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    eggnoggyKate Dries
    11/12/13 2:43pm

    Not sure how much the irony is being enjoyed by all those fetishized/anonymous/non-white backing dancers, though. Like...it's ok to objectify black women because Lily Allen is making a feminist point right in front of them?!

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      Kaylaeggnoggy
      11/12/13 2:59pm

      i get what lily allen was trying to do and the song is catchy, but parts of it just did not feel entirely right for this privileged white woman to be speaking for what is most often the fetishization and over-sexualization of women of color. Also, the song really simplified the issue (but maybe i should stop looking for feminist theory in my pop music)

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      achangeindirectioneggnoggy
      11/12/13 3:01pm

      Are they being objectified if they're in on the joke?

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    femithisKate Dries
    11/12/13 3:17pm

    The mostly black backup dancers are references to the general pop climate right now and mainly Rihanna and Miley Cyrus' image/ behavior (that a lot of other people are trying to emulate). Lily Allen doesn't usually have all black backup dancers. They're part of the satire in this case and were in all likelihood a very conscious choice. They're part of what makes this video fit in with the mainstream stuff right now, and thus are one of the most - if not the most - important element of the video because everything else being up to pop standards and "cool" will allow the message to be delivered en masse, which was the point here, and good for every woman.

    They also look like they're having a lot of fun... and let's get to the real world bottom line. These are professional dancers/ models who work in a very competitive industry with a relatively short career window and are probably ecstatic about being booked and continuing to work, period. They are more than willing participants who have worked hard to get featured in music videos, and may very well be super excited to get to participate in a project with such a pro-female message compared to the type of blatantly misogynist stuff they're often booked in. They weren't trafficked to this set against their will. They are getting a great addition to their resume, exposure, and money, and they are a pivotal element of making this project a success.

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      hocouturefemithis
      11/12/13 4:50pm

      No, no, Lily Allen hates WoC and is saying the back up dancers are dumb or something. Sigh.

      I also said something very similar to what you're saying in a comment. When the heck does Lily Allen ever have a crew of essentially nothing but WoC twerking in a video with slo-mo shots of their ass cheeks clapping together? Never. It's satire, and the WoC are a crucial part of making that satire meaningful. It can't exist without them. At the same time, the "I have a brain part" is complicated by so many factors that Allen makes clear in the video - she's not saying the dancers are dumb, she's commenting on several very specific narratives given to women (herself included), and in one case, more to WoC (e.g. the video vixen narrative). At least, that what's I took from it. The whole thing is far too self-aware.

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      tetonsfemithis
      11/12/13 5:04pm

      Thank you. I think people's offensiveness alert is on so high they are missing some pretty obvious satire. I thought it was just the right amount of sarcasm to make the dig at Miley work (which is what I took it as). If she had made it extra extra obvious that she was being sarcastic (one commenter suggested her pretending to stuff padding into a dancer's butt to make it bigger) it would have been too try-hard and not as funny IMO. I think this was a funny and intentional dig at white girl pop's appropriation of twerking, etc, and I appreciate that she used white dancers as well but had a lot of black women in the video...that's the reality she's commenting on, isn't it? Plus I'm sure all those women were in on the joke and more than happy to lend their ass shaking skills to the dismantling of the patriarchy haha.

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    ghanediKate Dries
    11/12/13 4:41pm

    Yeah this feminist stuff is great and all but where in the hell do I find that gold eye shadow? LOVE.

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      Jan74ghanedi
      11/12/13 5:35pm

      A loose pigment would work... but really, the cheapest way is to get larger size polyester glitter from the craft store and apply that with an eyeshadow primer. Some of them say "safe to use as makeup".

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      hellkellJan74
      11/12/13 6:56pm

      It almost looks like gems instead of glitter. Kind of like what's on her nails.

      Anyone got any good liquid eyeliner tips and tricks? Maybe it's just my eyes, but I can never get a cat eye to look right.

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    JustTheTippiHedrenKate Dries
    11/12/13 2:50pm

    No need to shake my ass for you cause I've got a brain

    So the backup dancers don't have brains?

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      dert6JustTheTippiHedren
      11/12/13 2:53pm

      I was wondering how exactly that was "feminist".

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      DJHexadecibelJustTheTippiHedren
      11/12/13 2:55pm
      GIF
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    sugarhilKate Dries
    11/12/13 2:57pm

    I love Lily Allen (Knock 'em Out is spectacular). And I love the message of this. But can we spend some time talking about how Theon Greyjoy is her brother?

    ETA: and that this song is about him

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      Set Fire to the Room--do it now (fiends NOT friends)sugarhil
      11/12/13 3:07pm

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      kotentzasugarhil
      11/12/13 3:08pm

      Wait what?

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    LizTaylorsEarringsKate Dries
    11/12/13 2:46pm

    NEW LILY ALLEN???

    YES!!

    I thought she was retiring! I'm so glad that isn't the case. Her albums are the jam!

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      ameagaLizTaylorsEarrings
      11/12/13 2:50pm

      The jammiest jams of all the jams!

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      Hamlet goes safariLizTaylorsEarrings
      11/12/13 2:55pm
      GIF
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    see you in rach-hell only comments on tswift nowKate Dries
    11/12/13 2:49pm

    I fucking love Lily Allen. She does that sugar sweet voice/sassy lyrics thing so well.

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      Lux Zillasee you in rach-hell only comments on tswift now
      11/12/13 3:19pm

      ME TOO! I love her voice, I love her lyrics, I love her look, I love her accent, I love what she has to say. I never understood the hate for her. Bitch is fucking FABULOUS!

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      aoirghe2see you in rach-hell only comments on tswift now
      11/12/13 3:22pm

      Have you heard Kate Nash? You might really like her.

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    Pope AlexanderKate Dries
    11/12/13 2:55pm

    I love her, I do, but it feels like all of her songs from the last few years have been "exposing" the superficiality and danger of the pop world.

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      Sunnyside_LadyPope Alexander
      11/12/13 2:57pm

      Yeah this song isn't nearly as good as The Fear imho.

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      MTHayyyPope Alexander
      11/12/13 3:08pm

      And the problem is?

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    GnatOfPowerKate Dries
    11/12/13 4:10pm

    Okay, so after reading the comments, I need to add this: THIS IS GOOD SATIRE. It works on a technical level. It ticks all of the satire boxes. The targets of denegration aren't the women in the video, they're an extreme to highlight the ridiculousness.

    You may not believe that casting primarily WOC (note: not all, but primarily) within the satire is productive and that's fine (ie is it more 'harmful to have them there, twerking away', than it is more 'helpful to make the point'?). I can't really make that call 'cause I'm white as hell.

    But that's a different argument to the satire being off the mark.

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      aoirghe2GnatOfPower
      11/12/13 4:36pm

      Hey now. Jezebel is no place for nuanced arguments. How will I be able to tell if you're worse than Hitler if you're being reasonable??

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      GnatOfPoweraoirghe2
      11/12/13 4:42pm

      Oh shit. Wait. Let me try this again:

      YOUR OPINION IS DIFFERENT TO MINE AND THEREFORE INVALID ALSO HITLER

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    KorraKate Dries
    11/12/13 3:47pm

    Ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

    I like Lily Allen. I like this song. In general I like the video, and I get the sarcasm.

    But that doesn't change the fact that the backup dancing reminded me very much of Nelly's tip-drill video, and made me feel all kinds of strange and sad and knee-jerkey inside. I think there could have been a less objectifying way to get her point across, feel uncomfortable that she was making these points as a covered up white women among all of these gyrating, half-naked WoCs covered in champagne splooge. I am confused in my spirit...

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