Shop
 Explore 

Two iconic songs in Disney's 'Little Mermaid' remake will change lyrics to emphasize consent

Original composer Alan Menken made some modern-day tweaks to "Kiss the Girl" and "Poor Unfortunate Souls."

little mermaid 2023

Both "Kiss the Girl" and "Poor Unfortunate Souls" will get a slight lyric tweak

Disney’s live-action remake of “The Little Mermaid” is sure to have songs that 90s kids have known by heart since childhood. However they might find that certain lyrics are a tad different than what they’re accustomed to in those sing-a-longs.

Prolific composer Alan Menken, who wrote the iconic tunes for quintessential Disney movies like “Beauty and the Beast,” “Aladdin,” and, yes, “The Little Mermaid,” revealed in an interview with Vanity Fair that the songs “Kiss the Girl” and “Poor Unfortunate Soul” would be undergoing slight tweaks for the upcoming remake.

In case the lyrics don’t hold a spot rent-free in your mind, here's a Disney sing-along for “Kiss the Girl,” when Prince Eric and a voiceless Ariel go on a romantic boat ride together:

Though Menken didn’t specify which lyrics are being changed, he did suggest that the songs were being revised to incorporate a more modern take on consent. “People have gotten very sensitive about the idea that [Prince Eric] would, in any way, force himself on [Ariel],” he told Variety.

Similarly, in “Poor Unfortunate Souls,” the sea witch Ursula tells Ariel that “on land it's much preferred…for ladies not to say a word,” adding that men aren’t “impressed with conversation” and that a woman who "holds her tongue" is the one who "gets a man."

Granted, as Menken noted, this song is a moment in which Ursula, the story’s villain, is doing an obviously villainous thing by trying to manipulate Ariel into giving up her voice (both literally and figuratively). But he felt that as previously written the song “might make young girls somehow feel that they shouldn't speak out of turn.”

Menken’s planned tweaks reflect a growing trend. Only last year in 2022, both Beyonce and Lizzo immediately changed lyrics to their songs after receiving backlash that the lyrics contained “ableist slurs.” And music isn’t the only faction of pop culture to undergo changes in an effort to reflect more current perspectives. Earlier in 2023, the language in Roald Dahl classics like “Charlie and The Chocolate Factory” and “James and The Giant Peach” was modified to what some felt were overzealous extremes, swapping out gendered words like “mother” and “father” for gender-neutral words like “family,” for instance.

Regardless of whether these changes fall under the “completely necessary” category or “cancel culture run amok,” it is interesting to notice this emerging real-time interaction between creators and consumers. Art is so often a reflection of the times, and this kind of rejiggering of how we use language specifically is also telling of the current state we are in as a society. Clearly, we are in the midst of figuring things out—what exactly is consciously creating vs. adhering to censorship—and it’s very much a work in progress.

From Your Site Articles

Facebook group brings people together IRL to make meaningful friendships

True

Making new friends as an adult is challenging. While people crave meaningful IRL connections, it can be hard to know where to find them. But thanks to one Facebook Group, meeting your new best friends is easier than ever.

Founded in 2018, NYC Brunch Squad brings together hundreds of people who come as strangers and leave as friends through its in-person events.

“Witnessing the transformative impact our community has on the lives of our members is truly remarkable. We provide the essential support and connections needed to thrive amid the city's chaos,” shares Liza Rubin, the group’s founder.

Despite its name, the group doesn’t just do brunch. They also have book clubs, seasonal parties, and picnics, among other activities.

NYC Brunch Squad curates up to 10 monthly events tailored to the specific interests of its members. Liza handles all the details, taking into account different budgets and event sizes – all people have to do is show up.

“We have members who met at our events and became friends and went on to embark on international journeys to celebrate birthdays together. We have had members get married with bridesmaids by their sides who were women they first connected with at our events. We’ve had members decide to live together and become roommates,” Liza says.

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by 𝐍𝐘𝐂 𝐁𝐫𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐡 𝐒𝐪𝐮𝐚𝐝® (@nycbrunchsquad)

Members also bond over their passion for giving back to their community. The group has hosted many impact-driven events, including a “Picnic with Purpose” to create self-care packages for homeless shelters and recently participated in the #SquadSpreadsJoy challenge. Each day, the 100 members participating receive random acts of kindness to complete. They can also share their stories on the group page to earn extra points. The member with the most points at the end wins a free seat at the group's Friendsgiving event.

