A Song Parody

In this entry, I examine a video which characterizes a large portion of YouTube videos—a song parody:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CqbZNHaf1o

This one is of Estelle’s song “American Boy”—it is sung by an adolescent and is entitled “First Asian Boy”. In the song, the adolescent, a young Asian boy, is convincing a girl that being Asian is not a negative characteristic of a boy. He goes as far as to imply that having an Asian boyfriend can have many perks. This video incorporates humor in different ways and makes one central claim about American culture and humor’s role in it.

From this video, I conclude that humor is a mechanism which people use to challenge a belief, or voice an opinion. In this case, the adolescent is voicing his opinion against racism in relationships; making the claim that race should not be a factor in determining the eligibility of a boy as a boyfriend. He even claims that there are some very advantageous sides of being in a relationship with an Asian boy, listing examples such as delicious Asian snacks. Although this YouTube video is not directed against someone specifically, it refutes the presumably commonly held belief that Asian boys are not suitable boyfriends. In this way, the video is a way for the adolescent to express his emotions and voice his opinions.

Traditional American culture promotes individualism, with each person having his/her own voice. YouTube is a mode of creativity which offers a great venue for self-expression, and thus YouTube encourages the furthering of American culture and ideals. Moreover, not only does YouTube allow the delivery of self-expression, but it does so in an extremely effective way.

In this case, humor is being used in the video because it is a parody of a very famous, successful song. Parodies are generally deemed to be humorous in American culture because of their relationship to something dear, and because they are, in some form, a mockery of the original version. The creation of a parody assumes that the parody is better than the original, that an amateur could create something more entertaining and plausible than the professional. Thus, parodies in general seem to be mockeries of the original and thus have an inherent humor. What does this humorous aspect of parodies have to do with the claim?

The claim is that YouTube is an effective mode of self-expression. Because parodies are funny, they tend to stick out more in people’s minds. By voicing his claim through an entertaining video, the adolescent’s claim becomes more memorable and is more effectively communicated. YouTube offers a venue for the demonstration of American ideals of individual thought and is an effective means of delivering opinions and creating strong claims.