Explicit lyrics vs. edits- What's your take?

[Dreamlink]

I was just looking at the Green Day post, and it started me on an ongoing rant that I have with explicit lyrics...

As a musician/songwriter myself, I think that artists who put out "edited versions" of explicit product show no integrity. If it was so important for them to put those lyrics in, why would they be willing to censor themselves?

I'll tell you why... To sell more product (especially to minors who can't buy parental advisory product) and to get airplay- which means to sell more product!

If the government said, "You can't cuss on your CD, so we're going to censor it", those same artists would be ready for lawsuits with the ACLU saying that they're losing their right to free speech. BUT... it's O.K. for us to censor ourselves, so we can sell more product and make more money!

I think that all these explicit artists that have edited versions are prostituting themselves and selling out by doing this and I won't support them by buying the "clean" version!

What do you think?

 

[Western Deity]

I think if people want to sell more products then good for them.

 

[savvy]

I personally don't like edited versions, because you know exactly what they're saying anyway, and it just sounds wrong. I also think that if the artist felt it was necessary to put them in in the first place, why do they release theses edited versions? Either the song is corrupted from its original intent or the words were superfluous in the first place. Very annoying.

 

[blackwasp]

Yeah, if you really believe that something should be there, why would you change it? To make more money of course. Whether this is good or bad is up to the consumer.

 

[Murmur]

I agree. It takes away from the original song to "clean it up" for the masses.

 

[Mr.Cheese]

I personally don't like edited versions, because you know exactly what they're saying anyway, and it just sounds wrong. I also think that if the artist felt it was necessary to put them in in the first place, why do they release theses edited versions? Either the song is corrupted from its original intent or the words were superfluous in the first place. Very annoying.

Interjection: Savvy, I love your signature quote.

 

[* kittie *]

when i was young...
if i liked something and it had explicit lyrics in it, i'd look for the edited version...
...simply cause i feared that my mom would freak if she heard all these words coming out of my room.

hmmm...so i guess if they want to sell more and so they edit it, whatever. that's their deal.
i think it's kinda good that they put out a edited version for people who wouldn't be able to buy it otherwise.

as for me now...it being edited sounds funny.
and yeah...you still know what's being said anyways.

 

[DMBfanLongliveStrongBad!]

I think if people want to sell more products then good for them.

i agree. i don't care about the bands intentions. i'm not into probably 80% of the music out there with a PA sticker anyway.

 

[JesusRox]

Well, if a band cusses and there are people who like them and want to hear it or their parents won't let them have a CD unless it's edited then edited versions are good. I personally wouldn't buy an edited version because it's still going to come to my head where the "bad words" are.

 

[Dreamlink]

Well, if a band cusses and there are people who like them and want to hear it or their parents won't let them have a CD unless it's edited then edited versions are good. I personally wouldn't buy an edited version because it's still going to come to my head where the "bad words" are.

O.K.- If edits are good because cause kids like them and it lets them get the CD, would it also be okay to have edited Playboy magazines?

The cussing would change to *@#&*&*! and the parts on the naked women would have little black boxes over them.

That way there would be both explicit versions for the adults and "edited" versions for the kiddies!

Just curious...

 

[DMBfanLongliveStrongBad!]

O.K.- If edits are good because cause kids like them and it lets them get the CD, would it also be okay to have edited Playboy magazines?

The cussing would change to *@#&*&*! and the parts on the naked women would have little black boxes over them.

That way there would be both explicit versions for the adults and "edited" versions for the kiddies!

Just curious...

it's not really the same.

some people listen to music for the music.


i don't think anyone subsribes to playboy for the articles.

 

[Dreamlink]

it's not really the same.

some people listen to music for the music.


i don't think anyone subsribes to playboy for the articles.

So you're saying that's it's OK to support bands who have explicit lyrics as long as the music is good?

 

[KristianJ]

The point's been raised already about knowing what the coarse language is. Most of the edited versions of songs I've heard (American Idiot being a good example) have pretty so-so editing in the "clean" version. You'll hear part of the word, and it's as if it had never been edited sometimes. I haven't come across any edited CDs in my purchasing, so I don't know whether the lyrics booklet would be edited accordingly. There is the argument over whether profanity in music is necessary, but I guess the thread topic isn't really devoted to that and we could argue about that till the cows came home.

