I went to Target before work yesterday morning and bought One Direction’s new CD, Take Me Home. I did so deliberately and without shame. While I refrained from playing the record while I was at the office it was not out of embarrassment but rather because I had no headphones with which to listen and didn’t want to drive my male coworker who sits next to me completely insane. As it was, he already had to endure a conversation about how one of our other coworkers’ shirts was especially flattering because it showcased her breasts particularly well. (We call our office space the Estrogen Den because, with the exception of Kevin, we are all female.) But I digress.
As soon as I got back to my apartment yesterday afternoon I popped the CD into my computer to take it for a test listen-through. My first response was “meh.” I was neither impressed nor disappointed by what I heard. The boys of One Direction can definitely sing, but I was not blown away by the new songs. Perhaps I am too used to the boy bands of yesteryear (*cough*NSYNC*cough*) and was making an unfair comparison. To be honest, the face of pop music has changed since the release of *NSYNC’s last record in 2001. However, upon re-playing the album for the second time, I came to better appreciate what I was hearing.
Now, less than 24 hours after my first listen, I confidently give my stamp of approval to One Direction as the rightful heirs to the boy band throne. I feel that I am qualified to give them this honor because of my nearly fifteen years of dedication to the boy band scene.
But that’s not really what I want to talk about. This is not meant to be a glowing review of Take Me Home. Rather, it is meant to be an examination of the lyrical merit of boy band music in general, using One Direction’s latest album as an example.
You see, music critics and the general population are quick to scoff at pop music and boy bands in particular because their lyrics are considered cheesy and overly sentimental and set unrealistic expectations for what to expect with love in the real world.
But I would like to argue that, while they may be cheesy and sentimental, the love songs are actually good for One Direction’s mostly pre-pubescent and adolescent female fan base. Lyrics that we “grown-ups” perceive as saying “someday your prince charming will come rescue you from the throes of puberty” are actually sending a completely different message: “Don’t settle. Your prince charming is out there and you will know when you find him because he will treat you right.”
The difference may seem subtle, but it is very important. Skeptics hear a message that tells girls to wait passively for the right guy to appear. Believers hear that hard work and persistence pay off, that it is worth waiting for the right person.
Uber-feminists may bawk at the notion of a prince charming fantasy, but let’s be real: that’s what most girls want. They want to find that special someone to sweep them off their feet and love them for who they are, flaws and all.
Now, I’m not saying that all boy band songs send this message. There are, as there were back in 2001, songs that say, “Hey girl, I know we just met in this club but I ‘love’ you so let’s go back to my place and see what happens.” Points in case: *NSYNC’s “Up Against the Wall” and One Direction’s “C’mon, C’mon.”
But for every “love in the club” song there are usually two or three more sincere tracks about how true love is worth waiting for. (And no, I’m not talking about the pros or cons of avoiding premarital sex. I’m talking about the emotion you feel when you’re “truly, madly, deeply” in love, to quote One Direction.)
And so I leave you with the lyrics from the song on Take Me Home that I feel best embodies this message, “Little Things,” and the (somewhat sappy, but still genuine) hope that one day we will all find that special someone who loves us not in spite of, but because of who we are. Because that is someone worth waiting for.
Little Things
Your hand fits in mind
Like it’s made just for me
But bear this in mind
It was meant to be
And I’m joining up the dots
With the freckles on your cheeks
And it all makes sense to me
I know you’ve never loved
The crinkles by your eyes
When you smile
You’ve never loved
Your stomach or your thighs,
The dimples in your back
At the bottom of your spine
But I’ll love them endlessly
I won’t let these little things
Slip out of my mouth
But if I do, it’s you
Oh, it’s you they add up to
I’m in love with you
And all these little things
You can’t go to bed
Without a cup of tea
And maybe that’s the reason
That you talk in your sleep
And all those conversations
Are the secrets that I keep
Though it makes no sense to me
I know you’ve never loved
The sound of your voice on tape
You never want
To know how much you weigh
You still have to squeeze
Into your jeans
But you’re perfect to me
I won’t let these little things
Slip out of my mouth
But if it’s true
It’s you,
It’s you they add up to
I’m in love with you
And all these little things
You’ll never love yourself
Half as much as I love you
And you’ll never treat yourself right, darling,
But I want you to
If I let you know I’m here for you
Maybe you’ll love yourself
Like I love you, oh
And I’ve just let these little things
Slip out of my mouth
‘Cause it’s you
Oh it’s you,
It’s you they add up to
And I’m in love with you
And all these little things
I won’t let these little things
Slip out of my mouth
But if it’s true
It’s you,
It’s you they add up to
I’m in love with you
And all your little things