On a recent episode of Life’s But A Song with Jon Reilly we dove into the animated classic, The Chipmunk Adventure. In that, we got into how both groups of singing rodents don’t get enough recognition as pop icons. The Chipmunks, of course, dating back to the late ‘50s. However, their female counterparts wouldn’t enter the picture until the early ‘80s, and that my dears is when I feel things took the best turn they ever could for Alvin, Simon, and Theodore may’ve started the car, but it was Brittany, Jeannette, and Eleanor who were going to keep that tank full.
Not to discredit my Chipmunks. I love them dearly but having the Chipettes increased the value of the show, and made it more well-rounded. Like when The Big Bang Theory realized Penny was great, but the girl needed female counterparts, as did the show as a whole. Plus, with MTV grabbing the attention of every teen with cable, people were scrambling to see how they could spin it and make money off those teens’ younger siblings, and Alvin & the Chipmunks were there delivering all the hits of the ‘80s. Think of them as the Kidz Bop of their day.
Of course, the Chipmunks were alone in their efforts. Right alongside them were three female chipmunks who could also sing, dance, and speak perfectly to humans. What kind of reality did Dave Seville live in, and what does a girl have to do to get there? Anyway, The Chipettes may have never been the headliner of the shows and movies that followed, but that doesn’t mean their impact is any less. While Alvin and Co. could belt out the likes of Michael Jackson weekly, it’s the moments where Brittany was living her best “Material Girl” life or all three were proving that “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” where I felt seen.
There was a crush brewing on Alvin when I was a kid, but my love of that chipmunk who rocked nothing but what I’m assuming were Converse and an oversized sweater was nothing compared to my adoration of The Chipettes. I was alone in this. Jon, from a few paragraphs ago, that Jon. He said Brittany was like his first pop girl diva, and, um, YES. For millennials, before the other Britney, Christina, hell – even before Mariah – we were watching cartoons, and those of us who were too young for Jem and the Holograms, definitely attached ourselves to the pop princess royalty that lived in a tree in the middle of a park…I mean, what was that setup? Loved it, but..CPS, where you at?
The Chipettes introduced a generation to music that they might have been too young to hear or perhaps sounded too adult with a real-life grown-up sang them. However, because they were animated, it felt more on our level. It’s likely why those Chipmunk movies, Trolls, and Kidz Bop are so popular with kids. They allow them to have pop music in a way that feels like it’s tailor-made for them. So when we do reach an age in which we can start forming actual opinions about our likes and dislikes, we’ll already have a base built. For my people, for millennials, that base was built by three ladies.
In the lengthy history of girl groups, icons that have shaped the fundamental idea of girl power in music, The Chipettes deserve a section when it comes to the ‘80s and beyond for their contribution. They helped raise a generation with pop covers, and are still continuing that tradition whenever they get the chance. Road Chip couldn’t have possibly been the last one, right? Please let me know if there is more 20th Century Fox. But yes, when you think of women in music, women who have set the bar, The Chipettes should most definitely be in the conversation.
Vagina Sing-Alongs 
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