Why is it cool to hold your crotch?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Ivan Seeking
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Cool
Click For Summary

Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the cultural and social implications of the gesture of grabbing one's crotch, particularly in relation to music and performance. Participants explore various contexts in which this behavior is observed, including commercial portrayals and its association with certain artists. The conversation touches on themes of embarrassment, suggestiveness, and the evolution of this gesture in popular culture.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants note that the gesture may be linked to discomfort or embarrassment, as seen in a commercial featuring a member of The Black Eyed Peas.
  • Others suggest that the gesture could be a form of expression or a cultural statement, possibly originating from rap music and popularized by artists like Michael Jackson.
  • A few participants recount personal experiences or observations about the gesture, indicating that it can be perceived as a sign of needing to adjust oneself or as a humorous act among peers.
  • There is mention of the gesture being misinterpreted as a sign of distress or discomfort, particularly among younger individuals.
  • Some participants question the appropriateness and social acceptance of the gesture, contrasting it with its historical context in music and performance.
  • Several humorous takes are shared regarding personal experiments with the gesture, highlighting its absurdity and the varying perceptions of its "coolness."

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express a range of views on the gesture, with no clear consensus on its implications or cultural significance. Some see it as a humorous or performative act, while others view it as inappropriate or indicative of discomfort.

Contextual Notes

Participants reference various artists and cultural moments without reaching a definitive conclusion about the origins or meanings of the gesture. The discussion includes personal anecdotes that reflect differing interpretations and experiences.

Who May Find This Useful

Individuals interested in cultural studies, music history, or social behavior may find the exploration of this gesture's implications relevant.

Ivan Seeking
Staff Emeritus
Science Advisor
Gold Member
Messages
8,252
Reaction score
2,664
I keep seeing this commercial from Best Buys with The Black Eyed Peas. The lead singer looks like he has to go to the bathroom. :smile:

Sorry, my software for work was delayed and my finger hurts too much to work on the bathroom, so I notice these things. :biggrin:
 
Physics news on Phys.org
Hmmmm... I don't really see many people grabbing their crotch though occasional I see people grabbing other people's crotches.
 
Is this some kind of chakra-music thing?

late post:
don't really see many people grabbing their crotch

M. Jackson?

Madonna?

Pee Wee Herman?
 
Last edited:
Ivan Seeking said:
M. Jackson?
Not a fan. Maybe I don't see it because I don't listen to these musicians.

Come to think of it most of what I hear about Micheal Jackson is him grabbing other people's crotches too.
 
Ivan said:
Pee Wee Herman?
Ok you go tme on that one. The last I heard about him was him grabbing his crotch.
 
Hm, were they grabbing the crotch of their pants, because that's nowhere near their crotch. :rolleyes:
 
Ivan Seeking said:
I keep seeing this commercial from Best Buys with The Black Eyed Peas. The lead singer looks like he has to go to the bathroom. :smile:

Sorry, my software for work was delayed and my finger hurts too much to work on the bathroom, so I notice these things. :biggrin:

Could be suggestive, pain, embarrassment or over active glands they can drive
you nuts
 
I have seen that voice teachers tell their students to produce the sound deep in their gut; down in the diaphram. Has this guy just taken things too far? :biggrin:

I'm serious though. I don't see how this could be considered cool. He looks to be in great distress and needing to pee.
 
I haven't seen the commercial since I don't watch TV these days but there is this picture floating around of Fergie of the BEP with a wet spot in her crotch, as if she had wet herself. But you did say it was a guy (will.i.am?).
 
  • #10
Ivan Seeking said:
I keep seeing this commercial from Best Buys with The Black Eyed Peas. The lead singer looks like he has to go to the bathroom. :smile:
Perhaps he tries to convey the image that he has a raging, barely controllable hard-on??
 
  • #11
Ivan, I know what you're talking about. I see it a lot among the teens in that same segment of the population that wears over-sized pants (when are those going to go out of style?). I figure they're doing that to keep their pants from falling off. :biggrin: A belt really would be a better way to go, especially since my first thought when I see a teen or young adult male walking around holding his crotch in public is that he really ought to see a doctor to get that rash checked out.
 
  • #12
Ivan Seeking said:
I have seen that voice teachers tell their students to produce the sound deep in their gut; down in the diaphram. Has this guy just taken things too far? :biggrin:

When I was in my high school chorus, every once in a while, the tenors had to reach some note that was clearly above their voice range, and they'd grab their crotch as a joke that it might help them hit those higher notes. The only effect is had was to get the girls to roll their eyes (or we'd volunteer to kick them if they thought it would help) and the boys to erupt with laughter. The director just ignored them, apparently she'd seen that joke many, many, many times before.
 
  • #13
As an experiment, I am grabbing mine right now.


hmmm...


Nope. Doesn't feel cool...


hmmm...



Feels a little warm though...



hmmm...


I'll get back to you later with the results. :-p
 
  • #14
Hey, don't you need a control for that experiment?

Quick! Someone grab my crotch!

We'll compare results afterwards.
 
  • #15
Smurf said:
Hey, don't you need a control for that experiment?

Quick! Someone grab my crotch!

We'll compare results afterwards.
True, and it is much more fun to have someone else do the grabbing.
 
  • #16
It's not like I dislike getting grabbed, but what's wrong with grabbing? :confused:
 
  • #17
Shut up ardy and just grab my crotch.
 
