Marcia's Musings

After giving birth to twins, JLo, now 40 and even more fabulous has entered a new stage. But not everyone is welcoming the old Jen with open arms. While anyone with her body should receive accolades, she’s been getting nothing but flack for what many judge as poor clothing choices. This is odd. She's renowned for dressing precisely for her body, showing off her curves, and certainly inspiring women like Kim Kardashian to flaunt theirs proudly and ride their bootyliciousness all the way to the bank. But it seems that once Jenny from the Block became a mom, she's viewed through a different set of rose-colored lens: one that frowns upon mothers being overtly sexual. Robin Givhan, the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist currently covering fashion for TheDailyBeast.com, wondered about how appropriate J.Lo's choice of outfit was for the AMAs.

While I agreed (the Fiat fiasco combined with the grinding on Pit Bull made it all the more disturbing) with Robin's critique, it made me truly wonder about celebrities and their sex appeal. More specifically, those mogul mom celebs like JLo, Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, and mom-to-be Beyonce.

Can a pregnant celebrity ever get her sexy back once she’s given birth? Think about it: If the rumors were true (and we know they are not) that Janet Jackson had a secret child (or if they knew she was married), I wonder if men and women alike would still be accepting of her onstage antics and increasing risque lyrics post "Control." If you’ve ever been to one of her concerts, you know grown men lose their God-fearing minds during the S&M and sexual simulation segment of her show.

Once Britney and Christina both had children, it took a long time for eithr of them to get back on top. Britney had issues with Kevin Federline, notwithstanding and lost it; but Christina was in a seemingly happy marriage. Yet when she tried to come back out with an album that followed up her  "Dirty" persona, people weren't buying it. So much so that she had to cancel her tour because of lackluster ticket sales. Even Mariah was recently chastised for playing the sexy Santa in her performance with Justin Bieber, though it's a role she's been doing since Tommy Mottola introduced her to the world.

A Beyonce performance is sexy, but never really about sex, say like Christina or Rihanna, the latter borrowing from Janet's and Maddona's stage show circa the 1990s with S&M references and the former taking a page out of Cher's play book. But as Beyonce, who is our culture's top mogul mom, readies to give birth I find myself wondering if the public will still be accepting of her as a sex symbol. And wondering if her dance routines or lyrics will change. Never one to dress as overtly sexy or daring as J.Lo, she is, nonetheless, as my mother says, "the queen of dutty whine." And with lyrics like "Grind up on it, girl, show him how you ride it," from "Countdown," I wonder what will a post-pregnant Beyonce music career look like. Can she, JLo or Mariah pull off being a MILF without scrutiny and a dive in music sales? 

Suffice it to say most are fine with seeing single women openly express their sexuality.  And while we understand the notion that married mothers are sexual beings too, society expects more from our women who are mothers; like most expect more from women who are of a certain age. Afterall, no one wants to be as Kerry Washington said in the Chris Rock movie “I Think I Love My Wife,” the old bitch up in the club.

Just how far do you think a mother or a woman over 40 can push her sexual persona?