Tanisha Madhukar - Blog #9 - Little Mix - Glory Days
The word ‘Power’ brings to mind an old girl group I used to listen to when I was younger.
Little Mix was a British girl group who got famous from going on the renowned show, X-Factor. Once their career began to rise, the four girls continued to release music until 2020, when the group officially parted ways. One of their most hit singles was “Power” featuring Stormzy.
This song in particular is one of my favorites because of the urban atmosphere and upbeat musicality. But there is an overall redeeming quality this song specifically holds. Most of their music focuses on the experiences girls and women have throughout their life. “Power” particularly focuses on the social and cultural dynamics between men and women and who has power in a relationship.
For years women have been put down in relationships by their male significant partner due to social norms and unfair power hierarchies. This song is about taking back that strength and empowering young girls and women to stand up for themselves, even with people they are close with. In their lyrics “You’re the man. But I got the, I got the, I got the power” they are directly telling the audience that they are not a force to be reckoned with. They have power and they know that. When people think of power they think of who is in power rather than focusing on what power they hold within themselves.
Growing up I never felt like I didn’t have power or the capability to hold it, due to influences like Little Mix. Holding power is more than what title you hold, it is about how you present yourself and your impact on others. That is what determines how much power you hold in society.
So next time you feel small or little, just turn on Little Mix, and you’ll get right back up.
Hi Tanisha! When I saw your blog title I jumped out of my seat. I don’t think I can put into words how fundamental Little Mix was to my 10 year old self. My fun fact used to be that Leigh-Anne and I share the same birthday. I absolutely adored their song “Shout Out to My Ex,” although I had no business listening to that song as if I understood it. I just rewatched the music video for “Power” and the nostalgia hit me like a brick.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your take on what their message was to the audience with this song. Gender norms certainly instill unfair power imbalances, not just in relationships, but even our day-to-day lives. Though I had my insecurities growing up, I never felt like I had less of a voice or power. Perhaps Little Mix is to thank for that. The ending message you wrote is essential; people have as much power as they give to themself. Thank you for reviving my childhood favorites—I am adding them to my playlists right now.
Usually, when I’m reading a blog post that mentions a song (or really any external content), I’ll end up checking it out/listening to it as I write the comment. However, just as I was about to look at Little Mix’s work, I saw the lyrics and realized that I in fact knew who this group was. I’m admittedly not a very loyal listener and will jump around songs, but this particular song of theirs was definitely one that was in my brain back in 2017 (and jeez 2017 was nine years ago). On the topic of gender norms however, they’ve always been something that fascinated me especially in how they manifest in relationships. I’ve personally always felt myself to exist outside of those expectations and I’ve never been beholden to them either. Something that came to mind from how you noted that people often think of “who is in power” over the power “within themselves,” and it reminded me of that one quote “with great power comes great responsibility.” To have power is to take accountability, to own your actions and its consequences---which some may struggle to do, but on the more positive side, some people may just be daunted by that challenge. But your final message about taking responsibility for ourselves as beings in a larger society is super important. Little Mix is not really my cup of tea anymore, but I salute the group and the important message of their work.
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