Role Model, Masturbation Song | After Dark

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nnuendo? More like full-on sexual vibes! Welcome to After Dark  , a column featuring songs that are best suited for nighttime, specifically, the bedroom.  Many of the records featured here raise eyebrows, as well as the temperature! These After Dark tunes focus on the universal three-letter word:  SEX. The dark records gracing After Dark are old and new alike, with all genres of music welcome.  On the 28^th edition of After Dark (2022), we explore the naughty, risqué, & sexual vibes behind,  “masturbation song” by  Role Model.

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Theme & Lyrics 

“I touch myself / More than I should be / I think of you / Is that a good thing?” These days, musicians are far blunter and more open.  That is why it’s not surprising that a pop album in 2022 ( Rx) features a track titled  “masturbation song”. Honestly, is there any doubt what  Role Model (Tucker Pillsbury) is referencing? Masturbation has become less taboo but still, seeing it used explicitly in a song title is, well, ‘ballsy’ even in 2022.  Worth noting, Rx is Pillsbury’s debut album.

If you prejudge “masturbation song,” you’ll probably go in expecting Role Model to be anything but a role model – couldn’t resist! Surely, there’s a ‘load’ of dirty talk and swear words.  Honestly, that’s NOT the case at all.  Even the production is totally unexpected, with a tender backdrop ( Spencer Stewart). Pillsbury delivers a sexy, vulnerable performance. Sure, he experiences the pleasure of the act he commits but the focus is on her: “I close my eyes / And I’m right above you / Face in your thighs / You said, ‘I love you.’” In the second verse, the perspective of the ‘solo play’ shifts to her as he sings, “You close your eyes / And I’m right behind you / It’s like I’m inside / When I’m not beside you.”  Sexy. Of course, Tucker does reference the power of photos (hers) and indulging too much (“Lights going dim, my limb is blue”), but again, this ‘blinding’ song is more surprising than not.

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Final Thoughts  

So, what’s the worst sin that Role Model commits? Probably committing to such an un-nuanced song title like  “masturbation song”. Admittedly, I pre-judged it, as previously stated.  I expected one thing and was pleasantly surprised by how much more thoughtful this After Dark   song was.  I’m not sure Role Model is a role model, but he has plenty of potential as a pop star of the future.

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 Role Model •  Rx •  Interscope •  2022

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Role Model, “Masturbation Song”: After Dark   No. 28 (2022) [: Brent Faulkner, cottonbro, Darkmoon_Art, Interscope, JJ Whitley, Ketut Subiyanto, KoolShooters, Luan Queiros, The Musical Hype, Pexels, Pixabay, Tazz Vaughn]

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