At what age would you let them listen to this?

[Gymbob]

DD2 has been into town with her friend (she is almost 12) and bought a CD (am i allowed to type the artist and title?). It's only recently she's been given a bit more rope, but I am already so disappointed. Please tell me your thoughts.

The front of the CD cover says 'PARENTAL ADVISORY EXPLICIT CONTENT' (PAEC). It wasn't until she asked to print out the lyrics and I asked to have a look that it all blew up. The tantrum from hell followed, with me the devil etc, spoiling her fun. The lyrics to one particular song had the C word and F word and everything else in abundance - with lines about tying someone up to the bedpost. I was horrified. I have confiscated the CD until I have educated myself on what is appropriate for a (still) 11 year old.

Incidentally, when I Googled it, there is no law in this country that prohibits the sale of PAEC to minors. Disgusting I think.

Anyhow, at what age do you deem it appropriate to let your kids listen to this kind of 'music'? Have I overreacted? She has already learned the words in the playground anyway.

Many thanks in advance

[KirstyAllsorts]

What cd was it?

[slartybartfast]

i was sure they had to be 16 to buy parental advisory cd's? or has that changed, does nobody care anymore.

[slartybartfast]

you shoudl complain to the shop

[Gymbob]

It was Nicki Minaj, Pink Friday. I think the track might be called Roman's Revenge.

[Gymbob]

slartybartfast - I had guns blazing until I found out that the shop haven't broken the law. That doesn't mean that I am not disgusted, and perhaps I will call in and express my views.

[slartybartfast]

really?
if it is parental advisory, you weren't there, as her parent, so what is the point of a parental advisory notice if they disregard it.

[Gymbob]

Exactly slarty...this is from Wikipedia...

Some retailers (such as Wal-Mart) refuse to sell albums containing the label, and many others limit the sale of such albums to adults only, although most stores have settled on an age limit of 17 in order to buy an album containing the label. In some countries, however, such as the United Kingdom and Australia, albums displaying the sticker are available for purchase by persons of any age. While the label is mostly prevalent on rap and rock albums, it can appear on any genre of CD which the RIAA believes warrants the need for one

[slartybartfast]

interesting.

i think you were right though.
i am sure we have confiscated cd's in the past.

[madhattershouse]

I was reading this tutting that she should be allowed to buy it when I remembered that several albums I bought as a pre-teen also carried this label (many moons ago) I think the first was a heavy metal album I bought at 11...

[AmberLeaf]

Nicky Minaj is awful...she is also starting to remind me of Lola Ferrari of eurotrash fame.

[madhattershouse]

I meant that I was tutting that the shop had sold it to her not that she shoud be allowed it, just to clarify. First post was not clear

[Gymbob]

Does anyone let theirs listen to Nicki Minaj? If so what age are they please.....

[jshibbyr]

i'd tell her she has really bad taste in music, i'd never heard of it just youtubed it, it's a really bad song, i think you should let her listen to it, but make it clear if she repeats the words she would not be allowed to listen to that kinda music till she's like 16/be able to trust her again. also say she can't listen to it on speaker like if you feel awkward with those words

[Gymbob]

Golly, jshibbyr - you think I should let her listen to it - I'm going to You Tube it now. I didnt actually listen to the track - I only read the lyrics. You saying that makes me wonder if I am being OTT.

It's not that I feel awkward about the lyrics, I just thought that they were too explicit for an 11 year old.

[Gymbob]

Just You Tube'd it myself - thought the whole thing was awful, worse than just reading the lyrics from a piece of A4.

Here's the link if you can stomach it, surely there must be some law that says that this kind of material shouldn't be viewed by children under a certain age....

[ravenAK]

Two separate issues.

If you stopped dc under a certain age from buying PAEC- labelled CDs, OK - although from my rock/goth/alternative buying habits, that'd be just about all of them.

But then you have lyrics + track on youtube. How do you censor that?

[Gymbob]

I see your point raven, but she knows that all her movements on-line are monitored and if I saw that she was accessing stuff like this she would be in trouble.

She maintains that she didn't realise that the CD was so explicit - fair enough - but i have still confiscated it.

[ravenAK]

& you are within your rights to do so - that's what 'parental advisory' means.

So maybe a house rule that she doesn't buy stickered CDs.

A lot of artistes do a bowdlerised version with the rude words fuzzed out. I worked in a CD chain 12 years ago (doing teacher training & it was a useful Saturday job). We had PAEC & 'radio-friendly' versions of Eminem, who was the shock artiste of the day, & if an adult was buying the PAEC version, we had a policy to say: 'Are you buying it as a gift for a minor? If so, there's a less explicit version...'

It doesn't work like certificates on films, & nor should it IMO.

I'd let my pre-teen have that CD rather than censor it, but the stickers are serving their purpose if they make you look at the content & make a parenting decision accordingly.

[acsec]

Just googled her and the lyrics - How long is the song?! I have no idea what it's supposed to be about but with language like that then I think YANBU to not want her to listen to it!

[lovinme]

I love Nicki Minaj I think she's fab but I would not let my kids listen to most of her songs because she's to rude and she swears alot

[plonker]

I've just followed that link.

That is one seriously shit bit of music.

No, I would not like my 11yo listening to it. Unfortunately she loves Super Bass so I fear it won't be too long before she wants to listen to the rest of the shite stuff.

She won't be encouraged ...

[custardismyhamster]

I like superbass but that romans revenge one is total trash-I usually love eminiem but his part of it is also trash! Good god

[nailak]

it has eminem in it...

[wannaBe]

Listening to a radio friendly version of eminem must be like listening to the test card with base backing.

\link{\it's shit}

Op I think it's difficult tbh. I'd like to ban that music purely on the basis that it's so awful but in truth if they don't listen to it at home they can listen to it at friends' houses etc - banning her from having it isn't actually going to prevent her from being exposed to it. Music isn't like drugs or sex - it's mainstream and legal

I would be inclined to focus on the language and say to her something along the lines of "just listen to the lyrics. You know they're offensive and you know you wouldn't be allowed to use language like that in this house, so equally that kind of music shouldn't be being played here either."

[celticlassie]

That's horrible. But maybe a good opportunity to have a chat about how misogynistic the lyrics are. Perhaps ask her how she feels that this woman is describing other women as being 'ho's and c**ts.

I had the radio on in class one day for my class and a 12 year old girl commented that she didn't like the Rihanna song S&M because it was misogynistic.