Love, music, and reproduction

Is there a correlation between the rise of adolescent pregnancies in the country and popular “hugot” culture?

A recent report from the Commission on Population and Development states that “In 2019, 2,411 girls considered as very young adolescents aged 10 to 14 gave birth, or almost seven every day. This was a three-fold increase from 2000, when only 755 from the said age group gave birth.”

In Nick Hornby’s 1995 fictional book “High Fidelity,” its protagonist argues about the major influence of music on our youth. “Nobody worries about kids listening to thousands, literally thousands of songs about heartbreak, rejection, pain, misery and loss,” he says. “Did I listen to pop music because I was miserable? Or was I miserable because I listened to pop music?”

Of course, music spans a wide variety of themes and subjects, but what have always remained dominant are those about love and romance. In the early 2000s, mainstream music in the Philippines was in well-balanced form, theme-wise. But, today, it’s a virtual monopoly of romantic songs. To be clear, this is different from genres, as we are not referring to the sound or type of the music but the lyrics and overall message conveyed. Songs about unrequited love, betrayal, heartache from ex-lovers, and being in love—these all drive forward the idea of the need for a romantic partner. And in today’s modern ethos, romance usually leads to sex. It’s the next level whether we like it or not, especially among young lovers.

With the power of social media, it has never been easier to communicate, share, and popularize trends and strengthen them, much more exploit them. In the world of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, etc., lines and boundaries between age groups are all too easily blurred. It’s taxing to filter the audience for each post, thereby somehow removing our sense of judiciousness to say things to only a certain group of people. So what we share—songs, memes, videos — are almost always seen by everyone in our network.

In a New York Times piece analyzing data from music streaming sites that suggest that people get stuck in the music of their youth by age 30, economist Seth Stephens-Davidowitz notes that “The most important period for men in forming their adult tastes were the ages 13 to 16, (while) for women the ages were 11 to 14.” In other words, what you listen to during your adolescence is very crucial, as it impacts your choices in the present and in the future.

We can’t, of course, blame kids for being easily influenced by trends. We can, however, appeal to and call out songwriters, especially mainstream artists, to have a more responsible, conscientious approach in the messages they wish to send out. A song is not just a song. It’s a seed—an idea that grows inside one’s head and has the capacity to shape and control one’s mindset.

Obviously, there lies, too, the responsibility of the government to increase information dissemination about proper reproductive health and such, and for adult social media users to be more careful about what they post and who can see such information. Ideally, in the virtual world, we should all be part of the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board and the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas, aware of the impact of whatever we put out, and Filipino artists, in particular, extra-conscious of our tremendous responsibility as molders of the younger generations.

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Rob Equiza is a Filipino singer-songwriter who has been writing, recording, and producing his own music since 2007. Through his independent record label, Jam Lemon Records, he releases music, as well as specializes in artist development of up-and-coming talent.