I hate this song...it offends me, seriously. The phrase "future baby mama" bugs the shit out of me, Prince can and should know better.

What's funny about this thread is that my brother, who is a casual Prince fan, just told me yesterday that he made a CD for his girlfriend and ended it with this song. He was saying how it is such a tight slow jam. Adult R&B/Urban radio ate this song up here in Chicago, and rightfully so. It's a cut. I never understood why people around here dogged it.

I loved this song from the first moment I heard it. It's got it all - a sexy/romantic vibe, nice melody, seductive vocal delivery and a story. You've got a man who is in search of "the one." He can give her whatever she wants but it comes with a price so she needs to be able to deal with it without losing herself or the relationship. He thought he had her before but it was only a fantasy/illusion, i.e. Cinderella. So he's still looking, hoping with a childlike naivete for fantasy and reality to meld and produce his future baby mama. He's at a point in his life where he realizes that it's about more than looks and superficial trappings. He now knows that a relationship has to be built on a much stronger, deeper foundation. It's a mature ballad about the eternal dream of love. Sorry, but I fail to see what this has to do with Mayte. Prince and Mayte have moved forward in their own SEPARATE lives and from the sounds of it, some of you need to as well.

What's funny about this thread is that my brother, who is a casual Prince fan, just told me yesterday that he made a CD for his girlfriend and ended it with this song. He was saying how it is such a tight slow jam. Adult R&B/Urban radio ate this song up here in Chicago, and rightfully so. It's a cut. I never understood why people around here dogged it.

I loved this song from the first moment I heard it. It's got it all - a sexy/romantic vibe, nice melody, seductive vocal delivery and a story. You've got a man who is in search of "the one." He can give her whatever she wants but it comes with a price so she needs to be able to deal with it without losing herself or the relationship. He thought he had her before but it was only a fantasy/illusion, i.e. Cinderella. So he's still looking, hoping with a childlike naivete for fantasy and reality to meld and produce his future baby mama. He's at a point in his life where he realizes that it's about more than looks and superficial trappings. He now knows that a relationship has to be built on a much stronger, deeper foundation. It's a mature ballad about the eternal dream of love. Sorry, but I fail to see what this has to do with Mayte. Prince and Mayte have moved forward in their own SEPARATE lives and from the sounds of it, some of you need to as well.

DevotedPuppy said:

Really???? I am sure he is referring to his future wife....he isn't the type of brotha that has kids with differnt women....

Personally I find the term "baby mama" fairly degrading & disrespectful to woman in that:

1. It objectifies woman as only good for "breeding" or sex with an 'oops she got knocked up' result.

2. Being a "baby mama" implies that there is no intent from the male to get married or even necessarily support the woman or child (which leads me back to #1). This point could also be discussed in relation to the larger problem (especially within the African-American community where this term is often used), of men having babies with several different women (or several babies with one woman) and not supporting them--whether that be financial, emotional, taking care of the kids, etc. The women are simply the "baby mama," nothing more. (This could also lead into a discussion of why/if women feel the need for an 'emotional' attachment more than men but that's an entirely different forum.)

3. I think it's a little like when he had Tony M. rapping all over D&P: instead of creating his own catch phrase (which we all know he is capable of), he is borrowing from the mainstream vernacular and it just sounds desperate.

4. Finally, I'm disappointed that Prince resorted to using a term with these connotations--even if he's trying to spin it that the women in the song aren't even good enough to be his baby mama. (Being someone's "baby mama" really isn't something I'd want to aspire to--see points #1 & 2.)

What happened to:
Hooker, bitch and ho, I don't think so
I only knew one and never told her though
I thought about it many times (Diss me?)
....
A woman every day should be thanked
Not disrespected, not raped or spanked?

5. Post script: Even though this isn't directly about the term "baby mama" I also dislike the part of the chorus that talks about bending instead of breaking to keep a man. You cannot "keep" (possess) a person, they have free will; and while I know it's meant to imply that bending actually takes more strength I feel it insinuates that "future baby mamas" might want to compromise (e.g. "bend") their values to get/keep a man in the hopes of being his baby mama. (See again points #1 & 2.)

I'm sure I'll get told that I'm reading waaayyy too much into it, over-analyzing, etc. but those are the reasons (as a woman, a feminist, and a Prince fan) why I think it's an awful phrase. (Disclaimer, I'm also trained as an art historian so I automatically like to look for hidden meanings in everything, even if it seems innocuous on the surface. Occupational hazard.

Doesn't matter. I find that phrase offensive because of its history and connotations. Actually I have issue with most of the lyrics. He *tried* to put a more positive spin on the term, but I think it still fails. Here is something I originally posted on HQ, and on previous thread here, explaining why I dislike the song/lyrics:





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I bet the stories of all the hearts he has broken over the years has finally gotten to him because he is trying to convience her that they are not true.I guess in a way that is another one of his controdictions, because if he didn't care what others thought then why bring upb to her the rumors are not true.The comment about being to sucure to fuss of fight, probally mean do what he says.so he has no reason not to trust you.He likes to be bragged of, his events in the bedroom for example, in some ways I think he is proud to be a player.

jodi081630 said:

What the hell does that have to do with any of the points I posted?


:::slowly backs out of Music and More:::

DevotedPuppy said:

you are exactly one of thaose that I was talking about you always have to put other s down and be mean. anyway I guess I may have miss something but I though we were talking about what we interpited from they lyrics. I am thinking about starting a thread for the ogers that like jumping others.and being cruel.Gee a few of some people could keep that thread going for weeks.This is exactly why I stayed off the site for awhile.

Rakel said:

Okay, I'm guessing but 'Bend in the wind' might mean that Prince wants someone to be there for him. Regardless of what it looks like on the surface or to the public, he might actually want a different 'someone.' But since WE demand that he is into the youngest and someone pretty, someone who really loves him has to understand and 'bend with the wind.' He might want us to realize that it's society and the media that want him there. Prince might not want to be 'there' along with the insecurities and false values of a young pretty one, but it is his celebrity, fame and fans that demand it. Can anyone imagine our Prince wanting just to be loved without all the fan fare and expectations?
So to me anyway, 'bend with the wind' means let Prince give em what they want (or what they think they want) and be content to sit in the background finding ways to make him smile.

PurpleKnight said:

IAGREE.Princeshould stickto writingsongs aboutfucking and lusting.thelove songssound cheapexceptin hisheydey likeAdorethe classic ofalltime.

Doesn't matter. I find that phrase offensive because of its history and connotations. Actually I have issue with most of the lyrics. He *tried* to put a more positive spin on the term, but I think it still fails. Here is something I originally posted on HQ, and on previous thread here, explaining why I dislike the song/lyrics:





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