The other night, my friends and I were having a worship jam session. And, as with most jam sessions we have, by the end, most people had left, and we stopped singing worship songs and started doing random songs that came into our minds. And, for the second week in a row, we sang One Direction's What Makes You Beautiful. At the end, I gave my usual "this song is good, but it's also so stupid and ridiculous" speech. To which my friends rolled their eyes and said, "You say this every time. Just get over it." But, here's the thing--I can't get over it. And here's why.
I do love the song. It has a great beat and a catchy tune. And, the lyrics are not too terrible. But, when I listen to them intently and intensely, I hear things that I don't want girls to be hearing. Maybe I'm reading too much into the lyrics, but there are some things that just worry me. Here's a copy of the chorus of the song for those who are unfamiliar.
" Baby you light up my world like nobody else,
The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed,
But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell,
You don't know, oh oh,
You don't know you're beautiful,
If only you saw what I can see,
You'll understand why I want you so desperately,
Right now I'm looking at you and I can't believe,
You don't know, oh oh,
You don't know you're beautiful, oh oh,
That's what makes you beautiful."
Okay, I understand that the song is supposed to be kind of sweet. And it is, a little. The guy is trying to tell the girl that she is beautiful. Which is great. Guys should do that more often. In fact, guys should do that period. If you see your girl friend whose hair is looking better than normal, tell her. If you think she has a captivating personality and beautiful soul--tell her. But, despite the attempt at sweetness and a captivating tune, I still don't love the song. It's not the fact that he's only focusing on the physical aspects of her beauty that bothers me, although that is part of it. The problem I have is with the message it is sending to the girls.
Because, girls, here's the thing--you're beautiful. And, you're not beautiful because you don't know you're beautiful. You're beautiful because you are. You're beautiful because you have confidence. You have a wonderfully overwhelming personality.
And guys, girls are beautiful. Not because they don't know it, or because they are physically attractive, but just because they are. How they are, why they are. So, don't be afraid to tell girls they are beautiful.
And girls, know you're beautiful. Be confident. Beauty is about more than perfect hair, deep green eyes, and a perfect body. It's about your soul. Your personality. Which is beautiful. So, light up the world like nobody else. Flip your hair. Be overwhelming. Smile. Because you know, you know you're beautiful.
