I had a conversation with my friend about this song. I hate it! I think its kinda silly, really outdated. But it was on Fantasia's latest CD. I'm definitely a Fantasia fan, but these lyrics provoke a conversation about gender roles and empowerment.
Was wondering if anybody had any thoughts on these LYRICS...
If we dont got it I’ll go get it (it ain’t a thang)
And if it’s broken I’ll fix it (I dont complain)
But now see it’s gettin’ a little out of hand,
Cook, cleaning, providing taking care of little man
You want to talk about who’s wearing the pants
Baby well I dont understand
[Chorus 2x:]
(If you gone) be the man,
Then be the man,
Cause if you can’t
Baby I can,
I can and I will so
Figure it out
Which one of us gone be the man of the house
[Verse:]
(yeah, hey)
Boy, I just don’t get it
(You ain’t supposed to act like a little boy)
Just cause I’m independent
(Noooooooo)
You walk around with your chest out
Like you the one
But if I don’t do it
Then it won’t get done
I’m a good woman
But I’m not dumb
You gone be the man or my son
[Chorus 2x:]
(If you gone) be the man,
Then be the man,
Cause if you can’t
Baby I can,
I can and I will so
Figure it out
Which one of us gone be the man of the house
[Bridge:]
And I’m sick and tired of
Being the boss for us
(being the boss for us)
No this ain’t the kind of love
It’s supposed to be
You want to be
King of the castle
(ohhhh, you want to be)
You want to be captain
You gone have to work a little bit harder for that to happen
[Chorus 4x:]
(If you gone) be the man,
Then be the man,
Cause if you cant
Baby I can,
I can and I will so
Figure it out
Which one of us gone be the man of the house
Good song... for me this means that a man can still change a diaper clean a kitcken and wash some dishes doesnt make him less of a man but more if he steps up to the plate.Unfortunely doing these kind of tasks seems on some level not "manly" enough. I think a great communication in a relatioship and the sorting out of these chores is important. I have a friend who does the mowing, plumbing and handwork and her husband cleans cooks and does laundry and it works great for them.
ReplyDeleteI think Cherie's take on it is one way to look at it, for sure, but I look at is she wants to be taken care of BUT if he doesn't "man up" then she'll do it. It doesn't seem to be the ideal song representing an egalitarian relationship though on the surface it may seem so. It seems more like the frustration... I know I've been guilty of expecting partners to "step up" and do things without me asking and then getting annoyed when it never happens.
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting that Fantasia is singing this (I wonder if she wrote it herself?) because part of her "story" was being a strong, independent woman and a single mother.