Empowerment or Desperation? Why Are Aging Pop Stars Still Chasing Clout Like Teen Influencers?

Hey, look, I’m by no means a prude. I’ve made two babies, for crying out loud.

But day after day, seeing talented artists, musicians, and celebrities parading their half ass bodies on the internet is driving me up the wall.

I’ve jammed to Jennifer Lopez’s songs in nightclubs and living rooms across Atlanta for years. In fact, I used to religiously stock up on her perfumes during Kohl’s holiday sales.

I’ve also used Anoushka Shankar’s breathtaking sitar music in my meditation and productivity playlists.

But, what’s happening now is that I continue to see these women out there flashing in public and calling it “authenticity” and being just who they are.

When did staying relevant start requiring thirst traps? Especially when they could just be selling their actual art, instead of people like me, who can’t spin a dime from my words after 17 years of writing LOL.

If anyone should be thirst-trapping, it’s me! I haven’t made a dent in the publishing world despite all this time writing day in day out.

Take JLo’s recent Las Vegas residency opening at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace. At 56, she read aloud online comments like “Why doesn’t she dress her age?” or “Why is she always naked?”
Then she clapped back: “If you had this body, you’d be naked too!”

She was paid to dance at a rich guy’s wedding ceremony in India just recently, and below are the pictures. The lacy bodysuits and the micro outfits leave very little to the imagination.

Cringe.

Some of you might call empowering. She’s got it and she’s flaunting it, what’s the problem? Even after 30 plus years in the industry, she’s still wildly famous. She’s a symbol of empowerment to some, and a paragon of body positivity. Great. Honestly, I’m happy for her. I personally know how a middle aged female body looks like, I’m literally living in one. And she seems to be doing pretty well for her age, maybe with a little help, who knows.

Yes, women should wear what they want. Autonomy matters. But autonomy without context isn’t freedom, it’s just lazy branding. And celebrity branding shapes our culture. Of course, I understand Mick Jagger strutting around shirtless at 80 receives zero backlash. (Yikes that imagery.)

The question I have for women like her is that with immense talent, and cultural influence over millions of fans around the world, why use sexuality to make your loudest statement? Why should visibility and relevance be negotiated with how your body looks?

The same unease hits with Anoushka Shankar. Her music for me cerebral, after all, she’s Pandit Ravi Shankar’s progeny. They’re the pioneers of innovative fusions of classical Indian ragas and contemporary sounds to create the art that they do. She has multiple Grammy nominations and has a number of solo albums, and has scored for movies.

Yet, she’s carefully curating thirst traps to validate her musical genius.

And both are acting like influencers scrambling for clicks instead of acting like the serious artists who have already earned the spotlight through sheer brilliance and work.
“Look at me first, listen to me later.” LOL.

Anyone following women on social media who are milking the attention economy to their advantage has heard of OnlyFans. Its the platform where your income is directly proportional to the amount of undressing you can do on camera. When legendary musicians reinforce this desirability index, it makes young girls question whether their worth depends on the audience’s gaze.

It plants the idea that brilliance alone isn’t enough anymore, and that your body has to be marketable at every age, forever catering to everyone else’s attention.

Isn’t it exhausting trying to look 26 when you’re actually 56? Isn’t aging gracefully a privilege in this beautiful, messy world? True grace lies in stepping aside a bit, letting the next generation take the spotlight now that you’ve had yours.

Once again, I’m not age-shaming and asking women to cover up. And by no means, am I asking them to dim their light. All I’m saying is there are other ways to show that you’ve “got it.”

You can command clout and clicks with your music or your art. You don’t need your body to do it. Imagine the message: “I’m still here, and I no longer need to prove it with skin. My talent speaks for itself.”

That kind of confidence would actually shift things.

You’ve already won at life, ladies. You’ve got everything. Let your talent take center stage and allow the new crop of kids to take the spotlight. You can also stop competing with your younger self. 

And enough with the half-ass parades. You’ve earned the right to put the art first. 

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