The History of Man-Hating Songs

" To the Left. To the Left." Does that sound familiar? These are the words to a popular Beyonce song that's all about telling a man to pack up his stuff and move on to the left. Who knows the effect this and other man-hating songs are having on our population. But the truth is Beyonce didn't start it all. There is a history to man-hating songs and it goes like this.

It all started with a song titled, "I Will Survive" by Gloria Gaynor. Meant to be empowering to women who were treated badly by their husbands and boyfriends, the lyrics to "I Will Survive" had an unexpected effect on the women of that and the coming era.

It's true, the words, "I will survive" are empowering." They let us tell ourselves that in spite of the odds; we women can get back up out of the ashes and start all over. However, words like, "You're not welcome anymore. I should have changed that stupid lock. I should have made you give the key... If I had known for just one second, you'd be back to bother me..." sparked a fire in girls that said, "Ok hustler. Get up and out." And as the years went by, we have replaced the word "hustler" with things like the N-word or hood rat or maybe even cracker.

The consequence: If a man does any little thing wrong, the first thought on a woman's mind is "You're not welcome anymore."

But moving on, the next historic, chart-topping, man-hating song was "No Scrubs" by TLC. Beyonce's song "To the Left" came out years after this milestone song. "No Scrubs" talked about men riding on the passenger side of a car trying to holler. In retaliation, Sporty Thieves came out with a song called "No Pigeons" that talked about a girl "whose feet hurt cuz she know she need a ride, but she frontin' like she can't say hi."

Then, the fight was on. The music industry birthed an uppity feeling towards men and women.
"If he doesn't have this or that, forget about it."
"If you can't cook, sorry sweetheart."
And those are just some of the thoughts that go through the minds of the sexes.

Then, Beyonce sealed the deal when she started talking about money with "Bills, Bills, Bills," She asked a few key questions to all males looking to get a date. Those questions were, "Can you pay the bills? Can you pay the telephone bill? Can you pay the automobile?" If the man couldn't do all those things, he was nothing but a "trifling, good for nothing type of brother." Beyonce made it plain when she came out with Bills Bills Bills.

And to bring it all full circle, the man-hating song that is presently topping the charts is Beyonce's "To the Left." It goes, "Put your stuff in a box, and to the left. Replacing you is so easy. To the Left" Now this song is about a man who was cheating, so Beyonce music fans all over may be thinking her words are justified. But, who is going to be the more mature one in a relationship? In a marriage, all kinds of negative things may happen. You can't just say, "To the Left." But, hey it's topping the charts. Who knows what man-hating song will come out next.