  • #18
Smurf said:
Shut up ardy and just grab my crotch.
Sorry, I don't like lamb chop suey.
 
  • #19
Damnit! WILL NO ONE GRAB MY CROTCH!?!?!?!??11/1//

It's like high school all over again :cry:
 
  • #20
Smurf said:
Damnit! WILL NO ONE GRAB MY CROTCH!?!?!?!??11/1//

It's like high school all over again :cry:
Looks like I'll get my erotic childhood stories after all. Let the healing begin! Go on, Smurf, when did this problem first arise? How did you handle it?
 
  • #21
I would think his problem arose at night-times first. Then it grew bigger and bigger all too frequently.
 
  • #22
TheStatutoryApe said:
Ok you go tme on that one. The last I heard about him was him grabbing his crotch.
Yeah, but it didn't make him cool.

This has been going on for decades - didn't Elvis start it?
 
  • #23
I m positive this gesture grew out of "rap". It is a socially unacceptable, and therefore aggressive, "in your face" thing to do, that fits well with the unacceptable vocabulary and attitudes that music is all about.

The gesture went mainstrean when Michael Jackson adopted it long ago in his music video Bad. The whole point behind this song and video was for Jackson to shake off the sissy, effeminate, and also harmless edge he'd demonstrated in many of his formerly "tender" and "sweet" pop songs. In Bad he tries to present a kind of street gang image of himself and assures us through the lyrics: "I'm bad. I'm bad. Ya know it!" that he is not a wuss, and backs this assertion up by grabbing his crotch while making a kind of "chip on the shoulder", "how do you like this, sucka," grimace, showing us he's no timid Mr. Milktoast. a lot of his under-age-10 fans were quite convinced, I think.

I haven't seen the commercial in question, though, and can't vouch for it being done there in the same spirit as the "rap" gesture.
 
  • #24
I used to have a problem with F.O.T.L. underpants not quite holding everything in the proper position. Which required frequent crotch grabbing and adjustment of said area. When asked by my parents why I did that (I was rather young at the time) I said, "It's too big and slips out of my underpants." To which my dad replied with a grin, "That's my boy." and my mom just said, "We will have to get you different underpants." :approve:

So, my point is, he probably needs different underpants. :biggrin:
 
  • #25
zoobyshoe said:
I haven't seen the commercial in question, though, and can't vouch for it being done there in the same spirit as the "rap" gesture.
I don't know that commercial either, but the teens I see are just walking around holding their crotch, looking like a toddler who has to pee, as Ivan said. It's entirely different from a quick, "In your face," or "Don't mess with me" grab that you see in Michael Jackson's, and others', dance moves or the vulgar gesture that's intended to tell someone to **** off. It really gives me much more of an impression that they have an STD and are in pain or seriously itching or something terribly uncomfortable that they are hanging on to keep things from jiggling around too much while walking.
 
  • #26
Artman said:
I used to have a problem with F.O.T.L. underpants not quite holding everything in the proper position. Which required frequent crotch grabbing and adjustment of said area. When asked by my parents why I did that (I was rather young at the time) I said, "It's too big and slips out of my underpants." To which my dad replied with a grin, "That's my boy." and my mom just said, "We will have to get you different underpants." :approve:

So, my point is, he probably needs different underpants. :biggrin:
I'm sure Ivan knows the difference between a guy needing to "adjust himself" and holding on like he needs to pee. :wink:
 
  • #27
Moonbear said:
I don't know that commercial either, but the teens I see are just walking around holding their crotch, looking like a toddler who has to pee, as Ivan said. It's entirely different from a quick, "In your face," or "Don't mess with me" grab that you see in Michael Jackson's, and others', dance moves or the vulgar gesture that's intended to tell someone to **** off.
I'm sure they all used to be "bad". Now they're just phoning it in.
 
  • #28
Moonbear said:
I'm sure Ivan knows the difference between a guy needing to "adjust himself" and holding on like he needs to pee. :wink:
:rolleyes: You mean I shouldn't have thrust my hips forward and said, "Oooooh!" each time I did it? :biggrin:
 
  • #29
No, you should have squeaked "Oops! I did it again!"
 
  • #30
arildno said:
No, you should have squeaked "Oops! I did it again!"
That definitely would not help clarify the question of "adjust or pee."
 

Similar threads

Do iPADs/iPAD Pros Ever Go on Big Sales?
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
1K
Undergrad What is the secret behind Shi Yan Ming's extraordinary punching power?
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
3K
COVID Reaction to COVID-19 Vaccine (or what to be prepared for)
  • · Replies 287 ·
10
Replies
287
Views
29K
Engineering I’m having second thoughts about my job position. How can I proceed with it?
  • · Replies 13 ·
Replies
13
Views
6K
The Scientist as Hero - or not
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
4K
Electrical Heating Problem with DIY A/C Electromagnet
  • · Replies 23 ·
Replies
23
Views
7K
Medical Seeing "Photon & Floater" Orbs: 23yo with 16/20 Vision
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
4K
What are your thoughts on 'Ad Astra' and Will Smith's upcoming Gemini Man?
  • · Replies 12 ·
Replies
12
Views
5K
Jestilla Atilla's Journey Through the Warp: A Warhammer 40k Tale
  • · Replies 23 ·
Replies
23
Views
9K
What Happened to the Christmas Dove? A Tale of Survival and Compassion
  • · Replies 72 ·
3
Replies
72
Views
13K