ISU - Putting Political Pop into Perspective: Janelle Monáe's "Dirty Computer" and its Emotion Picture

Janelle Monaé - Dirty Computer (2018)

Foreword - This Album Is Not Meant For Me

     In the Western world, there seems to be some sort of self-imposed rule that every piece of media needs to cater to a primarily straight, white, male audience. That's easy to take for granted sometimes, but this is album is the exception to the rule. Dirty Computer by Janelle Monaé is designed to empower and acknowledge the needs of queer, black, women. Of which I am none. I am aware that not being the target demographic will mean that I can't understand or relate to everything being said here, and I accept that. I think it's good to explore media that isn't for me and try to learn from it. So yes, I understand that I'm not the perfect person to be analyzing and interpreting this album as it's not intended for me, but I'm not trying to claim that I am either. So with that out of the way, let's begin.

I won't be doing this, that's for sure. (Source)

PART I - Context (aka Who is Janelle Monaé?)

     Dirty Computer is the third album by 35 year old singer, activist, and CoverGirl Janelle Monaé Robinson, better known as simply Janelle Monaé. Monaé is an openly pansexual, black, and American woman, with all of these facts being essential to understand the context and concept of this album. Dirty Computer tackles themes of identity; specifically the fear, isolation, and eventual acceptance and pride of living life as a visible minority. These themes are often filtered through android metaphors, with Monaé comparing her experiences to feeling like a corrupt and unwanted robot (or...a dirty computer). Monaé has a tendency to use these science fiction themes for the same reason as most science fiction, as a way to comment on modern day problems while separating it from reality. Her previous albums, 2010's The Arch-Android and 2013's The Electric Lady, both pull inspiration from the 1927 science fiction film Metropolis.

Monaé's The Arch-Android vs Metropolis 

     Compared to Monaé's previous albums, Dirty Computer is a much more personal record, despite still hiding behind its sci-fi tendencies. The Arch-Android and The Electric Lady both focus on the fictional character of Cindi Mayweather, an android on the run after falling in love with a human. Dirty Computer centralizes on a character called Jane 57821, dealing with the the more individual experience of being seen as the "other".  This is done through recognizing her perceived position as an outsider in her own country, while also criticizing privilege, discrimination, conformity, and the American government.

Monaé has a history of delving into these themes

     Despite the bleak and oftentimes dark content of this album, Dirty Computer shines with unabashed optimism and unwavering pride, interwoven between explosive and funky pop music with Prince as a major influence (and even a minor contributor to the album before his death in 2016). This is understandable, as no album that solely tackles an identity should ever just focus on its negative aspects. Monaé is rightfully proud of her identity despite what the world is telling her, and this is one of the central themes in her music.

Upbeat music with darker lyrics has sort of become a trend, with albums like Paramore's 2017 album After Laughter. 

PART II - The Album (& pop as a medium for politics)

Tracklist:

1. Dirty Computer (feat. Brian Wilson) - Lyrics

2. Crazy, Classic, Life - Lyrics

3. Take a Byte - Lyrics

4. Jane's Dream (Instrumental)

5. Screwed (feat. Zoë Kravitz) - Lyrics

6. Django Jane - Lyrics

7. PYNK (feat. Grimes) - Lyrics

8. Make Me Feel - Lyrics

9. I Got The Juice (feat. Pharrell Williams) - Lyrics

10. I Like That - Lyrics

11. Don't Judge Me - Lyrics

12. Stevie's Dream - Lyrics

13. So Afraid - Lyrics

14. Americans - Lyrics

Sharing Music is Legal, Right?

     Dirty Computer is a gapless album, with all of the songs flowing into each other quite seamlessly. Every single one of the 14 tracks is labelled as explicit, including the 19 second instrumental track "Jane's Dream" (this is both an anecdote and a warning...you know what you're in for). The album has a smooth, overarching story, with the earlier tracks focusing more on feeling isolated and unwanted while turning into the pride and optimism that culminates in the final track "Americans". Each track tackles its own theme of personal identity, pride or liberation, and I think it's best to just take a look at them one by one.

     P.S. since Janelle Monaé is playing a character named Jane 57821, I will be referring to Monaé, as the singer and narrator of the album, as Jane. Even though I wouldn't need to explain this is she was playing a character in a movie, I feel the need to clarify since this is an album and character portrayal is a little harder to identify.

