“Come on, rude boy, boy, can you get it up?†asks Barbados-born singer Rihanna on her latest single, the aptly-titled “Rude Boy.†The raunchy hit song will likely be in her set list for her May 30 concert at Bloomfield Stadium in Jaffa. Reports say that it has taken “months of negotiations†to get the “Umbrella†songstress over to Israel.
Why should it be a problem for a pop artist to perform in Israel, you may ask? Well, it isn’t much of a problem, providing viewers don’t mind sexually suggestive lyrics and dance moves, skimpy outfits, and violent background sets. It’s understandable that people may be concerned about the nature of her songs and the influence she may have on young listeners, but that pales in comparison to the good she’s done, especially with her latest Israeli initiative.
Tickets for the concert are only available for those who volunteer in a community project. Volunteers must be 16-26 years old and offer up four hours of their time for the project. Sponsored by Orange, the concert initiative has found some resistance amongst individuals who can’t attend. The Jerusalem Post makes a valid point in saying that many who are in the specified age group are in the army and can’t take a break to volunteer or attend a concert.
While that makes sense, objectors should realize that, as Jerusalem Post source Sharon Bar-Lev notes, serving in the army is a sort of community service project. While not voluntary, serving in the Israeli Defense Forces provides an invaluable contribution to the country by its young people. Therefore, the Orange initiative seeks to get others involved in helping out their community. Young soldiers are already doing part of their duty to help out Israel; to motivate others, the Rihanna tickets serve as a wonderful incentive. What teenager wouldn’t like to see one of his or her favorite pop stars singing onstage?
Even if many of Rihanna’s fans are in the army, there are still plenty of younger and older individuals that enjoy her music and would happily attend her concert. In this case, many Israeli soldiers may not be able to attend this concert. That is what it is. The Post article quotes the singer as saying she’ll do her four hours, too. I have an idea: what if Israeli fans got to do their community service alongside Rihanna? How much more amazing would it make seemingly dull tasks like picking up trash or painting fences if a superstar was doing it with you? Even if the job itself doesn’t seem that fun, I’d love to just get a chance to see someone like Rihanna helping out just like I was. We maybe could get a chance even to chat or just work side-by-side.
Something of that caliber would be humbling for both star and fan. Obviously, good work to help out the community is going to happen, but, by creating a true community effort, we could see the pop star put in her hours along with her devoted fans. I could imagine some possible security issues popping up by letting any young individual in, but simple screening could take care of that. It’d make community service that much more fun and get kids to sign up to help out. Maybe they’d even become encouraged to perform more community service!
Israelis should look at the Rihanna experience as a positive one. G-d willing, the soldiers will get their turn to see the singer in concert another day. Let other people get involved on this occasion, maybe even bringing in Rihanna herself as an incentive. That would be a true reward.
