Friday Free for All: Literally, Everybody Talk About Pop Music

First of all, let me say that the "new definition" of literally is about to drive me to drink. One upon a time, this was the only definition:

lit·er·al·ly  (ltr--l)

adv.

1. In a literal manner; word for word: translated the Greek passage literally.

2. In a literal or strict sense: Don't take my remarks literally.

3. Usage Problem

a. Really; actually: "There are people in the world who literally do not know how to boil water" (Craig Claiborne).

But now we live a world with this skullduggery:

I love the reporters in this video. Anyway, why the brief etymology lesson? Because I wanted to illustrate that 1) I know what the real definition of "literally" is, and 2) I am using mostly correctly in this post.

Sinead O'Connor. We know her. I love her. She's all indie, and angsty, and Irish. She had a mega hit in the early 90's with Prince's song "Nothing Compares 2 U". Then she ripped up a photo of the pope on SNL and quickly faded into relative obscurity. I'm sure that was fine with her as she was really unhappy with her record label trying to tart her up to sell records. And who can blame her? She looked fantastic in men's clothing and work boots. We should all be so lucky. Nevermind the fact that she could have probably worn a burlap sack and sold records because she's so freaking talented. She has influenced scads of female artists, including The Cranberries' Dolores O'Riordan, Alanis Morrisette, Liz Phair, and, allegedly, Miley Cyrus. It's good to be influential, right?

Maybe not so much.

Miley Cyrus told Rolling Stone when asked about her new, incredibly short hair style that it was an homage to O'Connor: "I wanted it to be tough, but really pretty - that's what Sinead did with her hair and everything." Okay Miley, that's cool. But, Sinead cut her hair (originally) as a protest against her record label trying to define her marketability by her comely appearance. Pretty didn't enter into it. Also, as far as I know, Sinead O'Connor never twerked.

Nope. Never would have happened. 

Which brings us back to my use of "literally". Miley's infamous VMA performance had most people on the internet talking from day one. Mother Monster even weighed in on the matter. But, there were some voices that were quiet amid the fray. But when Sinead starts talking about your antics, you have achieved scandal saturation. And talk Sinead did in her 1000 word open letter to Miley this week.

If you have not read it, it was beautiful. READ IT .

Now, I don't agree 100% with O'Connor's sentiments in her letter, but I believe that her heart was in the right place. My issue is that Miley is 20, and maybe she likes to have sex. There's nothing wrong with her expressing that, and really I think that it says a lot about our culture that we are so shocked, offended, and maybe even afraid of a sexually liberated woman.

Furthermore, with the exception of licking the sledgehammer (Really Miley, why are you making out with a sledgehammer?), I think that the "Wrecking Ball" video was incredibly well done. Did Miley need to be naked on the wrecking ball? No. Was it well shot and classy? Yes. I think that it symbolized the vulnerability expressed in the lyrics. It wasn't like she was stripping or anything.

That said, I do agree with Sinead that there are probably a lot of men behind the scenes pulling the strings when it comes to how Miley presents herself. She claims that she's trying to sever herself from Hannah Montana. Okay. I get that. I wonder though, is Miley so unsure of her own talent that she truly believes she must resort to the stripper routine to achieve her goal? I think it's far more likely that she's going through her teenage rebellion a little late. There's no artistic or cultural relevance to her actions. She's just trying to piss off mommy and daddy. I don't have a problem with that.

I do have a problem with others exploiting her rebellion and profiting off of it. So does O'Connor. I fully believe that her letter was written with nothing but compassion and the best of intentions. If I were Miley Cyrus I would have been grateful to have received it. I would have read it, then I would have locked myself in the bathroom, had a long, hot bath, and thought about what I'd read.

It would have been like getting a letter from the
very cool and wise aunt I never had. Sinead, if you're looking for young women to mentor,
I'm available. Source.

I am not Miley Cyrus. She did not appreciate the letter, nor does it appear that she thought about said letter's contents. Instead, she turned into a mean girl and started mocking O'Connor's battle with mental illness and her infamous SNL performance (which was kind of awesome and a lot more meaningful than twerking).

I want to be on Team Miley. I really do. She is so talented, but she's so . . . common? Yeah, I think that's the word. Common. I don't know why she did what she did. Immaturity? Poor judgement? Intoxication? We could speculate all day. It doesn't really matter. What matters is that she chose to attack someone who tried to help her and she did it by mocking their very brave honesty about a struggle with mental illness. I wish more people could be that honest about their struggles and that brave about dealing with them. Hell, I wish I could be more open and honest about my own demons. I have nothing but admiration, love, and respect for anyone who is open and honest about their own personal struggles. Mental illness is not shameful. Neither is getting naked and dancing. But bullying? Yeah, that's never okay.

I'm glad to see that Sinead O'Connor has remained classy throughout this ordeal. We need more voices like hers out there. I wonder what Lady Gaga thinks of this mess?

(Aside: I might talk a lot about celebrities, but my personal heroes are the people in my life who persevere in the face of both mental and physical illness. (You all know who you are and I love you all so much!) Also, if you watch the video for "Nothing Compares 2 U", it's easy to see the influence in Miley's "Wrecking Ball" video, both in look and in the overall theme of the song. And lastly, "Yay Irish Artists!")