 

[blackwasp]

So you're saying that's it's OK to support bands who have explicit lyrics as long as the music is good?

Sometimes "profanity" is used because it is appropriate to convey what needs to be said in the song. If you don't believe me, listen/read the lyrics to "For You" by Candlebox.

 

[Dreamlink]

The point's been raised already about knowing what the coarse language is. Most of the edited versions of songs I've heard (American Idiot being a good example) have pretty so-so editing in the "clean" version. You'll hear part of the word, and it's as if it had never been edited sometimes. I haven't come across any edited CDs in my purchasing, so I don't know whether the lyrics booklet would be edited accordingly. There is the argument over whether profanity in music is necessary, but I guess the thread topic isn't really devoted to that and we could argue about that till the cows came home.

Yes, I'm not arguing about if profanity is necessary- in America freedom of speech is alive and well.

My problem is with bands who sell-out, by wanting it both ways.

While I don't support profanity, I have much more respect for a band that would say, "We feel that profanity is an integral part of our lyrical message and we don't want it edited. If it means losing sales to minors or people who would be offended, we don't care. We're not going to compromise our lyrics".

So the purpose of this thread is to see who thinks it's OK to listen to, and support these kinds of bands.

 

[Qyöt27]

I'm kind of divided on it now. I would rather hear something unedited, and since I mostly listen to other sources than the radio or MTV, I'm accustomed to it now (and I'm old enough to buy the PA-stickered CDs, and I could care less about profanity content; I don't listen to music that's prone to large amounts of it in a single song anyway).

However, for those few songs that I do get accustomed to hearing from the radio or MTV and happen to contain edits, it can be 50/50 (I still think the uncut versions of "Rollin'" or "Mind Playin' Tricks" sound weird). Sometimes I appreciate it more unedited even if I was used to hearing it censored.

For me, it's more subjective than anything else.


Just saw the above post...

As for the whole "selling-out" thing, I hate the entire concept of people labelling artists as "sell-outs" in the first place. I don't support the labelling, so I don't think anyone is "selling-out" at all. They might be doing it to sell more records, sure, but after all, the music industry is a business (a filthy, underhanded one, but nevertheless), and what they do is their own concern. I don't think something like bleeping out a word or injecting a sound effect or even amending the lyrics to something completely different is degrading the integrity of the music, because the original version still exists. In my mind, the edited version is a seperate entity, and even if I hate the way it sounds ("Headstrong" comes to mind in this case), there's still the original.

I know that the songs I did mention are fairly pop-friendly, but those are the only ones that I've found that ever do get edited. I listen to music that doesn't need edits most of the time so I just pulled the first available examples I had.

 

[* kittie *]

oh well...that's how this country is run. make money...then do anything to double it. we're a capitalistic nation.

ya...there will be those few who would rather keep it like you said.
"We're not going to compromise our lyrics".
but the truth is, a lot of those bands are in it for the money.
but at the same time, you really can't blame them for wanting it that way. it may be shameful for honest songwriters...but that's just how it is. money drives most people.

anyways, i support whatever band that has music i like.

 

[JesusRox]

O.K.- If edits are good because cause kids like them and it lets them get the CD, would it also be okay to have edited Playboy magazines?

The cussing would change to *@#&*&*! and the parts on the naked women would have little black boxes over them.

That way there would be both explicit versions for the adults and "edited" versions for the kiddies!

Just curious...

I see them as completely different things. My mom never had a problem with me getting explicit marked CDs. Some peoples do and I think they should be able to have a way to still listen. Shoot, some adults may prefer edited. People don't have to listen to songs for what they say but because they like the sound.

 

[Dreamlink]

I see them as completely different things. My mom never had a problem with me getting explicit marked CDs. Some peoples do and I think they should be able to have a way to still listen. Shoot, some adults may prefer edited. People don't have to listen to songs for what they say but because they like the sound.

I don't get that...

If someone likes the sound of black metal bands that worship Satan in their lyrics, it's OK?

 

[JesusRox]

I don't get that...

If someone likes the sound of black metal bands that worship Satan in their lyrics, it's OK?

I don't know whether it's okay. I personally do listen to some "Satan" music. It doesn't influence me in a negative way so I've never seen a problem. I think it all depends on the person. Movies, music, TV shows...
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