Scott’s lyrics hurt argument

I read with disbelief [Quick Takes: “Jill Scott Assails Images of Women,” July 6] that Jill Scott finds black women degraded in popular music and videos, since she runs at the front of the pack. The first two lines of her latest CD are “I am not afraid to be your lady / I am not afraid to be your whore,” and 14 of the 16 songs are about her lover. Her successful debut CD included a song about two women fistfighting over a man.

Hey, Jill, how about a song or two about a woman’s vision, self-esteem or success?

I consider Jill Scott to be a brilliant artist and singer, and I suggest she take a lesson from Lizz Wright, an equally talented young black singer/songwriter, who assiduously avoids the “Oh, baby, baby” stuff and rises above it by expressing truths beyond combative and contentious relationships.

JOHN HOUCHIN

Santa Barbara