Track Breakdown!

     1. Dirty Computer (feat. Brian Wilson) is both the opening and the title track for this album, roughly explaining the concept and the meaning of the words "Dirty Computer". In Jane's world, her status as a queer black woman leaves her vulnerable and outside of the norm; these aspects of her identity are bugs and glitches that vary from how she's "supposed" to be seen. This metaphor works well to illustrate the way that modern society views people as, well, black and white. Much like the deviations in Detroit: Become Human, these so-called computers are seen as either functional and obedient or malfunctioning and unacceptable. When a computer doesn't work correctly, it gets destroyed; this cold demeanour properly reflects how the world treats people like Jane who aren't the societal default. It's clear that this attitude her as well, claiming that she's "breaking down", "searching for someone to fix [her] drive" and texting God in hopes that He still loves her. It's a bleak start, but it sets the tone for the album beautifully. Brian Wilson is also there, apparently.

It's funny, because things like eye colour are actual glitches in the human code, but nobody seems to discriminate off of that. 

     2. Crazy, Classic, Life is all about the injustice and systemic inequalities present in the Western World. It starts with a revised version of a line from the Declaration of Independence stating that all men and women are created equal, while the actual article only refers to all men as equal. This is used to poke at the fact that this article that claims to be for the freedoms of people is hypocritical; it doesn't include women at all and was written in a time of rampant racism and slavery (PS I learned this from the Genius Lyrics page, I don't know that much about the actual Declaration of Independence). This transitions into a song about Jane rejecting all of the societal norms set out for her, including marriage, religion, material goods and overall conservatism. Jane wants a self-indulging world where she has the power to live freely and passionately. By the end of the song, these dreams turn dark as she addresses the inequality in treatment between black and white people by the police. She knows that she is treated more violently for the same crimes as her white counterparts, and that her dreams of living freely will be seen as criminal while a white person doing the same thing would be seen as carefree and acceptable. Her individuality dreams will be seen as stereotypes, and the colour of her skin will make her an enemy.

It's simultaneously refreshing and heartbreaking to see things like this being referenced in popular media. It's great to address, but it just reminds me that injustices like these still happen in the modern world.

     3. Take A Byte digs deeper into the computer metaphor, referencing her sexuality as something powerful and alluring, but forbidden by societal standards. She's beckoning her (likely female) lover to indulge and fall in love, while comparing the experience to another glitch in her code that's telling her to do it. Through this, she's trying to say that her sexuality is natural, and built into her system while also understanding the taboo nature of homosexuality. While Jane is proud of her identity, she understands that her lover might not be, and coaxes her to enjoy herself while promising that she'll keep it secret if that's what her lover wants. The title itself is a pun on "byte", the measurement of computer storage to tie further into her android themes while also referencing things like the biblical forbidden fruit and "sinking your teeth" into something. It is the first of many sex songs on this album.

It's like if Adam and Eve were lesbian robots

     4. Jane's Dream is a short instrumental to bridge the gap between "Take A Byte" and "Screwed". Aside from the title, which references the main character's name, there really isn't much to talk about here. The instrumental itself is sort of spacey, tying into that futuristic sci-fi theme, but that's about it.

     5. Screwed (feat. Zoë Kravitz) is my personal favourite track on the album, because I think it perfectly captures how political pop music can work as both fun and meaningful. The title has two meanings, one referring to sexual liberation and careless fun while the other referencing being "screwed over" by the government. While the song does use the word in both contexts, there are times when it's left ambiguous and it takes on two completely different meanings. The best example is in the chorus, when she sings "Let's get screwed, I don't care" it's unclear if it means she wants to have a good time and have reckless sex or if it means that she's so used to being abused and taken advantage of by her government that she's come to accept and ignore it.  Every attempt at activism has seemingly become meaningless, so why not just live in a thoughtless bliss? So many other works of science fiction address a similar concept, like A Brave New World, 1984, and Fahrenheit 451, and in the modern world this statement seems more true than ever. The reference to The Matrix's blue pill solidifies this.  This song almost works as a comment on pop music and pop culture as well, as the meaning of her incredibly political song can get lost in the swaths of sex talk and media consumption (she references TV, magazines, rock and roll, festivals and matinees as ways to show the entertainment industry as a distraction to the way that she's really getting screwed). As the song finishes up, the two meanings of "Screwed" converge as Jane explains the futile ways that people have tried to prevent getting screwed. Sex is explored both as a tactic for gaining control, and also as something being restricted by the government. Sexism is also addressed, with a specific call outs to the wage gap and plastic surgery, and for the first of two times on this album, the big man in orange himself. Trump is referred to as the devil, and the various protests against his position of power are referenced to show the corruption of the American government today.

