Rap music is often considered the leading offender when it comes to influencing the minds of young people. The lyrics are too vulgar, parents complain. The music videos are too sexual. There’s too much body contact, too much skin.

There is no denying that rap and sexual content often go together. Listening to the radio, I’m not sure if I’m hearing music or a lousy rapper’s play-by-play of his triple-X fantasy.

Never mind, I know exactly what I’m hearing.

And rap videos are just as guilty. I wonder if rap artists and video directors know what subtlety means and if they ever considered using it for a change. The G-rated rap video is a rare breed, just added to the endangered species list. (We’ll sooner see dinosaurs and cuckoo birds.)

Not Just Rap

So why bother defending rap when we all know it’s guilty? Because Ashlee Simpson wants to “La La” on the kitchen floor (how unsanitary) and Britney Spears has fallen in love with the touch of her hand. It’s EVERYWHERE: sex, sex, sex, sex, sex--in rock, in pop, R&B, even country music.

Why, then, is rap music such a target? Granted, sex in rap is more ever-present than it needs to be. For almost every "I'll let you lick the lollipop," there is a "Let's do it like they do on the Discovery Channel" (remember that one?) lurking in the wings.

Is it because rappers are so unabashedly vocal about the sexual content of their songs? OK, critics, I’ll give you that. But why, when the lyrics say "I'ma have you naked by the end of this song," did everyone make a fuss when Janet started to get naked? She was only doing what the song said! Why didn’t anyone get upset over the lyrics? And why should it be any different when a rapper says "Back that thang up" and the girl in the video obeys?

My cleverness is all in good fun. But, on a serious note, I'm not completely sure I understand the difference. Double-standard in our midst? I’m not saying we should let rap off the hook. We shouldn’t. But all other kinds of music should be hanging on the hooks alongside it in the social-standard meat freezer.

Behind the Music

But that’s only if you believe music, in general, is at fault-­‑if you believe music has the power to greatly influence young people’s actions. I’m not convinced. Music, on the whole, is only one factor.

I truly believe that to stem the media’s influence on children, parents should teach their children the ability to distinguish real life from racy music videos.

In the same vein, we young people need to educate ourselves and become more aware. Sure, La La-ing on the kitchen floor might be tons of fun, but is that something we should be doing in our parents' house when we’re 16? Probably not.

Girls, just because Justin Timberlake says he will have you naked by the end of the song doesn’t mean you should bend to the will of every little peanut head that uses the same line to get you in bed.

You see, the solution isn’t pointing the finger. Rather, we should embrace racy music and, dare I say, learn from it. Sure those crazy rappers want you to fall in love with their bootie shakers and those silly pop stars want you to practice same-sex experimentation for their own benefit (yes, JC Chasez, I’m referring to you). But that doesn’t mean their words should be taken as truth.

Besides, you might be 'bootylicious,' but don't expect your favorite music star to take responsibility for you when you back that thang up into a bad situation. Don’t expect them to take responsibility for anything at all. That’s your job.