Ok, I finally got around to writing part two! I have been busy with tests the past few weeks, so that’s why this didn’t come sooner. I need to get better about writing these and posting them, instead of writing them and tweaking them later.
I just want to quickly summarize again what the goal is with this blog. I intend to review many different songs, most of these will be really popular songs. My source of songs to listen to is going to be the iTune top 10 list. Of course, if someone specifically asks me to check out another song, I will. What I am looking for in these songs, is for how the message lines up, or differs from that of the Bible. Sometimes this may seem legalistic, but I think that since music is such a big part of our culture, we should examine what we listen to. Not only for ourselves – some we aren’t listening to false teaching all the time – but also from other around us. If non-Christians see us listening to music thats message is counter-Christian, then, in the area of music, we will not be a good witness to them.
Alright, enough intro, onto the main event…
This post is going to be looking at the verses from the song Born This Way by Lady Gaga.
Verse 1:
My mama told me when I was young
We are all born superstars
She rolled my hair and put my lipstick on
In the glass of her boudoir
There’s nothin’ wrong with lovin’ who you are
She said, ’cause He made you perfect, babe
So hold your head up, girl and you you’ll go far
Listen to me when I say
Sentence Translation: My mama told me when I was young, we are all born as amazing people. She did my hair and put makeup on me while I was still a little girl. She also told me that there is nothing wrong with loving who I am, because God made me perfect. So be proud of who I am, and what I do, and I’ll go far.
We see a couple things going on in this sentence. The main purpose of this sentence is to mix truth with lies.
The first example of this is “We are all born superstars.” While its true that we are all born with amazing potential, it is also true that we are all born as sinners. I suppose if she is talking about how frequently superstars (actors, rockstars, pro-athletes) are some of the most messed up people you meet, then she might be right. I doubt that is the sense though.
The next is “She also told me that there is nothing wrong with loving who I am, because God made me perfect. So be proud of who I am, and what I do, and I’ll go far.“ This is something I already talked about in the first post. If you want more explanation, then go check that out. Basically she is being told by her mother that it is ok to love her sinful-self, because God made her perfect. The problem, as we already know, is that God will only make us perfect through Jesus on the day of judgement. We are not perfect when we are born, we are sinners. So the whole part about being proud of who you are (a depraved sinner), and you will go far, is also part of the lie. The was to go far in life is to recognize that Jesus is the only one who can run that race. A pastor at my church once said: ‘It’s not that we are unqualified, but rather, we are disqualified.’ (can’t remember the exact wording)
Between the first and second major problems, there is a small one I would like to point out. It’s from the section about getting her hair and lipstick done, I translated it: “She did my hair and put makeup on me while I was still a little girl.” This is somewhat of a contradiction, to the next sentence. If she is made perfect, then why does see need to have all this beatifying done? I realize that most girls will disagree with me on this point…However, I think some would say it is not good to do lots of makeup when you are really young.
Verse 2:
Give yourself prudence and love your friends
Subway kid, rejoice of truth
In the religion of the insecure
I must be myself, respect my youth
A different lover is not a sin
Believe capital H-I-M
I love my life, I love this record and
Mi amore vole fe yah (love needs faith)
Sentence Translation: To the Subway kid (poor): Use your common sense and love your friends. Rejoice in Truth. To the religion of the insecure (Christianity): I must be myself. Respect my youth. A gay/lesbian lover is not a sin – God made you perfect. I love my life, love this CD/record/work and love needs faith.
Gaga address two groups in this verse. First she address the “Subway Kid.” I assume this means the poor, but I’m not entirely sure… She basically tells him that he should love his friends, and rejoice in truth. I’m not sure if this love is a gay love or not, but due to the nature of the song, it wouldn’t surprise me. I suppose rejoice in truth could also mean that he should be happy about telling someone he is gay. Again, I’m not sure about this. As this is vague, I’ll let you ponder this through on your own.
The second “person” is where Gaga starts hitting really hard. Because she has been talking about “Capital H-I-M” I think that it is safe you assume we are talking about Christianity here. Thus, when she address “the religion of the insecure,” she is addressing Christians. She says that she has to be herself and Christians should respect her youthfulness. Now, it is not wrong to be childish when you are a child, but when you are older, the Bible says (1 Corinthians 13:11) we are be responsible and put away our childishness. But Jesus says that we must be like children. Is there an inconsistency here? No. We are to be like children when it comes to how children are always learning, are less corrupted by their culture, and have faith in those with more power than them (Children have faith in parents; adults have faith in Christ). We are not to be like children when it comes to how irresponsible children are, and how foolishly they sometime act. This is a complicated subject which could probably have it’s own post…
ok, last one…the Bridge.
Bridge:
Don’t be drag, just be a queen
Whether you’re broke or evergreen
You’re black, white, beige, chola descent
You’re Lebanese, you’re orient
Whether life’s disabilities
Left you outcast, bullied or teased
Rejoice and love yourself today
‘Cause baby, you were born this way
No matter gay, straight or bi
Lesbian, transgendered life
I’m on the right track, baby
I was born to survive
No matter black, white or beige
Chola or orient made
I’m on the right track, baby
I was born to be brave
The bridge is much longer than the verses, and the meaning is clear, so I’m not going to do a direct sentence translation. I will define a few terms though that I didn’t know, or are confusing.
