Can Nick Jonas Be A Sex Symbol?
Disney Channel child stars have been making the transition from innocent to sexualized images for so long that it almost seems futile to get upset about it anymore. While Miley Cyrus has been grabbing the headlines for it lately, Britney Spears made a similar switch to sexy queen of pop a decade earlier. Still, the use of the men of Disney Channel has been largely untapped, but that was until Nick Jonas started appearing in magazines grabbing his crotch a few weeks ago.
Nick’s image upheaval has been quite palpable, not to mention heavily reported on in the media. Not all of that press has been positive — Jonas has been criticized for baiting gay male fans to buy his music by using his body. A recent article in Vice discussed why Jonas may be going for such a niche market at this time, one that included a recent show with a drag queen that Nick made an appearance at.
“This appearance marked the beginning of Jonas’s aggressively gay-friendly publicity campaign for his first post–Jonas Brothers album, Nick Jonas, and you might wonder why he bothers with the Up & Down and the drag queen and the ab-baring and all that. Why would the teeny bopper turn to homos to hawk his new record? It could be because his career is in a precarious position. Truth be told, only three stars have had impressive careers after being in a boy band—Justin Timberlake, Michael Jackson, and Bobby Brown—and the latter two aren’t exactly role models.”
Many of Nick’s old fans haven’t been receptive of the new shift in his image. After all, the Jonas brothers had one of the cleanest reputations a tween-focused music producer could ask for — complete with purity rings. A recent review of Jonas’ new album in The Daily Emerald lamented Nick’s new shirt-popping persona.
“The loss of innocence has left Jonas struggling at the crossroads of former boy-band icon and future brooding badass where he is attempting to find his true self. After years of forced purity by Disney, he is now free to do whatever (or whoever, apparently) he wants. Much like Miley Cyrus, another Disney star has fallen into a life of overt sexuality, yet for Jonas, there are few critics speaking out against him.”
One thing is clear — Nick Jonas definitely doesn’t have any problems showing skin anymore. It looks like Miley Cyrus better watch out — even if according to some they aren’t baiting the same crowd.
[Image via IMWallpapers]
