July 30, 2005
Pimp Tones - Ringtones that slap you around
Now here's something new in the world of ringtones, Bell Mobility is selling a series of cellphone ringtones called Pimp Tones that make light of prostitution and refer to women as "bitches," "skanks" and "hoes."
Unlike conventional ringtones that play melodies or short clips of popular songs, the PimpTones are voice recordings of actors speaking in a street vernacular about "players" and "hoes" (whores). Some of the explicit language in the ringtones is beeped out, but can still be easily understood.
The PimpTones clips evoke stereotypes from the Blaxploitation films of the 1970s, such The Mack and SuperFly. They featured African-American pimps who dressed in garish clothes, drove big cars and commanded stables of "hoes."
The genre has made a comeback, with a remake of 1971's Shaft released in 2000 and a new version of SuperFly in the works.
The PimpTones do suggest abusive behaviour, however humorous the intent. In one clip, an actor speaking in a deep baritone says, "You have an incoming message from Master Silk Macktastic's hand to your face," which is followed by a slapping sound and a muffled cry."
The picture on the left actually comes from a place online called Pimp Costumes and it's entitled "Fifty Cent Pimp". Isn't that wild? But you'll have to rent your own cadillac somwhere else.
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