     6. Django Jane works as a perfect back-end to "Screwed" -- if the latter is about the issues with the world today, "Django Jane" is all about doing something about it. The song even uses the "Let's get..." lyrical motif from "Screwed", showing it as a great conclusion to that song. It is also easily the most explicit song on the album. "Django Jane" is about empowering black women, and the title is a reference to Django Unchained and its themes of slavery, reclaiming the unjust treatment of black people in a similar way to that film. Jane is confidently open about her identity, which society has consistently tried to diminish, suppress, and sanitize. She's basking in her own self-worth, she knows she has power, she knows that life has been unkind and the world is bigoted but she won't let that stop her. Jane isn't afraid to make herself known to the world, and have the successes that have been historically made much more difficult for queer people, black people and women to have (especially the Oscars, which are mentioned by name). Jane is ready to take on her oppressors, recognize the consistently undermined successes of her people, and take the crown for herself. No more getting screwed.

Literally this, but without the toy robots

     7. PYNK (feat. Grimes) is about vaginas. There, I said it. Despite following "Django Jane" and its very vagina-heavy lyrics, this song knowingly skirts around the word. "PYNK" is a song for all women, but is specifically targeted towards a lesbian audience. The actual colour pink is used as a metaphor for celebrating womanhood and femininity while also being a very overt reference to the vagina. The pre-chorus references a lesbian summer romance, making this another of the many sex songs on the album. Jane is proud to be a woman, she's proud to love women, and she wants people to know it. I would argue that this is one of the least political songs on the album, it doesn't add much to the overall concept of Dirty Computer, but it's soft, it's relatively sweet, and while it thankfully celebrates lesbianism in a way that isn't for a male audience, it's just not that special. At least it's not "I Kissed A Girl" by Katy Perry.

The song also features Grimes, who happens to be dating Elon Musk of all people. I wouldn't say that he's necessarily the antithesis to this album, but I think that it's an...interesting choice for the feature.

     8. Make Me Feel is much more about Janelle Monaé's own personal endeavours than the character of Jane 57821. As the lead single for the album, it's unsurprising that it is the most palatable to a mainstream audience and a generally safer track. While the song itself is quite a simple, heavily Prince-inspired love song (and surprise! another sex song), the lyrics are also a coy way for Janelle Monaé to come out as pansexual to her fanbase. The whole song is essentially Monaé asking "couldn't you tell?" about her sexuality, with the opening line even saying "Baby, don't make me spell it out for you" . The music video for this song (which is contained within the Emotion Picture) also draws comparisons to the "San Junipero" episode of Black Mirror, a complete coincidence that I actually didn't realize until right now. Monaé is showing off her identity, being proud of yet another aspect of her life that has been suppressed by society.  She's showing off her own pride while encouraging others to also embrace their own sexual identities. While the song itself is fun, I don't think its message has the same punch as some of the other songs on the album. That's just the way that I feel.

It's also the only song on this album that would ever be featured in an Old Navy commercial.

9. I Got The Juice (feat. Pharrell Williams) is a track that follows the vague theme of self empowerment and individualism. It's about finding the value within yourself, using juice as a metaphor akin to Austin Powers' mojo. Jane recognizes that there is something in her that makes her unique and she's built up the confidence to flaunt it. Near the end of the song, she even reclaims the term "dirty computer," proudly describing herself as such in the outro. This shows growth from the beginning of the album, where she's ashamed and trying to change her position as something seen as unclean and unwanted. Jane is no longer dependent on society's perception of her, and she's trying to spread that message to others in her world. She has found her juice. This track is also the second of two explicit times that this album mentions Donald Trump. The line "if you try to grab my pussy cat, this pussy grab you back" is an overt reference to Trump's leaked audio recordings. In this context, juice could also be seen as a metaphor for bodily autonomy - Jane is in control of herself, and she won't let people in a position of power screw her over anymore. She is promoting women's rights and sends a message of empowerment to those who may have felt helpless in today's society.

