The Mis-Education of the Rope
[I actually submitted this almost 14 years ago for a course…I thought I’d share it.]
Being the avid music lover that I am, I believe that everyone is blessed with a gift, and a method of connecting with GOD through that gift they possess. I have been blessed to encounter music that has influenced my lifestyle and life choices. Two albums that have had a profound effect on my life are Janet Jackson’s 1997 album, The Velvet Rope and Ms. Lauryn Hill’s live acoustic CD MTV Unplugged 2.0 in 2002. Both speak on issues that not only affected me while growing up, but also, the societal issues of the diaspora at-large.
Starting with Unplugged, this album has had a profound effect on my enlightenment, especially in how I began to see the world from a different perspective. The 2002 released MTV Unplugged No. 2.0 album exhibited a new Hill, as she focused more on the lyrics and the message she was spreading rather than the musical arrangements. “Fantasy is what people want, but reality is what they really need”, she said during the concert, stating that people liked the idea of living in a box and submitting to societal norms. This ties in with the Bible reference of saying that willingly submitting yourself is a sin against God, and that in order to survive and overcome suffering you must fight for it.
This is a concept album where Ms. Hill shares her thoughts on religion, society, God, and love, stating the idea she was attempting to get across is “acknowledging the problem, identifying its’ cause, and finding the solution” to everyday issues. The issues she speak of acknowledges that all of us (society) live in boxes that we choose to be a part of, and that we could break those molds if we truly wanted to. This is made clear in her track “I Find It Hard To Say (Rebel)” in which she acknowledges the problem and is trying to break the mold she was forced to be in as an artist, and the looks she got from people thinking that she was mentally unstable [“like y’all aren’t”]. Another song that captured my attention is “I Gotta Find Peace of Mind” in which she finds herself struggling in a relationship she had with the negative force that was in her head, making it harder to speak to God, even though she wants to. Everybody can relate to a situation like that, especially myself.
When I was a sophomore in college, I was homeless, because my family could no longer support me, and I found myself in a deep depression, with little resources and support systems. My social atmosphere made it even more unbearable while in college- I tried to be the “people pleaser” and wanted to be liked by everyone, when truth be told, I did not really like myself, and I needed to introduce myself to myself before I introduced myself to anyone else. As Ms. Hill said, “truth is on the inside out, not the outside in” in one of her interludes.
What I liked most about the album is just it is literally and lyrically a journey. From the beginning, she talks about how she is influenced by the thoughts and actions of others through coercion and persuasion (“Mr. Intentional”, “Adam Lives In Theory”), how she begins to question herself and her situation (“Oh, Jerusalem”, “Freedom Time”), her knowledge after enlightenment (“Mystery of Iniquity”, “I Get Out”) and her finding the result and sharing it aloud (“The Conquering Lion”). Listening to this album seductively lures the listener to grab the message and think to himself or herself, “I thought I was only going through that”. Also that there is hope for individuals to find themselves through whichever way they feel is necessary.
While Ms. Hill speaks to the different lessons she has learning going the journey to finding herself, Janet Jackson’s The Velvet Rope tells a of story about the reasons why we choose to brave such a journey. The concept of The Velvet Rope was to acknowledge that we all have the need to feel special, and that it is this need that brings out the best and the worst in everyone. Jackson speaks about domestic abuse, nightlife immersion, self-hatred, loveless sex, anxiety, submersion into media culture and lesbianism to highlight the actions an individual can go through in their quest to feel whole.
In metaphor, the use of “the velvet rope” not only deals with Janet’s disillusionment with her celebrity, but also signifies the need of an individual to feel special by putting themselves in a private place (like the rope used to hold back fans when a celebrity is present). It is also acknowledged to be metaphoric of the rope used in bondage in order to teach principles such as discipline, restraint, and control, which can be a double-edged sword. Both Ms. Hill and Jackson lyrically address the problem, cause, and solution of societal norms, each using their own corporeality as the intimate site of discourse. This is seen best in the last track on Jackson’s album called “Special”, expressing her want to be normal while still being a celebrity, in which she says in her interlude “Sad” prior to the track, “There’s nothing more depressing than having everything…and still feeling sad”.
Between the two albums, I believe that both show a need to overcome society struggles we all face today, and no matter how big, small, or personal they may be, we can all overcome them. In Ms. Hill’s case, we can come out of the boxes society places all of us in, in order to feel whole and complete. On the other hand, with Jackson, the love of one’s self and acknowledging your self-worth can go a long way in showing that in watering your spiritual garden; you can feel special and overcome your problems.
