Liliana Gonzalez

Charles Freeland

ENG 1201

27 September 2020

Analyzing Music Videos

Cyndi Lauper created the song “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” and a band called Twenty

One Two covered the song. The Original was released in 1983 while the cover was produced in

2018. Cyndi Lauper’s video had more of a visual and Twenty One Two was simply showing
them singing and playing instruments. The difference between the two videos is the original had

more meaning and the cover did not.

Cyndi Lauper created the song to explain her feminism side. The song was originally

penned by Robert Hazard. Lauper didn’t want to recreate the song when her manager had

suggested it. But eventually, she came around to put her own twist. The song was an “anthem of

women’s sexual freedom when feminism was becoming a big part of cultural consciousness”.

She wanted people to know that girls having fun doesn’t mean they want to fool around. But,

instead, they should be allowed to have the same experiences as men.

Lauper also talked about how she had un-wanted attention from her stepfather. So, she

ended up moving out of the home. She had her sister with her and most of the night they had to

avoid all the pedophiles. So, in Lauper’s video, it shows her rebelling against her parents due to

her childhood disturbances.

The cover was created to bring back the 80’s. Considering that the song was created in

2018 and the song was made in the 1980s. Typically when people make covers of songs, it’s

either because they like the song or to bring the song back. The band also wrote “Throwing it

back to the 80’s” in their description.

There are significant differences between the two videos. In the original Lauper has more

meaning than the cover does. Lauper wanted girls to know that they can have fun just like men.

While the cover was simply made to recreate the sang for views or because they liked the song
enough to resing it. In the original Lauper is dancing around with other women and men. She is

shown being let free to do as she pleases.

Lauper’s song is more of a pop song and the cover is more of an alternative genre.

Lauper’s is upbeat and pumping girls up. The cover is also upbeat but has more of an alternative

tone to it. It’s not as appealing as the original video. The original makes girls want to have fun

and explore while on the cover it doesn’t make girls want to go out and have fun. It shows no

visual appeal to it.

The original uses Pathos. At the beginning of the video, it shows a woman in the kitchen
cracking eggs and looking upset. Next, it shows Lauper pushing a man back for trying to tell her

what to do. Even in Lauper’s lyrics, ”Oh, girls just wanna have fun” shows pathos. Because girls

do want to go out and have fun. The girls all look happy when running around and seem to be

enjoying their selves. Girls are human and if men are able to do all kinds of things and not be

judged. Then why couldn’t women do the same?

Additionally, the girls in the video look so happy and are dancing around. Even the tone

has an upbeat to it. Towards the end of the video, the men start dancing with the. Even the color

tone of the video is bright. It also shows that Lauper is rebelling against her parents by doing

what she wants and bringing everyone over to her home.

The cover is also using pathos because they are making a cover of a popular song that has

a lot of meaning. Although their expressions are pretty plain and there isn’t much emotion. The

singer is dancing around and seems to be enjoying singing the song. In parts of the song, the

singer changes his tone to more of a lower and calming.

Considering the background of why Cyndi Lauper created the song gives more meaning

to the video. The video shows her having fun and that girls are allowed to have fun just like

anyone else. The cover did not show any of these things, rather they recreated the song to bring

back the 80s. In conclusion, Lauper’s video had more meaning than the cover.
 Works cited

Kaplan, Sarah, and Justin Moyer. “Cyndi Lauper and the Secret Feminist History of 'Girls

Just Want to Have Fun'.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 3 May 2019,

www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/04/30/cyndi-lauper-on-capitol-hill-

and-the-secret-feminist-history-of-girls-just-wanna-have-fun/.

Lauper, Cyndi. “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun [Rock Cover by Twenty Two One].” YouTube,

uploaded by Twenty One Two, 27 July 2018, https://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=jFoxVq6vMHQ

“Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (Offical Video).” YouTube, uploaded by Cyndi Lauper, 25

October 2009, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIb6AZdTr-A