10. I Like That takes on similar themes to the previous track, where Jane embraces being different and is content with it. She's learned that being herself is more important than fitting in and being the same as everyone else. She understands her faults, but she knows that those are what makes her human (or....robot? Does the metaphor still exist this far in the album? I can't really tell). Jane knows that she is meant to stand out, and she takes this as an opportunity to be truly herself. When society is disappointed in you for everything, it becomes easier to ignore its expectations altogether and be free. Jane reminisces on being younger, when fitting in still mattered to her; she was called ugly for having different hair and wearing clothes from the thrift store, but she's become proud of that now. What used to hurt her is something that has now made her stronger. Her identity does not define her, but has become an integral part of her and shaped who she is. And she likes that.

11. Don't Judge Me comes from a place of deeper insecurity than the rest of the album. Jane has become intimate with a lover and is afraid that their love is superficial. She wants to make sure that this person loves her for all of her, and not just certain aspects of her persona. This song is critical because it shows how love complicates self worth; it's easy to be free and yourself when there's nothing to lose, but her relationship fills her with anxiety. This also works as a message to Janelle Monaé's following. As the first album unrelated to her Cindi Mayweather saga, Monaé is afraid that her fans might not be interested in a more personal album (albeit Dirty Computer still focuses on androids, social justice and science fiction, but baby steps). This could be the "disguise" that she mentions throughout the track. Monaé and Jane both hope that their passion is enough to keep the ones they love close despite their self proclaimed issues, and are hesitant to open up despite their outward confidence. As societal outcasts, they want to feel loved by something, even if society won't accept them.

Moving on is a big step, and it can be scary

12. Stevie's Dream is a short interlude that continues the message of hope from earlier in the album, featuring a spoken monologue by Stevie Wonder, hence the title. It works as a complement to "Jane's Dream" Stevie states that the hatred, discrimination and war in the world can be solved through peace and love. People need to unite and come together despite their differences.

13. So Afraid once agains voices Jane's concerns towards being different. She's vulnerable, and sometimes she's willing to submit to her code and follow the rules if it means that she'll be safe. At the same time, she knows that the world is a dark place. While she can act as a symbol for people like her who are chastised for their differences, it leaves her as a person quite isolated. She sees the state of the world around her, and she knows that it can be better, but there's a lot of pressure on her as a powerful figure to bring justice to people who are still being beaten down by the same oppression that she has fought for so long. She may be free, but her freedom is a burden to her as well and it leaves her wrought with fear. 

Think...survivor's guilt. Who has she left behind to get to where she is? How does she go back for them?

14. Americans is the fourteenth and final track on the album, bringing a hopeful and optimistic finish to this roller coaster of an album. It's very reminiscent of church songs, featuring a choir and clips from a sermon. This song acts as a satire to American culture and the typical symbols of the Americana. Criticizing things like gun culture, sexism, gender roles, the Pledge of Allegiance, conservatism and the corporate greed that engulfs the country. It mocks these values, and plays up the fact that Jane and Janelle don't conform to any of these standards, yet are still American. She pokes at patriotism and blind faith, and how people are so stuck in their ways that they are unwilling to redefine their country and its values to reflect the plethora people who live in it. Things like Uncle Sam and apple pie are praised, while the rights of queer people, African-Americans and women are swept under the rug. These misplaced values are satirized with lines like "Uncle Sam kissed a man, Jim Crow Jesus rose again", unpacking how historical racism and homophobia has also become ingrained in this culture that people worship. The motif of this song is perfectly encapsulated by the spoken bridge performed by Reverend Doctor Sean McMillan, who addresses the issues and discrimination of the modern United States and pleading to reinvent the definition of being American. This song works as a perfect closer to the album, as it finally wipes away the metaphors and gets to the true point of the album: justice for the oppressed and freedom for all people. 

America: a bundle of contradictions that can be loved and hated in the same breath.

