#vma2013

"In my feelings more than Drake, so yeah"

— i forgot that you existed

VMA 2013 ( I'm so excited for performance on VMA)

We Can't Stop - Miley Cyrus (VMA 2013). 💛

Cultural Appropriation

The issue of cultural appropriation has prevalent in the modern pop society for a very long time. Going 10 years back to when Gwen Stefani debuted her first solo Album, Love. Angel. Music. Baby in 2004, she used 4 Japanese women as her backup dancers during her promotion performances. Referred to as the “Harajuku Girls,” the four women were dressed in school-girl uniforms and were named after her album title. Stefani was accused of treating the women as puppets and perpetuating racist stereotypes about Asian women and Asian culture.

On a more recent note, Miley Cyrus was also heavily criticized for her performance during the 2013 VMAs. Dubbed as the “a perfect illustration of just how the celebrity world appropriates black culture,” Cyrus twerked on stage and used black women and their physical body features as the literal background of her show.

Cultural Appropriation is an issue that is becoming more and more prevalent. When someone from a majority culture adopts a feature of a minority culture, they are praised for it and are complimented for it. However it is for the same feature that individuals from the minority culture are often stigmatized and discriminated against. Although the intentions might be harmless, the impact is anything but.