Gwen Stefani. Once raining queen of grunge rock with her band
No Doubt, now an over fashioned, self conscious solo-artist. Well, not really solo, more like a leader of an entourage that she says to be a "spec of her imagination". Are you serious Gwen? You have millions of fans saying "Whoa, I wonder what it's like to be in Gwen Stefani's cool group! I mean, you get to hang out with her like every second of the day and like wow, oh my goodnessss!" Well million's of Gwen's fans, let me fill you in a little something something. Apparently, to be in Gwen's "cool group", you have to be straight out of
Tokyo Japan, and you
must have a unique style (a style that can strongly relate to the style brought fourth in the
Tokyo district of Harajuku). Oh, and don't forget that you are never allowed to speak, and you must
ALWAYS stand in a specific order. And I almost forgot, you're also not a real person. If you can follow these simple steps, then you might have a chance to be in Gwen's Stefani's entourage! But, unfortunately, you might have to compete with the four reigning adoptions of Gwen, whose names have followed her since the day she decided to go solo, those names are Love, Angel, Music and Baby.
Ever since her 2004 solo release "Love, Angel, Music, Baby" (ironic?), Everybody has been wondering who those four Asian women with a fashion style that looks like it was picked out by a five year old were. They appear frequently with Gwen in music videos, photo shoots, as well as red carpet events. They even have their own dolls. The fantastic foursome, known simply as the Harajuku (a district in Japan known for having a very unique style) Girls, were originally hired as Gwen's backup dancers but quickly became a serious factor in Gwen's social success. Now, most westerners most likely have never been to Tokyo, Japan, or in that case any part of Asia, and probably never will, so chances are they are going to accept the fact that the way the Harajuku Girls dress, act, and whatever else they appeal too, are probably the way that all other Asians dress, act, and appeal too. That's understandable for most westerners, only knowing Asia as Kung-Fu, and school girl outfits. Maybe if a certain someone wasn't using certain somebody’s for their own self gain and personal accomplishments, then we would get to see the very fun and fascinating culture of the true Harajuku district of Tokyo, Japan.
Another huge part of the Gwen/Harajuku franchise are those plastic molds known as toys. Alright, these have to be the most ridiculous and stereotyped dolls I have ever seen in my life. First of all, Asian’s do not look like the average Caucasian Barbie doll. Second of all, not all Asians look the EXACT same, unless they are twins of course. And third of all, Asian’s have their own distinct facial features, not those of the common westerner. All of these toys don’t look like Asians straight out of Harajuku Tokyo, Japan. They look like four white twin girls walking down the sidewalk on Halloween in Alabama. The only differences between these dolls are their outfits, which they have obviously made to suit the needs of certain individuals of certain age groups. Everybody has their own preferences.
Gwen Stefani still reins one of the high end queens of our era, but based on what? False descriptions of four girls that want to be exploited for some white westerner’s personal gain? In my eyes as well as others, that’s how it seems to be looking, but what about them? How do Love, Angel, Music, and Baby feel about being Gwen’s puppets?
Hyphen Magazine. Gwen/Harajuku. 15 Jan. 2008. . http://www.hyphenmagazine.com/blog/archives/gwen.jpg
