Approved for Girls: Music

This post is part of my "Approved for Girls"-series, find inspiration for movies for little girls in this post. If you want to contribute to this blog by writing your own "Approved for Girls" post, email me mamapoekie at yahoo dot com. 

Image: Victoria White on Flickr

Some time ago, I had a conversation on Twitter with Melissa from Pigtail Pals about appropriate music for girls. I’m not talking about fake girl power songs or delusional things like Beyoncé’s “Girls... Rule the World”. We were looking for real powerful songs for girls, about girls, things that would give our girls something to listen to that makes them aspire to more than being ‘thug bitch’ or ‘sexy MF’, songs that sing about something other then love. Songs with a message, a great story or a source of inspiration. So I searched my Itunes database long and hard and here’s what I have found.
Again, during my search, I have found that I like a lot of these songs myself, and certainly found lots of inspiration and like-mindedness in them when I was a misunderstood teen, feeling alone at the edge of the world.

So here it is, my list of inspirational songs for girls:

1. Amel Bent - Compliquée (A 20 Ans)
2. Amel Bent - A 20 Ans (A 20 Ans)
3. Neneh Cherry - Woman
4. Alicia Keys - Superwoman (As I am)
5. Alicia Keys - The Life (Songs in A Minor)
6. Anngun - In Your Mind (Luminescence)
7. Anngun - Something Sublime (Luminescence)
8. Anouk - Jerusalem (Hotel New York)
9. Anouk - Nobody’s Wife (Together Alone)
10. Anouk - The Other Side of Me (Together Alone)
11. Anouk - My Life (Together Alone)
12. Babyface - How Come, How Long
13. Avril Lavigne - How Does It Feel (Under My Skin)
14. Avril Lavigne - Nobody’s Home (Under My Skin)
15. Ciara - Like a Boy
16. Billy Joel - She’s Always a Woman
17. Ciara - Goodies
18. Destiny’s Child - Survivor
19. Destiny’s Child - Girl
20. Dido - Life for Rent
21. Dolly Parton - Just Because I’m a Woman
22. Dolly Parton - Working Girl
23. Janet Jackson - Special (Velvet Rope)
24. Pussycat Dolls - Beep (PCD)
25. Pussycat Dolls - I Don’t Need a Man (PCD)
26. Mariah Carey - Looking in (Daydream)
27. Spooks - Things I’ve Seen
28. Sia - Breathe Me
29. Janet Jackson - What About (Velvet Rope)
30. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Breaking the Girl
31. Madonna - What it Feels Like For a Girl (Music)
32. Pink - Lonely Girl (Missundastood)
33. Whitney Houston - I’m Every Woman (The Bodyguard)
34. Gloria Gaynor - I Will Survive
35. Britney SPears - Stronger
36. Bjork - Army of Me (Post)
37. Garbage - Queer
38. Bon Jovi - Runaway

And a couple of albums that are a collection of powerful songs for girls:

1. Christina Aguilera - Stripped
2. Anouk - Together Alone
3. Avril Lavigne - The Best Damn Thing
4. Cindy Lauper - She’s so Unusual
5. Dolly Parton - Coat of Many Colors
6. Evanescence - Fallen
7. Lauryn Hill - The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
8. Lilly Allen - Alright, Still
9. Skunk Anansie - Stoosh
10. Lilly Allen - It’s Not Me, It’s You
11. No Doubt - Tragic Kingdom
12. Alanis Morissette - Jagged Little Pill
13. Hole - Celebrity Skin
14. Evanescence - The Open Door
15. K’s Choice - Almost Happy
16. K’s Choice - Believe
17. K’s Choice - Paradise in Me
18. Nelly Furtado - Folklore

I deliberately did not include songs like “Stupid Girl” from Pink or “Nasty Girl” from Destiny’s child, because I don’t think that we can empower women by trashing other women. If you have some suggestions to add to this list, please add them below, and I will check them out.

Approved for Girls: Music