     Overall, this album follows the trials and tribulations of overcoming and accepting ones perceived position as an outsider in society. Monaé acts as a voice for the traditionally unheard, and speaks openly about her struggles with feeling accepted in society. She caters her music to a traditionally ignored audience, and for that I applaud her. While her sci-fi themes may be loose at best, her approach to this type of music is fresh, interesting, and doesn't make me feel isolated as someone outside of the target audience. If politics can be inserted into pop music well, this is how it should be done.

PART III - The Emotion Picture

I don't expect you to watch it, but I hope my summary is enough for you to understand it

     Now, if my 2,734 word track breakdown didn't make this clear, this album has a lot to say about the state of the world today. Janelle Monaé has got opinions, and she wants them to be heard. Alongside her album, Janelle Monaé released a 48 minute "Emotion Picture", or basically just a feature film containing most of the songs from the album, excluding "Dirty Computer", "Jane's Dream", "Stevie's Dream", and "So Afraid". The themes in this film are, logically, incredibly similar to those of the album, but differ in plot and overall cohesiveness. 

     The story starts by setting up its dystopian setting. In the future of a world similar to our own, people have been renamed as "computers", and anything that stood out from the norm has become known as "dirty". If caught, dirty computers will be sent to a facility to be "cleaned"; in other words, their memories are erased and they are given a new name and obedient personality. The story follows Jane 57821 (Janelle Monaé) , a woman who has been sent to be cleaned after government capture. She is scanned, isolated, and brought into rehabilitation. 

Jane being scanned (accompanied by "Take A Byte")

     The story shifts when it is revealed that the woman helping rehabilitate Jane is her old friend and lover Zen (Tessa Thompson), whose memory has been wiped and been renamed as Mary-Apple 53. In a sequence similar to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, the audience watches as two white male government workers watch Jane's past memories as they delete them; these memories are typically music videos for the tracks of the album. As the story progresses, one of these men grows reluctant and begins questioning the system, but ultimately does nothing to stop the process. 

Jane 57821 and Mary-Apple 53 (Zen)

The Two Men, watching and deleting Jane's memories

     The audiences watches the past relationship between Zen and Jane build as Jane's memories are destroyed. The powerful, rebellious and dominant character of Jane is explored as she becomes reduced to a weak, scared, and helpless husk of herself. She pleads with Zen to remember their times together and help her, but it ultimately seems too late for anything to happen. Once it seems that all of Jane's memories are gone, she is tasked to do one final walk to symbolize her newfound cleanliness. Time jumps slightly ahead, and Jane is seen in the same position as Zen, now called Mary-Apple 54, helping cleanse another one of their past friends. In a twist, its revealed that Zen and Jane have infiltrated the rehabilitation facility and plan an escape: they fill the centre with a poisonous gas and free everyone being cleansed, bringing hope to the dark world.

The Great Escape

     Very quickly I would just like to go over each track in the Emotion Picture and clarify how it is used to further the story, and to highlight all of the different visuals in this thing.

I Got The Juice/Crazy Classic Life - these songs make up the first of Jane's deleted memories: she smuggles her friends outside of the border and they party, drive around in the desert, and celebrate their youth. This provides great contrast to the confined life of the facility.

A robot border officer scanning futuristic passports.

Take A Byte - acts as the initial scanning montage for Jane. Her brain is being probed, she's been tied up and they're getting ready to take control of her.

Screwed - After the partying from "Crazy, Classic, Life", a government patrol robot spots Jane and her friends and they are on the run. They ultimately escape, but it shows the trouble that Jane has historically got herself into and the stakes of her lifestyle. It highlights the "we'll die anyways so let's have fun" motif of the original song.

Django Jane showcases Jane on a throne, surrounded by a crowd of followers. This is used to demonstrate the power that Jane had outside of the government's control. People respect her, but people who are typically seen as respectable people (e.g. lawmakers, government workers, police) do not respect her.

PYNK - The visuals to this song are tied to the romance between Zen and Jane. Some....subtle references to a lesbian love affair are shown while the two fawn over each other in a desert. An additional verse is also added to the song which explains that Jane doesn't want to hide her love for Zen, and that even if the world falls apart she hopes that they can still be together. This also ties to how she's desperately trying to remind Zen of their past together before she too forgets it all.

Subtle stuff like this. I wonder what it could mean?

Make Me Feel - This song shows off the connection that Jane has to both Zen and the third friend which they save at the end of the film. This video also acts as a long winded pansexuality metaphor, with Jane spending her time running between both the female Zen and their other male friend.

