An Ode to Marina and the Diamonds

By Claire, Devonne and Rayna

Before we begin our ode to Marina and the Diamonds, we first want to have a small ode to our feminist friend Rayna. Rayna is funny, smart, opinionated and she is co-writing this post as a guest-blogger! Welcome Rayna!

So who exactly is Marina and the Diamonds and why is she so awesome? Well, she’s Welsh, she’s a pop artist, she’s awesome, she’s got a beautiful voice, she’s a talented song-writer, she’s awesome, she’s super stylish…have we mentioned she’s awesome?  Have you noticed that we’re saying “she” and not “they? If you thought this was a band, don’t worry about it. Many a poorly informed music reviewer has made this mistake, much to our dismay. “She” is a solo artist and her full name is Marina Diamandis. “The Diamonds” refers to her fans (which mean we’re Diamonds.Obviously). We’ve been following her career since her first album, The Family Jewels, debuted in 2010. Now, two years later, she’s released a new album, Electra Heart. Which we absolutely adore.

Musically, Marina has been compared to many artists, including Katy Perry and Lana Del Ray. While Marina’s music can match other popular artists in being fun and catchy, her lyrics are intellectual and witty in a way that is hard to rival. The subject matter of her songs ranges from the American Dream, to love, ambition, and our personal favourite topic  - feminism. It’s a little deeper than “We danced on table tops and we took too many shots”. And it’s not just that her lyrics can be interpreted as feminist. Marina actually says she’s a feminist, a very rare statement for anyone in today’s pop culture. In an interview with UK magazine Company, when asked if she sees herself as a feminist Marina responds with “Yes...everybody thinks it’s about hairy legged women who hate men. But it’s not”. Contrast that with Ellie Goulding’s response in the exact same magazine where she states “No...I don’t give a shit if an artist is male or female, as long as the music is great. But I don’t think that’s being a feminist, I think that’s about equality” (Ellie please be directed to blog post one where we define feminism). Feminism has such a negative connotation that most people state they’re not a feminist as quickly as possible. For Marina to openly say she’s a feminist and actually understand the meaning of the word, is a breath of fresh air.

One of our favourite songs from Marina’s new album is “Sex, Yeah”. It sounds like it would be a vapid and shallow song, but it’s actually a comment on raunch culture and the gender stereotypes prevalent in Western society. Her lyrics lament that “nothing is provocative anymore, even for kids,” while telling us to “question what the TV tells [us]...question good and question bad”. While we are often taught to be critical thinkers, this message doesn’t usually come from pop songs. The chorus questions gender roles, wishing that “history could set you free from who you were supposed to be” and that “sex in our society didn’t tell a girl who she would be” . We could continue analyzing every line in this song but it’s probably best if you just listen to it yourself.

Seriously. Go to youtube. Now. Also while you are there take a couple minutes to watch one of her satirical music videos. We recommend “Hollywood”,  “Oh No!”, and “Primadonna”.

We live in a society where pop stars are common role models for young girls. And while that may be an issue in itself, if you’re going to look up to a pop star, Marina, with her confidence, intelligence and outspoken feminism, is a pretty good choice.