Christina Aguilera‘s music has never really been my cup of tea (though I’ll admit I think “Candyman” and “Ain’t No Other Man” are fun as hell). Personal tastes aside, there is no denying that the woman has an incredible talent.
However, recently media attention has centered not upon her remarkable voice, but rather on the size of her ass. Aguilera isn’t the only pop star facing body scrutiny, of course – recently Lady Gaga found herself subjected to the same fat-policing by the media and general public – and I doubt they’ll be the last. Nevertheless, like Lady Gaga, Aguilera is standing up to tell the world (and any label who wants to make money off her incredible voice) that her body is not up for their appraisal.
“Your Body,” however, is totally up for discussion. But don’t worry, all Christina wants to do is love it.
In an interview in Billboard Magazine about her upcoming album, Aguilera explained:
“I told [my label] during this ‘Lotus’ recording, ‘You are working with a fat girl. Know it now and get over it. They need a reminder sometimes that I don’t belong to them. It’s my body. My body can’t put anyone in jeopardy of not making money anymore – my body is just not on the table that way anymore.”
At 31, Christina is taking charge of her career and her body in a way she may not have felt comfortable with 10 years ago. in 2002, her label urged her to drop the 15-20 pounds she gained on tour for promoting Stripped. They also seemed to take objection to her darker hair and complexion. Now, a decade older, Aguilera is done with caving to pressure to be a “skinny white girl.” (Christina Aguilera is of Ecuadorian descent.)
Christina in 2002
And you know what? Good for her. I have never once listened to a song by someone like Christina, Gaga, Adele, or any other female vocalist and thought, “man, this song would sound so much better if that fat bitch would just drop some lbs!” If a pop star’s weight has any bearing on your ability to appreciate their music, I don’t think you really get how music works. (Hint: music is the one where you use your ears!)
UPDATE: Apparently Christina never said this and the quote was from a tumblr post. Here I was, silly me, thinking that maybe a) NY Daily News was a newspaper that checked their sources and b) that Christina would say something cool and feminist.
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