Why Olivia Rodrigo's babydoll dress is feminist – and not "weird".
Sometimes, celebrities are called out for actual crimes, but other times, the reason they receive hate seems far-fetched. At a recent concert, Olivia Rodrigo wore a pink, floral “babydoll dress" paired with shorts and knee-high boots. What some saw as a pretty, but rather normal, stage outfit was the next big controversy for others.
The “Babydoll Dress” Controversy
On 8 May, Olivia Rodrigo performed an exclusive gig for the Spotify Billions Club Life Series. Backlash began when pictures and videos of her outfit started circulating online. Users on social media criticised her “Lolita aesthetic”, accusing her of dressing “for the male gaze” and of “infantilising herself”, as if she wore a diaper on stage. Some even went so far as to call her “pedo-bait”.
The Babydoll Dress – A Symbol Of Emancipation And Revolution
It seems ironic that people are accusing Rodrigo of "catering to the male gaze" when this type of dress is associated with feminism and emancipation. Do people not do any research before speaking up?
The origin of the babydoll dress as a fashion piece lies in the 1940s, when Slyvia Pedlar created short nightgowns in response to wartime fabric shortages.
During the "Riot Grrrl Movement" of the '90s, musicians such as Courtney Love paired similar dresses with smeared lipstick, dark mascara, and ripped tights. They incorporated feminine elements into their edgy style to draw attention to sexual violence, a theme often featured in their songwriting. The Riot Girls created a new aesthetic called "kinderwhore", intended to subvert traditional femininity and the patriarchy.
But even before Courtney Love and Sylvia Pedlar popularised it, the babydoll dress had a very special meaning. It originated in Mardi Gras in New Orleans, where women working in the red light district wore short satin skirts with bloomers to comment on racism, break taboos and defy gender roles.
It’s Not Weird If You Don’t Make It Weird
Not everything a woman does has a sexual meaning. Especially not a simple dress. To me, it’s strange that we are putting a rather simple stage outfit like this in a sexual context, instead of questioning why this projection is even happening.
Because the reason this projection is happening is the “male gaze”, which users claim Olivia is catering to. The term describes the way women in media are often framed through a voyeuristic lens designed for the pleasure of heterosexual male audiences. Importantly, the male gaze refers to the perspective imposed onto women – not the women themselves. By ignoring the dress’s feminist history, critics are stripping it of its original meaning and reducing it to an object of the very male gaze they claim to critique.
In a post-Epstein world, people are slowly becoming aware of the huge impact that pedophilia has had on our beauty standards and even our fashion. This might explain why many people reacted to the babydoll dress in the way that they did. However, the problem lies with the people behind these structures – the actual predators.
Ultimately, whether or not you are aware of its history, sometimes a dress is just a dress. If you see anything weird in it, maybe your own projections and objectification are the actual problem.
