I recently heard this song while shopping in Lane Bryant. (Yes, I’m a fellow Big Girl, at least by our society’s standards).
Here are the lyrics:
Big girl you are beautiful
Walks in to the room
Feels like a big balloon
I said, ‘Hey girls you are beautiful’
Diet coke and a pizza please
Diet coke I’m on my knees
Screaming ‘Big girl you are beautiful’
You take your skinny girls
Feel like I’m gonna die
Cos a real woman
Needs a real man is why
You take your girl
And multiply her by four
Now a whole lotta woman
Needs a whole lot more
Get yourself to the Butterfly Lounge
Find yourself a big lady
Big boy come on around
And they’ll be calling you baby
No need to fantasise
Since I was in my braces
A watering hole
With the girls around
And curves in all the right places
Big girls you are beautiful
Big girls you are beautiful
Big girls you are beautiful
Big girls you are beautiful
I am not quite sure why, but this song both amused and offended me at the same time. Here’s why:
I was not always a “big girl.” I got this way suddenly when I was around 18 years old and found out I have PCOS (Poly-Cystic Ovarian Syndrome). I am a very healthy eater, try to be conscious of what I put into my body, and I exercise on a regular basis, but I cannot lose the weight….
This song stereo-types bigger girls as bad eaters. “Diet coke and a pizza, please”. That line always bothered me. I noticed that in several songs, as is the case with most discussing women, bigger girls are also stereotyped. It sends the message that we are all fat, lazy over-eaters who have no desire to lose weight and take pride in ourselves.
Lane Bryant is my store of choice because they make trendy clothes in my size as opposed to other stores where the only thing they have for a plus-sized girl is a mu-mu or a pair of jeans with an elastic waist! I was thinking about this the other day, and to make me feel better, my husband showed me the following video:
This video absolutely cracked me up and made me feel like SOMEONE understands where I’m coming from! It talks about being a size 14 or larger and unable to buy anything in most stores. It talks about how we shouldn’t be streotyped about our weight, but at the same time, we often stereotype ourselves. It just seemed extremely relevant to my recent Lane Bryant shopping experience.
The song is interesting. I can’t figure out if it’s sincere (because there are men who prefer heavier women, even when they themselves are super thin like that singer), or if it’s like “I Like Big Butts” or Spinal Tap’s “Big Bottomed Girls.” Obviously Lane Bryant’s programmer decided the first thing, or that shoppers would have a sense of humor (I wouldn’t assume that of any large group).
The other video is interesting too. I like what she is wearing in it–it’s flattering for her. So frequently I see larger women in clothes that are too tight. Does Lane Bryant advertise much on TV? I’ve never seen such an ad, but she’d be a good spokesperson (for a while I assumed that was what that was, and it would be good viral marketing for them). What magazines do they advertise in?
Even for those of us who aren’t quite there yet, shopping is tough. If I were to buy pants that fit my waist at Banana republic, I’d have to be 8 feet tall. At 5’4″, and size 10 petite or suddenly these days 12, I’m fortunate to just fit the short or petite lengths at Ann Taylor and J. Crew. Otherwise I’d have to deal with a lot of tailoring which is expensive in addition to these more expensive clothes (because most makers do not sell such lengths in the regional stores).
I definitely understand why everyone does not look perfect all the time, yet shows like What Not to Wear make it all look so easy.
Even if the song was meant to be sincere, the diet coke and pizza line it still implies food is what an overweight girl is thinking about. She has no other interests and there is nothing else to her but food.
She would be a great spokesperson for them. I love her point about not supporting stores that don’t make clothes her size. Her theory on not being afraid to saying your weight and size is interesting. It is funny how this is something we are so ashamed of, when I am sure we all have things far more embarrassing we don’t keep nearly as secretive. I recently confessed to my best friend that before I lost weight, I weighed 180 pounds. It took loosing 30 pounds to make me feel comfortable saying what I was.
At the same time, I do feel overall better about myself having lost weight. Now I can run 5 miles without stopping and rarely need to ask for help lifting heavy boxes. Getting in shape was in many ways empowering and I realized I felt overall better about myself. So I really think being in shape is important.
One of my favorite shows is The Biggest Loser. The point is to help people realize there true potential. Some people never get “thin” because it is their genetics, but once they start a healthy lifestyle they feel better and give them a sense of accomplishment.
The girl in the video talks about how dieting has a low success rate, but the truth is, its not about dieting. Its about making life style decisions. Part of what The Biggest Loser teaches is that it is OK to have cake now and then.
Sorry, I am rambling. As someone who has lost a lot of weight recently. My point is, I agree that you shouldn’t lose weight because advertisers and clothes manufacturers tell you to. You should want to be healthy for yourself, whether that makes you a size 6 or 16.
I’m pretty sure I heard this song in a show I was watching this past week, but I cannot for the life of me remember which one!
I’m a size 12/14 so I kind of straddle that line between “normal” and “plus” sized when I go clothes shopping. It’s a struggle to be happy with my size and not constantly want to be thinner, because that’s constantly what I see as normal and desirable in the media. But I’m always happy to see someone in the media celebrating women who are not models, like the video you posted. No, the diet coke and pizza line isn’t ideal, but it’s still nice to hear that chorus, especially when you’re shopping!
I cannot get over this song! I had not heard it before your post. I do not like the stereotypes that go along with people who may be over weight. What should be recognized is that there are medical conditions which inhibit people from being thin and there is nothing they can really do about it. Not everyone who is overweight eats 12 twinkies a day, although i do enjoy an occasional twinkie or two myself. I do believe that men do in fact enjoy a girl with a little meat on her bones. Shopping is difficult no matter what in my opinion. I’m an average size 4-6 and i still cant find anything that fits! Everything is made for people with a tiny waist that are 5’6. I am 5’2 and have a …well let’s say not a small butt!
I loved this video! I’m a big girl myself. Number one- that girl is gorgeous and numbr two- everything she says is so right on the money! It makes me think of when I was in high school. I’ve never been a fan of any of those Hostess products (Twinkies, Cupcakes, etc). When it was brought to the attention of some of my male classmates that I had never had a Twinkie the looks on their faces were priceless! Why is it assumed that big girls sit around eating Twinkies and foods alike? Life is about being happy. However, I do believe health is a very important issue. But if you’re a big girl, and you’re considered healthy, embrace it and live life to the fullest.
Like you… I find the lyrics to that song completely offensive. I have always been relatively thin and while I have put on some weight since I entered by 20s, I am still on the smaller side. However, I grew up in a home with two overweight parents and an overweight older sister and just like my thinness is genetic so is their heaviness.
I have always been extremely protective of my family and this song makes me really upset. Like you all pointed it, the lyrics are completely stereotyping overweight women.
I am sure it was probably meant to be sincere as no smart retailer would play something to offend their customers. (Especially in today’s economy.) However, like Dr. Conaway, they failed in that they should never assume that a large number of shoppers will all have the same type of humor and confidence needed to laugh at that song.