Archived from UCI Music Writers 2024 Submissions
By: H. Elizabeth Williams
Taylor Swift and Barbie broke insane box office records this year but the disrespectful attitudes towards their success make it feel like we’re living in a simulation. But no—we’re just women.
It's always a man you have to google.
Missed out on the Golden Globe Awards on January 7th? It’s probably in your best interest. Many were appalled by the last minute host, Jo Koy, and his performance which trended on social media almost immediately.
“Oppenheimer is based on a 721 page, Pulitzer Prize-winning book about the Manhattan Project, and Barbie is on a plastic doll with big boobies,” he stated that night, giving praise to Oppenheimer while slamming Barbie, both the top movies of 2023. As of September 4, 2023, Barbie had earned over $1.4 billion at the global box office, which won the film the first ever Cinematic and Box Office Achievement award (Source: Entertainment Weekly).
Barbie, directed by Greta Gerwig, has a deeper meaning beyond that of a popular doll. Barbie, played by Margot Robbie, mourns the loss of innocence that comes with the understanding of realities of living in a patriarchal society, but also celebrates the relationship between women, particularly between mother and daughter, which inspired the creation of the doll in the first place.
Yet, it seemed Koy was unfamiliar with the movie’s concept as his ongoing sexist jokes throughout the night proved Gerwig’s point of the film. Margot Robbie and some of the other actresses could be seen awkwardly nodding while Ryan Gosling refused to give him the satisfaction of even a pity laugh.
“Well, he’s not wrong,” Gerwig noted on the January 10 BBC Radio episode in response to Koy’s trending comments. “She’s the first doll that was mass-produced with breasts, so he was right on. And you know, I think that so much of the project, of the movie, was unlikely because it is about a plastic doll.” She had a subtle yet classy way of responding so there would be no backlash that women face for simply speaking out and being called “dramatic”.
Some of the Barbie cast reacted to the offensive joke online, with Simu Liu posting on Instagram, “How disgusting and sexist was this?”
Another win for Barbie was the award for Best Original Song “What Was I Made For?”by Billie Eilish which charted around the world peaking at Number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 (Source: Allure). This song moved many movie-goers, playing a soft melody oozing intimate private thoughts about being a woman: “When did it end? All the enjoyment. I’m sad again, don’t tell my boyfriend. It’s not what he’s made for. What was I made for?” Female rage poured into a soft feminine melody, and yet Koy blatantly disrespected the meaning of the movie and the song. Ignorant.
Reactions spread across social media. User @iam_kjmiller from TikTok corrected Jo Koy’s monologue by stating, “Greta Gerwig’s Barbie explores the struggles of girlhood, women advancement and the harm the patriarchy does to us all. Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer gave us yet another film about a white man.” Another post stated they should have just let America Ferrera do her moving monologue from the Barbie film that affected many instead.
When Jo Koy realized his jokes weren’t landing, he blamed the writers and that it was a last minute gig, which looked as if he strongly believed that was an excuse for sexist jokes. He also told big celebrities to ‘shut up’ on live TV in frustration. “Yo, I got the gig 10 days ago, you want a perfect monologue? Yo, shut up,” he snapped at the audience. No, but many would have appreciated a funny one.
Comment by Tiktok user @Kenaddy
On X, previously Twitter, some thought his ‘class’ act was shocking and the views decreased as his monologue went on according to YouTube TV viewer count.
“Jo Koy is a great comic, but I’m not sure he’s used to working a showbiz crowd hosting the #goldenglobes,” NPR media analyst Eric Deegans defended on X. Others were not so forgiving. Many women expressed disappointment towards his actions.
“Never seen an audience rebel against a host so quickly,” Nicole Sperling, New York Times media reporter, described.
Koy, not stopping with the inappropriate ‘jokes’ there, talked about Barry Keoghan’s penis asking him ‘where it was seated’ after the actor appeared naked in the movie Saltburn.
Selena Gomez bowing her head in disappointment after Koy's dig at Taylor Swift
Actress and singer Selena Gomez was seen bowing her head in disappointment during Koy’s jokes about the Barbie film and again at his overdone sexist jokes toward Taylor Swift. “The big difference between the Golden Globes and the NFL, the Golden Globes have less camera shots of Taylor Swift,” he mocked, to which she responded with no laugh or smile and a sip of her wine. As Swift has spoken and wrote about constantly, some men just still don’t get it. It’s not as if she was the top artist of the year, sold out tours practically worldwide, boosted the economy a fraction, and was named Person of the Year for Time Magazine. To Koy, she was just boosting viewership for her boyfriend’s football game. Koy should listen to “You’re On Your Own Kid” by Taylor Swift.
Swift has been dealing with unnecessary backlash since the 2009 MTV Awards catastrophe with Kanye West. Back in 2019, she accepted a Woman of the Decade award at the Billboards with an amazing speech that still rings true: “I believe a popular headline back then was 'A Swift Backlash'... Now I realize that this is just what happens to a woman in music if she achieves success or power beyond people’s comfort level. I now have come to expect that with good news comes some sort of pushback.”
This speech was back in 2019 and yet still rings true in 2024 for Swift and fellow women in her field. Swift is very outspoken, rightfully so, about sexism in the music industry. She explained in the Netflix documentary, Miss Americana, how she has felt the need to reinvent herself and change her approach throughout her career. “Everyone’s a shiny new toy for two years,” she stated. “The female artists I know of have reinvented themselves 20 times more than the male artists. They have to or else you’re out of a job.”
Jo Koy on KTLA 5
Koy appeared on KTLA 5 Monday morning, which only made more controversy spark as he and an anchor talked about how her reaction to this crude joke was because of problems in the bedroom with her and Travis Kelce, a player for the Chiefs. Another anchor called her dramatic, when her reaction to the joke was to not laugh and take a sip of wine. If you recall, the previous year’s host, Chris Rock, made a joke about Will Smith’s wife and he got up and smacked him clear across the face. But Taylor Swift sipping her drink is overreacting? It’s not adding up. Many on X joked that “Jo Koy has been canceled and it’s only been 8 days since the new year.” Others asked if Koy was fired mid-broadcast.
Screenshot from Tikok: "Taylor Swift and Barbie breaking insane box office records this year but no one respecting them. I feel like I'm living in a simulation"
They could have called many women comedians that would’ve put on an amazing performance, even if last minute, yet they chose another man that was not only irrelevant for years but couldn't read the room to save his life. When do you believe they will learn?
Finally, women have the spotlight in several categories, both music and movie in the same year, and some men such as Koy waste no time putting them both down in one go. Most women don’t find this surprising, however, and that says a lot about the industry. An interesting part that did not go unnoticed was the Golden Globes lineup of winners post-show. The only woman there was Emma Stone, and while all the men were asked about their winning performances, she was asked her opinion on Taylor Swift. What a clown show.
As we know, these types of award shows are popularity contests and they are far from being the most important thing happening right now. However, even after a groundbreaking movie about womanhood and having a great businesswoman and songwriter named Person of the Year, it seems like the message falls on the deaf ears of certain “Kens.”
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