Evergreen is the first confusing term. I originally thought that it was a contrast to broke – thus it meant rich. However, I did a quick search on urban dictionary and found this definition:
Evergreen: A condition stemming from profuse marijuana use. Equivalent to a marijuana “hangover.” Also referred to as “the Coniferous Disease”
Most of the definitions on urban dictionary are derived from pop culture. So I think that given the nature of this song, it might not be too far of a stretch to use this definition. However, because we have opposites in the first sentence (drag [bum] vs. queen [royalty]) I think we can give Gaga the benefit of the doubt and say that broke (poor) is opposite of evergreen (rich – money is always/ever green).
Chola is defined by urban dictionary as being a Latina who wear heavy makeup. But wikipedia also has an article on the Chola Dynasty of southern India.
Lebanese refers to the country of Lebanon (you can find it just north of Israel).
These terms are not important to the message of the song, the main point here is that she is just listing off a bunch of ethnicities.
Now we get to the good part. The second paragraph of the bridge is probably the only part of the song that I whole-heartedly agree with. Here is what she says:
Whether life’s disabilities
Left you outcast, bullied or teased
Rejoice and love yourself today
‘Cause baby, you were born this way
This is true. If you are born disabled (physically/mentally) you really have nothing to be ashamed of. We live in a sin-cursed world, so it is not surprising to see physical and mental degradation. The lesson we as Christians can take from this is that we should not shun, bully, or tease people who are not like us. They were born into this world that way, but rather, we should love them as Jesus does. I, for one, look forward to the day when all handicapped Christians will receive their resurrected bodies.
So what does she do after some truth? She adds a lie to it.
No matter gay, straight or bi
Lesbian, transgendered life
I’m on the right track, baby
I was born to survive
There are many places in the Bible where Homosexuality is explicitly pointed out as a sinful act. Leviticus 18:22 – “You (men) shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination.” This is pretty clear on homosexuality being wrong. Another example can be found in Genesis 19. This is the story of Sodom and Gomorrah. One of the most popular things in that city was homosexuality. So much so, that when Angels came to the city, and stayed with Lot (Abraham’s Nephew) apparently word got around that there were some new guys in the town, and ALL the men from the town went out to check them out. They came to Lot’s house and demanded that Lot let them sleep with the men (the Angels). Well…we all know how that city turned out…
If you want a New Testament example, check out 1 Corinthians 6:9.
Homosexuality is wrong. Period. If someone feels that they were born homosexual, that doesn’t prove its ‘OK because you were born that way,’ it proves that we are all born sinful in one way or another.
In summary, Lady Gaga does a villainously good job at mixing truth in with her batch of lies. One of the reasons her story is so believable is because it is logical. The problem lies in her worldview. Unfortunately, she is using her God given ability to make good sounding music (assuming she makes her own music) to blaspheme (to speak evilly of) God and the Bible.
Are her tunes catchy? Yes. Would I listen to her music? NO. As a Christian, I cannot think of even a remotely good reason for me to listen to her. The only thing that would be accomplished by me listening to this song would be the degradation of my ability to be a strong witness for Christ. I prefer to follow Christ and listen to what He thinks is true, not what Lady Gaga thinks is true.
What do you think? Should you listen to this song? Are you a follower of Lady Gaga?
~Teegan
Here are the full lyrics again:
Born This Way – Lady Gaga
Lyrics:
Intro:
It doesn’t matter if you love him or capital H-I-M
Just put your paws up
‘Cause you were born this way, baby
Verse 1:
My mama told me when I was young
We are all born superstars
She rolled my hair and put my lipstick on
In the glass of her boudoir
There’s nothin’ wrong with lovin’ who you are
She said, ’cause He made you perfect, babe
So hold your head up, girl and you you’ll go far
Listen to me when I say
Chorus:
I’m beautiful in my way
‘Cause God makes no mistakes
I’m on the right track, baby
I was born this way
Don’t hide yourself in regret
Just love yourself and you’re set
I’m on the right track, baby
I was born this way, born this way
Post-Chorus:
Ooh, there ain’t no other way, baby, I was born this way
Baby, I was born this way
Ooh, there ain’t no other way, baby, I was born this way
I’m on the right track, baby, I was born this way
Don’t be a drag, just be a queen
Don’t be a drag, just be a queen
Don’t be a drag, just be a queen
Don’t be
Verse 2:
Give yourself prudence and love your friends
Subway kid, rejoice of truth
In the religion of the insecure
I must be myself, respect my youth
A different lover is not a sin
Believe capital H-I-M
I love my life, I love this record and
Mi amore vole fe yah (love needs faith)
Chorus + Post-Chorus
Bridge:
Don’t be drag, just be a queen
Whether you’re broke or evergreen
You’re black, white, beige, chola descent
You’re Lebanese, you’re orient
Whether life’s disabilities
Left you outcast, bullied or teased
Rejoice and love yourself today
‘Cause baby, you were born this way
No matter gay, straight or bi
Lesbian, transgendered life
I’m on the right track, baby
I was born to survive
No matter black, white or beige
Chola or orient made
I’m on the right track, baby
I was born to be brave
Chorus + Post-Chorus
I was born this way, hey
I was born this way, hey
I’m on the right track, baby, I was born this way, hey
I was born this way, hey
I was born this way, hey
I’m on the right track, baby, I was born this way, hey
The Meaning of Music 