Music is art and with art there is a meaning behind it. Now not all art has a blatant meaning spelled out for the viewer, which then leaves one to wonder “What is the purpose?” With music, it can address problems in the world around us, the struggles of an artist, or shed light on certain groups. Rhythm Nation by Janet Jackson addressed the conflicts of racism, poverty, social injustice that occurred in the 80s and took a toll on groups like African-Americans. Though there are other groups that may relate to this song at the time, these were the major themes pointed out. So what happens when people take a song like Rhythm Nation or other pieces of media and use their own interpretation as their foundation of what a piece of art truly means?
In the past weeks, I discovered a new social media trend “Black in Suburbia” which uses the demo song “Wavy” by SZA. This was mainly used by black people who had grown up in the suburbs surrounded by white people, not having many people around that looked or understood them truly. Few lines from the demo are “Never had a chance/They could never understand/ The price of being fast and young/ The price of being black in Suburbia…/You just trying to measure up to the “rich kids” Breaking down these lyrics down and knowing the context of who the artist which is a black women, you could figure out she’s talking about the experience of being in a predominantly white space/ institution and the struggle that comes with as being a black woman who doesn’t fit in due to her race. However, a problem many black people have pointed out is seeing white people using this song to talk about their problems. For example, “Brunette in Suburbia”, one Tik Toker used this sound to vent on being the only brunette in a blonde friend group. While some argue that there is no problem with interpreting a song to relate as “All art is up for interpretation”, I genuinely disagree.
Art can be subjective, but in some cases there’s an intent behind one’s art making it objective. When art is objective then it has a certain meaning and though people can try to relate, it shouldn’t shadow the artist’s actual meaning(s) for a piece of art. Art with an objective or clear meaning like Wave applies to a certain situation or experience which doesn’t apply to all people and that’s okay. However, when others ignore the objective to make it more palatable for themselves, it loses the impact of the piece that the artist intended. Think of espresso, a strong brewed shot of concentrated coffee. When you add water to espresso it loses that strength and character to it until the original intense flavor is fully diluted. That happens when the interpretation of a piece of media overshadows the true meaning, the original impact gets diluted and loses its original impact.
The whole issue of how “Wavy” by SZA also reminded me of an online discussion about interpretations a few years ago. “Your Best American Girl” By Mitski, now this song has trended several different times with different segments of the song, but the meaning is still there. Some lines are “You’re the sun, You’ve never even the night/ But you hear songs from the morning birds/ I’m not the moon,I’m not even a star” In the music video, Mitski in a professional outfit is on a chair staring at a white man in casual clothing from across the room, while his focus is set on her, a white woman comes and shifts his wards a white woman wfocus toho comes in, giving her his affections.
To break down the meaning of the lyrics, “the sun” is the white man, as the standard and systems built in the world today revolve around him. “The night” being referred to is the reality and experiences of those who don’t receive these benefits, women of color. Despite seeing how the media (morning birds) portray women of color, it doesn’t show the full picture and even twists it to seem more palatable. The “moon” is the white woman while a “star” would be a woman of color who has a closer proximity to whiteness or is white passing. In the chorus she states “Your mother wouldn’t approve of how my mother raised be, but I do.” Mitski then kisses her hand in the music video when played. This refers to growing up in an ethnic culture or having parents as immigrants and being raised in an environment that wouldn’t be seen as “American” culture or in other words, white. She changes this line from “I think I do” to “I finally do” as though she realizes this system wasn’t made for her, she still embraces her roots and culture as it’s a part of her identity.
Arguably, this could be seen as an interpretation, but I think it’s more of an analysis of what Mitski’s intent was with this song. From her past work, she talks on her experience growing up in the US as a Japanese-American and the struggles that have come with it. This like her others are relatable to people of color, especially women. I personally could relate to the song “Your Best American Girl” being someone who grew up in America with an ethnic background that doesn’t fit the Eurocentric standard that’s praised. While I can understand the original meaning of the song, I can also apply the same meaning to my own life. However, like water in espresso, the meaning has been diluted to be more palatable to other groups. People online have used this sound to describe their experiences of being brunette, or low income, or a part of the LGBTQIA community. While many can struggle with these problems (some more than others), it makes the song lose its meaning. When people started to get called out for the misinterpretation of the song, they defended themselves believing the song is “up for interpretation”
However, Mitski has never said this about this song and it’s quite obvious this wasn’t a subjective song either. It was almost as if people chose to ignore the song for what it truly was simply because they wanted to be included in an experience that never applied to them. To say a song obviously blatant as “Wavy” or “Your Best American Girl” is for interpretation solely because you wanted to be included is disrespectful. There are many songs in the world that can apply to people, interpretations of songs isn’t an inherently bad thing, but when this happens to songs clearly made for a certain audience , that meaning gets lost. In fact, it silences who the intended audience is by letting others interpretations have a louder voice than the original meaning.
I think subjective art is similar to the phrase, “A friend to all, is a friend to none.” A single piece can’t relate to everyone, because then there’s no actual reason for that art. If “Your Best American Girl” was up for interpretation then it wouldn’t have the impact it has. It wouldn’t have the same depth because there would be no meaning to understand. The whole concept of “all art is up for interpretation” is even anti-intellectualism because it’s essentially refusing to acknowledge that there are deeper meanings in art and the ideas of the artists. There are some things I can’t relate to, but I don’t switch up the meaning so it’s more palatable for me because that was never the intention. I could relate to some lines to an extent , but I can’t relate to the whole. It’s like forcing a different puzzle piece into another puzzle. As hard as I may try, it wouldn’t fit and the big picture isn’t complete.
Art has meaning and there’s nothing wrong with interpreting art as not everything is going to be spelled out. That being said, you should be mindful that some art is objective and the meanings are not supposed to be molded into the shape you wanted even if you can relate to an extent. Not everything is for everyone, and realizing that not only helps those stories and experiences be heard for what they are, but makes sure the intended impact has meaning.
Author’s Note:
I think since maybe 2021 I’ve seen the same type of discourse about art and interpretation. While I don’t think there’s any harm in interpretation, I do think over time people had lost the actual meaning to interpreting art and the concept of a subjective piece. Music can be subjective, but there’s just some things I believe aren’t for everyone and that’s okay. Instead of creating a new narrative to an art with objectives, we should appreciate and see it for how it truly is.
Faith Amao | 16 | Odenton, MD | @heartsmashing on TikTok