This is also around the time that Jane starts to forget Zen and Zen starts to remember Jane.

I Like That - To be honest, the inclusion of this song in the overarching story seems to make the least amount of sense to me. The only way I can think that it matters is to show how sure of herself Jane was before she lost her memories compared to her in the present, but other than that the song doesn't serve much purpose here.

Don't Judge Me - This song illustrates how Jane got the stick-and-poke tattoo on her forearm-- Zen gave it to her while laying on the beach at sunset. This song acts as the final goodbye to Zen and her past life before the twist. The tattoo can also be used as a symbol for the twist, as proof that memories, like tattoos, never truly disappear. Jane holds onto a small piece of her past and it allows her to flourish in the future.

Americans - This song acts as an epilogue, playing as Jane, Zen, and their friend escape the facility. Much like in the album, it serves as a final message of hope and changing traditions to make them fit the modern day. It also plays throughout the credits.

     Now, for the analysis. The film's references to cleaning and erasing memories mimic the modern day assimilation of minority groups into a conformist society. Forget your culture, forget your past, do the safe thing and just try to fit in like the rest of us. Jane represents these groups in America: those who have immigrated to the States, those who do not fit the straight white male mold of the society, and those whose outward appearance does not reflect society's perfect standards. Jane's fight for freedom from the facility is equivalent to this real life fight for liberation; Jane was a strong, powerful figure on her own, but being cleaned only made her weaker. It's our inherent differences that allow culture to flourish, and embracing these differences is what makes us all stronger as individuals. 

It's like if Hands Across America actually meant something

      It's also important to point out the Two White Men who scanned and erased Jane's memories. They exist to represent the privileged majority, and it's no coincidence that they are in fact two white men. They don't care about the plight of the oppressed or the implications of their actions, and they thoughtlessly do their job. They benefit from the cleanings, and are likely blind to the suffering of the so-called dirty computers. They represent the problems in the world, and they get gassed by the end of the movie as a sign of revolution.

***It's important to note that while yes, one of the men begins to question and doubt the societal structures put in place, his inaction and unwillingness to make a change leaves him to suffer the same fate as everyone else in the facility. I think this was put in on purpose, to show that if you are in a position of power and you spot an injustice in the world, you need to act. If you don't, you may just be part of the problem.***

PART IV - Final Thoughts....Does Politics Work In Pop Music?

     In general, pop music is scene as clean, escapist, and generally inoffensive. It exists to be catchy, fun, and almost inherently vapid. For pop music to be, well, popular, it needs to reach a general audience and have a mainstream appeal. As a result, it doesn't need to have a greater message and is often hurt financially by any attempts to be more than joyful background music. 

See albums like Katy Perry's Witness, which tried to push a political message but was too shallow, vague, and frankly hypocritical to have any real audience

     On the other hand, the politics in Dirty Computer seem to flow effortlessly into the concept and sound of the music. The album is inseparable from its message, and as a result it works quite well as a political piece. Monaé is successful at inserting these political themes into her works because it comes from a place of personal experience; Monaé is talking about her identity, her struggles and her own fears. These politics come naturally to her because of the affect that they have on her actual real life as a queer black woman living in America. When musicians, or any artists in general, pull from these places of personal experience, their work comes off as genuine, authentic, and purposeful. 

Political pop works well when people have a genuine connection to the issues they are talking about, and have created an image from themselves outside of just being a shallow industry plant.

     The album has a funky and fun core to it, making it danceable and accessible in a way that works to get its message out to a more general public. The music is still catchy like pop music should be, and can act as a gateway for people to become invested in Monaé's message of freedom of identity. Dirty Computer shows that it is possible, albeit difficult, to successfully use pop as a medium to garner a political statement, even if this conflicts with the typical status quo of popular music.

     In the end, all art at its core has some sort of meaning or motive behind it as a reflection of its culture. Pop is notorious for using sex to sell its product, and this undeniably reflects the modern objectification and sexualization of women. Consciously or not, all pop music has a message that it puts out into the world, and I think that musicians need to be more aware of this when they put out music for wide release. While pop albums with intentional, progressive, and powerful messages like Dirty Computer are rare gems that take advantage of their medium, the potential of pop music is undeniable and remarkable to see when used effectively.

THE END