You've seen the sticker: "Parental Advisory Explicit Content." That black-and-white blip on music packaging and in online music stores might be small, but it comes with some major baggage. In fact, it's been almost 25 years since the label was first used, and yet many parents still don't know exactly what it means. Here's the lowdown.
The parental advisory labeling system was created in 1985 by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It lays out general guidelines for whether or not an album is inappropriate for kids. An album gets the label if it contains "strong language or depictions of violence, sex or substance abuse" to such an extent as to merit "parental notification." However, the RIAA goes on to state that the "context of the artist performing the material, as well as the expectations of the artist's audience" and "contemporary cultural morals and standards" should be taken into account. In short, the decision to label an album is subjective and depends largely on context and what's generally acceptable as moral.
The label program itself is voluntary on the part of record labels and not required by law. So just because an album doesn't have a sticker does not mean it's automatically kid-friendly. Likewise, stickered albums might be just fine by one parent, but absolutely offensive and inappropriate to the next. It all depends on your values system and what you consider offensive.
For example, take Pink's recent album, Funhouse. Her label, Sony BMG's LaFace Records, chose to put a "strong language" warning on the cover. (It's Sony BMG's policy to add additional information, including language warnings, to the basic explicit content label.) The singer does use some expletives, but to some parents, her strong, independent image might be preferable to that of an objectified Britney Spears. In the end, it's your call.
British singer Kate Nash's album, Made of Bricks, also has a warning label. She uses a single curse word in an album mostly filled with lovelorn ballads. On the flip side, a number of Nine Inch Nails albums do not bear the sticker. While the lyrics on these albums may or may not contain profanity (and indeed some of them do), you can be sure these albums deal with some dark themes. In short, if you really want to know what your kids are listening to, the best option is to listen to it yourself, or look up the lyrics online. (Just search for an album or song title—you'll find a wealth of information.) The parental advisory label can be a helpful tool, but it's by no means fail-safe.
Here's a final point to consider: Some chain stores, including Walmart, have policies banning all albums with parental advisory warnings, prompting some record labels to release edited versions of any album they believe has explicit content. This might be an alternative if your kids really like a certain artist whose music contains expletives or other questionable language.
E-commerce sites like Napster and iTunes clearly mark albums that carry the parental advisory label, so if you're concerned about what your children are listening to, make sure to talk to them about what they are allowed to download. Both of these services also allow parents to block labeled albums from their kids' searches, so check for parental control options the next time you log on.
