babble » blogs » Strollerderby
Strollerderby
9-Year-Old Figure Skates to “Whip My Hair”
Just when you thought the hubbub surrounding Willow Smith’s breakout hit “Whip My Hair” had died down, it’s back. First there was Smith’s colorful original video. Then came the amazing mashup of the Sesame puppet who sang “I Love My Hair” performing Smith’s single:
Now, a YouTube video has surfaced of 9-year-old figure skater named Starr Andrews whipping her hair… on ice. The routine itself is great, but what’s the message here?
The problem I have with Smith’s song (aside from its incessantly repetitive nature) is that the one thing I think we should teach our daughters NOT to do with their hair is whip it. I have never understood the women in this country who love to toss, bounce, flick, stroke and run their fingers through their hair in an effort to attract male attention. A woman’s hair is her crowning glory, blah blah blah – I mean, I get it. But I’ve always felt women who play with their hair non-stop look distracted, nervous and quite often really dumb. Maybe it’s because I had short hair as a kid, which provides an entirely different set of issues for a young girl to deal with, but I just don’t understand where the will to whip comes from. Tousling your hair after taking it out of a bun is sexy; flipping your head back and forth like a metronome keeping time in a conversation looks insane.
Go Back To Strollerderby
0 Comments
Meagan commented on Dec 28 10 at 2:28 pmSorry… what message? This is just a stupid nonsense song like most teeny-bopper music. You certainly don’t have to like it (I know very few adults who DO like teeny-bopper music) but your dislike of the “message” seems pretty far fetched to me.
Sara commented on Dec 28 10 at 3:15 pmThe idea of looking for a “message” in this song is certainly a stretch. If anything it’s just encouraging young women to be themselves and even THAT is a stretch. Were you really hurting for material to write an article about this week?
ALittleShort commented on Dec 28 10 at 5:35 pmThe song is awful, but I love Starr’s skates! I want a pair of those :) and she is pretty good for a 9 year old. She has talent :)
Dana commented on Dec 29 10 at 1:21 pm“Whipping” your hair is supposed to be like “brushing your shoulders off” if you listen to the song. As in – don’t worry about what others think of you, just do your own thing. A great message for young girls in comparison to other songs out there!
Manjari commented on Dec 29 10 at 2:30 pmThe song is certainly repetitive, and it’s not really aimed at adults. Aside from that, I don’t know what you’re talking about. Have you ever seen the video or heard the lyrics? There is nothing whatsoever about attracting male attention. It’s a dance move. For kids. It’s like you’re just randomly making up nonsense and posting it.
Add your take:
Note: Babble is a supportive, diverse community. We encourage a range of opinions,
but any unduly hostile comments will be removed.
Comments are delayed up to 15 minutes
Lori Garcia 
Joslyn Gray 
Amber Doty 
Julianna Miner 
Monica Bielanko 
Sierra Black 
Meredith Carroll 
Carolyn Castiglia 
Sunny Chanel 
Madeline Holler 
Rebecca Odes 
Danielle Smith 
Danielle Sullivan 
Katherine Stone 
The Walt Disney Company supports Babble as a platform dedicated to honest, engaged, informed, intelligent and open conversation about parenting. However, the opinions expressed on this site are those of individual parents/writers and do not reflect the views of Disney. In addition, content provided on this site is for entertainment or informational purposes only and should not be construed as medical advice, diagnosis, treatment, or safety advice.
0