A track from Liam Payne‘s new album LP1 is being widely accused of biphobia, over lyrics that appear to fetishise a bisexual partner and celebrate threesomes.
The track, titled Both Ways, includes lyrics like, “My girl, she like it both ways/She like the way it all taste/Couple more, we’ll call it foreplay.”
In another part of the song, Liam sings: “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.”
It’s being accused of blatant biphobia, playing into harmful stereotypes that bisexual woman are more promiscuous than other women and exist mostly to have threesomes with men.
writing a song about how hot it is that your girlfriend likes it “both ways” and making it about threesomes is biphobic and fetizhizing so stop calling it a bi anthem
— julie❤️🔥 (@roseapothicaire) December 6, 2019
https://twitter.com/adoregeorgia/status/1203013866634039298
https://twitter.com/summafeelin/status/1203020533463502848
https://twitter.com/Imaginedbeer/status/1203036568207933440
Biphobia is related to “inaccurate associations with infidelity, promiscuity, and transmission of sexually transmitted infections,” according to pro-LGBTI rights organisation GLAAD. It’s not just the belief that bisexual people – particularly women – are overly promiscuous and willing to sleep with anyone, but also that female bisexuality exists purely for the male gaze, which brings us back to – ding ding ding – threesomes. Incorrect portrayals in popular culture (and porn) have a lot to answer for.
Bisexual people face biphobia from both the straight and queer communities, while a study published last year found bisexual women were viewed as more promiscuous, confused and neurotic than both straight and lesbian women.
Payne, 26, has been publicly dating model Maya Henry, 19, since September this year. (Note: it’s not clear at all if Maya is the partner Payne is singing about in ‘Both Ways’.) The former One Direction star was recently forced to defend claims he began dating the model when she was just 17, as there was confusion about whether she is 18 or 19 years old. (Payne says she is 19.)
https://www.instagram.com/p/B5oEVOqnNCP/
Payne has yet to make a statement on the ‘Both Ways’ controversy.
