Parental Advisory
The label was first affixed on physical 331⁄3 rpm records, compact discs and cassette tapes, and it has been included on digital listings offered by online music stores.
Recordings with the Parental Advisory label are often released alongside an uncut censored version that reduces, eliminates or replaces the objectionable material.
Shortly after their formation in April 1985, the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC) assembled a list of fifteen songs with deemed unsuitable content.
Particular criticism was placed on "Darling Nikki" by Prince, after PMRC co-founder Mary "Tipper" Gore bought the album Purple Rain for her 11-year-old daughter Karenna, unaware that the song's lyrics included an explicit mention of masturbation.
The RIAA alternatively suggested using a warning label reading "Parental Guidance: Explicit Lyrics", and after continued conflict between the organizations, the matter was discussed on September 19 during a hearing with the United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Notable musicians Frank Zappa, Dee Snider, and John Denver each testified at this hearing with strong opposition to PMRC's warning label system, and censorship in general.
[2] In 1990, the now standard black-and-white warning label design reading "Parental Advisory: Explicit Lyrics" was introduced and was to be placed on the bottom right-hand section of a given product.
Audio recordings that include Parental Advisory labels in their original formats are generally released in censored versions that reduce or completely eliminate the questionable material.
[10] Walmart and their affiliated properties are well known for only carrying censored versions of records; in one instance, the retailer refused to distribute Green Day's 2009 album 21st Century Breakdown because they were not given the "clean" copies that they requested.
[8] Tom Cole from NPR commented that the Parental Advisory label has become "a fact of music-buying life", which made it difficult for current consumers to understand the widespread controversy that came about from its introduction.
