I love Ariana Grande more than the average human, so you can imagine my excitement when she dropped her most iconic record to date, “Thank u, next.”
When I sat down to listen to the song for the first time, 30 seconds in I stopped and paused it. It was amazing, that’s undeniable, but something struck me the wrong way. If Taylor Swift recorded and released “Thank u, next” the reaction from the public and critics would have been entirely different.
Swift and Grande, both strong outspoken women, receive differing reactions from the public when they use their platforms to tell the stories of their relationships.
This got me to thinking, why are certain women held to different standards others? Even in 2018, arguably the year of women, the stigmas still remain.
It is baffling how we can praise Grande for speaking her truth and turn around and slut-shame Swift for expressing hers. There is no difference in what each does. Both tell the stories of the inner workings of their relationships, maybe in different ways or styles, but the general concept is rooted the same.
Since the release of “Thank u, next” Twitter has blown up praising Grande for her bravery for releasing the song. The song has also generated a popular meme that borrows the lyrics from the song “One taught me love. One taught me patience. One taught me pain.”
While praising Grande for this song is understandable, as it took great courage to release it, we cannot shame other female artists like Swift when they release songs that are just as honest or personal.
It is important to understand that all women are equal and therefore should be treated and held to the same standards.
There is a serious disconnect between the way women treat one another. As a gender, we should actively lift each other up instead of tearing each other down.
It is sad that we cannot allow two women to do the same thing in their own unique way and praise them both. Why must we pick one to praise and one to tear down?
For the sake of womanity, Grande and Swift I hope one day we can realize women need to be there for one another and we are all powerful in our own special ways.