In-Studio With the Pussycat Dolls
Criticizing the Pussycat Dolls for their music is like criticizing a porn star for her acting. You’ve missed the point entirely.
A cabaret burlesque dance group in the Hollywood hipster scene for ten years, the Pussycat Dolls was founded by Robin Anton and featured an ever-growing roster of guest stars, such as Christina Aguillera, Charlize Theron, Scarlett Johanssen, Christina Appelgate, and Carmen Elektra, all donning the lush lingerie and hosiery that was their retro sexpot trademark. They could be seen performing at industry parties, opening for Hollywood scenesters like Camp Freddy, and always be easy on the eyes and not something you’d normally take in at a rock show.
Then someone had a vision to make them into an all-girl power sexy pop group–a daring idea which had never been attempted before–and against all likelihood, the music industry managed to rally behind these girls, pitch in and give them songs, producers, and stylists, and now, why, you can get the melodies someone else wrote for them as your very own ringtone.
They stopped for an in-studio taping recently while on tour opening for Black Eyed Peas. That itself makes perfect sense as a bill. The Black Eyed Peas’ descent from roots hip hop like “Positivity” into blithering poppy crap like “My Humps” can be directly linked to their addition of Fergie, the reigning queen of Hoochie-Chic. (Indeed, Fergie has performed with the Pussycat Dolls as well.) And, in the group’s makeover from vintage lingerie to Fergie’s style of tight strap-on clothes with hoop earrings and a sorority’s worth of makeup, they actually manage to look sluttier.
The time spent on this in-studio appearance is the time a real band would spend on, say, sound checking. But since they play no instruments, and really only lead singer Nicole (from the WB show “Pop Star“, go figure) actually sings to their pre-recorded tracks, the focus is spent on what matters–sewing their sequined suspenders on their tights so they hang off their waist oh-so-effortlessly. The time they spend on updating their choreography for the studio set is significant, and ultimately it’s all they’re really there to do anyway. Whereas music perfectionists like Tom Morello of Rage and Audioslave will hand off his guitar to be re-tuned after every song, the Indy 500 pit crew of stylists swarm the Dolls to touch up hair, makeup, and costumes between each song and rehearsal.
All this seems stupid and shallow unless you’re in to making money. The Pussycats’ first single “Dontcha”, with its infectious, lewd, ringtone-ready chorus “Dontcha wish your girlfriend was hot like me? Dontcha wish your girlfriend was a freak like me?” went to number one in 11 countries. Their own choreographer refers to the Pussycat Dolls as a brand, soon to be slapped on clothes, makeup, lingerie, and nightclubs, starting with one in Caesar’s Palace.
With such a pre-fabricated image, sound, look, career, you name it, what surprise could there actually be in this group of girls? For one, the fact that they genuinely like each other and get along, a trait unseen in almost any band that composes their own music and makes their own decisions. They also show up and work it like they know exactly what their job is. Their photo shoots show them switching up looks and poses in sync like they’ve studied every episode of America’s Next Top Model. They clearly exercise and eat like it’s their job to stay looking good, which actually, well…you get it. Their dances they know better than their lyrics, and they literally can’t stop themselves from moving with the music when their tracks are played in sound check. And let’s face it, stomping the stairs of their set, humping air, and doing kicks in high heeled boots are not easy, and worthy of earning your name in sequined calligraphy on a mini-skirt or jerkin or whatever under the “PCD” logo on each of their costumes. Their costumes also include sequined names of their songs, in case you already forgot “Dontcha” or “Stickwitu” just because they are unconventional contractions.
The only real drama of the shoot was lead singer Nicole stressing out between takes in hushed talks with her managers, because she wasn’t sure which camera in the studio she should be playing to. If this was going all over the world, she fretted, she wanted to deliver it good. And she was right.
The Pussycat Dolls are in essence more a franchised performance revue than a band, like Blue Man Group with teased hair and fishnets, or Cirque de Soleil, but instead of ripped French Canadians spinning in air, they’re trollops humping the stage. But they’re all ultimately employees to a very lucrative brand name. Employees who can come and go.
Author's biography:
Janet has written for Caffeine, Rap Sheet, the Chicago Reader, the Evanstonian, as well as various music and cultural blogs. She is based in Wicker Park, Chicago.
