Earlier this week, I stumbled across the kind of YouTube video that makes my heart happy. No, not the little kid parallel parking. This was pop star Katy Perry’s recorded segment for Sesame Street, in which she performs a reworded version of her hit “Hot N Cold” with Elmo, who is being a fickle playdate:
There’s nothing I love more than a good parody, and apparently I wasn’t the only one who felt that way. The clip got more than a million hits on YouTube in its first few days.
And then the complaints started pouring in. The celebrity news channel TMZ reported a few of the comments from parents:
- “You can practically see her t*ts. That’s some wonderful children’s programming.”
- “they’re gonna have to rename it cleavage avenue”
TMZ reported today that the show’s producers have axed the segment.
Supporters have pointed out that the dress actually inclues a mesh-colored bodice that goes up to Perry’s neck, which is beside the point. It looks like she’s not wearing anything, and yes, you really shouldn’t be baring that much cleavage within 10 city blocks of Sesame Street.
But this is Katy Perry. The chorus of her breakout hit is: “I kissed a girl. And I liked it.” She’s not Mr. Rogers, and I’m not sure that’s a bad thing. Slightly off-color wardrobe choices aside, I thought she pulled off the segment well, and the more culturally relevant shows like Sesame Street can stay, the longer they’ll hold kids attention, and the more strongly their educational messages will come through.
And it’s not like children’s entertainment is a stranger to skimpy outfits. RememberAriel’s clamshell bikini?If I left my parents’ house dressed like almost any Disney princess since the mid-80s, I would have been strongly encouraged to change.
Anyway, Katy Perry won’t be making her Sesame Street debut anytime soon. But at least the clip lives on in YouTube fame. And we always have that little kid parallel parking. God bless the Internet.