Liam Payne, Both Ways | Controversial Tunes 😈🎶

On the 17^th edition of Controversial Tunes, we explore the controversy behind the song, “Both Ways” by Liam Payne. 

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ring on the controversy, won’t you? Controversial Tunes 😈🎶 is a column that provides background information and insight into songs that raised eyebrows and totally stirred the pot.  The records that grace Controversial Tunes are old and new alike, with all genres of music welcome.  On the 17^th edition of Controversial Tunes, we explore the controversy behind the song, 🎵 “Both Ways” by 🎙 Liam Payne. 

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Theme & Lyrics ✍

Liam Payne fell way short with his debut solo album, 💿 LP1 – understatement! It was a F-L-O-P to the nth degree. Making matters worse, he was totally tone deaf on the song 🎵 “Both Ways,” giving cis-hetero men – particularly cis-hetero white men – a bad name everywhere.  How so? He fetishizes bisexuality, even if there are hints he didn’t initiate the sexual experience of which he sings (he’s still totally into it). Expectedly, he was slammed by numerous people, including Buzz Feed, Teen Vogue, and NME.

By far, “Both Ways” is the most polarizing song from the album. Here, Liam’s girlfriend is portrayed as bisexual, hence, why “she like it both ways.” Fair enough.  The problem is rather than respecting her sexuality, making this, say, a transcendent matter about women’s sexuality, it devolves into a trashy threesome, portrayed with cringy, problematic, totally unsexy references.  Regardless of the perpetrator, Payne clearly wants to get freaky with his girlfriend and her girlfriend:

“Lovin’ the way that she’s turning you on
Switching the lanes like a Bugatti Sport
Nothing but luck that she got me involved, yeah
Flipping that body, go head, I go tails
Sharing that body like it’s our last meal
One and a two and a three, that’s for real.”

Sharing that body like it’s our last meal… really? Disgusting!

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Final Thoughts 💭

Did Liam Payne have bad intentions when releasing “Both Ways”? Likely not, however, with his attempt to be edgy and risqué, he fell flat on his bum.  In a time where more respect should be paid to sexuality, Payne’s song cheapens it, setting us back rather than progressing us forward. Do people partake of threesomes? Yes, of course, plus, it’s a porn category. Did we need a bad song about it from an artist who doesn’t even seem to fit the bill as a participant? No. 

Also appears on 🔽:
🔗 🎧 11 of the Absolute Worst Songs of 2019
🔗 🎧 12 Interesting Songs That Reference Bisexuality

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🎙 Liam Payne • 💿 LP1 • 🏷 Capitol • 🗓 2019

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Liam Payne, “Both Ways”: Controversial Tunes 😈🎶 No. 17 [📷: Aidan Feddersen on Unsplash, Brent Faulkner, Capitol, The Musical Hype]

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