I grew up on the edge 70s glam, right through its 80s incarnation as hair metal, and then 90s acceptance of gender play. Bowie, New York Dolls; Poison and Motley Crue's eyeliner misogyny; and Kurt Cobain showing up on Headbangers Ball in a full ball gown. There are tons of examples of male artists finding ways to play with gender roles, but very few of women. Female artists, to have any chance at mainstream success, are stuck with the dichotomy of playing the sexy vixen, or the good, innocent virgin.
The recent popularity of artists like Janelle Monae and La Roux's Elly Jackson provided some much needed androgyny that didn't play to some male fantasy. (Yeah, Madonna wore a suit in "Express Yourself" but with a hefty dose of self-awareness, and her co-opting of gay culture never sat right with me.)