Keep ReadingShow less

This Map Reveals The True Value Of $100 In Each State

Your purchasing power can swing by 30% from state to state.

Image by Tax Foundation.

Map represents the value of 100 dollars.

As the cost of living in large cities continues to rise, more and more people are realizing that the value of a dollar in the United States is a very relative concept. For decades, cost of living indices have sought to address and benchmark the inconsistencies in what money will buy, but they are often so specific as to prevent a holistic picture or the ability to "browse" the data based on geographic location.

The Tax Foundation addressed many of these shortcomings using the most recent (2015) Bureau of Economic Analysis data to provide a familiar map of the United States overlaid with the relative value of what $100 is "worth" in each state. Granted, going state-by-state still introduces a fair amount of "smoothing" into the process — $100 will go farther in Los Angeles than in Fresno, for instance — but it does provide insight into where the value lies.

Keep ReadingShow less

Woman bakes cheeky curse word pies for her grandma and it becomes a quirky holiday tradition

2023's pie is an homage to her favorite word to use while stuck in traffic.

Canva

You never know where a holiday tradition will come from.

Tried-and-true holiday traditions certainly have their merit, but there’s something quite special, magical even, about discovering personal rituals that commemorate one’s unique life. In my household, for instance, nothing quite rings in the Christmas spirit like sipping my partner’s delicious coquito and putting up a cardboard gingerbread house for my cats.

The beauty of creating customized holiday traditions is that they can be as festive, sentimental, or as silly as you want them to be. And you never know how one small moment can become the catalyst for a tradition that sparks joy year after year.

For Jess Lydon, that tradition is baking expletive-laden pies for Thanksgiving. (This is your profanity warning—the images below contain swear words.)

Keep ReadingShow less

Grandma got a secret DNA test after noticing her granddaughter didn't look like her siblings

People think she was right to do it, too.

via Christian Buehner/Unsplash and Warren Umoh/Unsplash

The grandmother was suspicious.

A grandmother always felt her middle granddaughter Lindsay, 15, looked slightly different from the rest of the family because she had blonde, curly hair, while the rest of her siblings’ hair was dark “I thought genetics was being weird and I love her,” she wrote on Reddit’s AITA forum.

But things became serious after Linday’s parents “banned” her from taking things a step further and getting a DNA test. If the family was sure their daughter was theirs, why would they forbid her from seeking clarity in the situation? After the parents laid down the law, the situation started to seem a little suspicious.

“I told my son and [daughter-in-law] that there was something fishy around her birth she needed to know. They denied it and told me to leave it alone,” the grandma wrote.

Keep ReadingShow less

Pianist uses every part of the instrument in this joyous performance of Toto's 'Africa'

"Not sure I can comprehend what just happened! Unbelievable."

via Peter Benace/YouTube

Peter Bence's piano cover of "Africa" by Toto

Peter Bence’s performance of “Africa” by Toto has over 17 million views on YouTube because of his creative reimagining of the song and, well, just about everyone loves “Africa.”

Bence is a Hungarian composer and producer who has become a viral sensation for his Michael Jackson, Queen, Sia, and Beatles covers. He has over 1.1 million followers on YouTube and has toured the globe, playing in more than 40 countries across four continents.

His performance of “Africa'' is unique because it opens with him creating a rhythm track and looping it by strategically tapping the piano and rubbing its strings to create the sound of shakers and congo drums.

Keep ReadingShow less

Family posts a very chill note to neighbors explaining why their dog is on the roof

“We appreciate your concern but please do not knock on our door.."

via Reddit

Meet Huckleberry the dog.

If you were taking a stroll through a quiet neighborhood and happened to catch a glance of this majestic sight, you might bat an eye. You might do a double take. If you were (somewhat understandably) concerned about this surprising roof-dog's welfare, you might even approach the homeowners to tell them, "Uh, I'm not sure if you know...but there's a...dog...on your ROOF."

Well, the family inside is aware that there's often a dog on their roof. It's their pet Golden, Huckleberry, and he just sorta likes it up there.

Keep ReadingShow less