Shame Channel 10 and shame Fremantle Media.
Possibly the only TV show I make time to watch with my children is So You Think You Can Dance. We all love music, and watching these incredible dancers perform is often breathtaking. This year the dancers have included a group of particularly interesting young women: my current favourites are Ivy (who said she left the world of ballet and became a jazz dancer as she loved food too much to ever starve herself), Renee (who was honest about the prejudice she has faced as a dancer as she is not considered a conventional beauty) and spunky young schoolgirl Izzy.
But last night the PG-rated show turned its back on its strong family following by featuring guest artist Ke$ha singing “Blah, Blah, Blah”. The lyrics included:
Don’t be a bitch with your chit chat
Just show me where you dick’s at….
I wanna dance with no pants on…
I wanna be naked and you’re wasted.
The choreography featured her rolling about on the floor in a mock-orgy scene she described later in an interview they heavily promoted on the SYTYCD website as “raw”.
In the “controversial” interview with the star she appears drugged (her eyes roll, she is often only semi-coherent and she needs to wipe her nose at points). She raves in a deluded fashion about how she is possibly the reincarnation of John F Kennedy (or Franz Ferdinand, or perhaps John Lennon) and on how she wears her own placenta around her neck to help her gain “second sight”.
video.htm?channel=Coming+Soon&clipid=2305_sytycda3-keishaFull&bitrate=300&format=flash
Yes, I could — and did — turn the show off when she performed. (I have since watched it online without my children present in order to critique it here.) But surely it is reasonable to expect shows that pitch for the family vote (in the same episode, judge Jason Coleman asked viewers to join together as a “family” and vote for their favourite dancer) to do better?
Big Fat Boo to you Channel 10 and Fremantle.
Let’s all tell them (as I have) that this is not responsible broadcasting by contacting them via these addresses (click on the hyperlinks below):
I note too that on the SYTYCD fan page on Facebook every comment suggested Ke$ha was a bad choice. I hope they listen to their fan base, clean up their act, and get on with the inspiring performers.