Youthful rebellion and societal evolution practically guarantee that there will always be some kind of language barrier between different generations. Words tend to take on new meanings over the course of several decades, some for the better and others for the worse. “Sick” eventually came to mean “cool.” Once-accepted terms for people of a certain race, gender, or sexuality become taboo—and rightfully so—as civil rights grow and improve.

In a one-on-one context, these language barriers can manifest as, say, the shock we’ve all felt when our parent or grandparent says something utterly inappropriate or politically incorrect. But on a greater scale, this can show up in retrospective opinions about music, some of which are more readily accepted than others. In the case of electronic artist Moby denouncing The Kinks’ 1970 track “Lola”, the backlash didn’t work in the lasher’s favor.

Moby Called Out The Kinks’ “Lola” for Transphobic Content

The Kinks released “Lola” as a single in the summer of 1970, encapsulating the “free love” attitude of the Swinging Sixties and showcasing the rock band’s signature jangly sound. The track was an international hit, peaking at No. 2 in their native United Kingdom, No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100, and topping the charts in Ireland, South Africa, New Zealand, and the Netherlands. “Lola” became inextricably linked to The Kinks’ musical legacy.

Over four decades after The Kinks first released “Lola”, Moby (who, as a side note, was five years old when the song came out) publicly criticized the song for its “transphobic,” “gross,” and “unevolved” lyrics. And while there is merit to wanting to defend the LGBTQ+ community, backlash to Moby’s backlash would suggest that the community didn’t feel like they needed defending.

Members of the trans community came to the song’s defense, effectively arguing the opposite of what Moby was saying. The song, they argued, wasn’t transphobic at all. On the contrary, it was a song about a man becoming enamored with the titular Lola, who “walks like a woman and talks like a man,” and not caring about her gender identity at all. Elsewhere in the song, Ray Davies sings, “Girls will be boys and boys will be girls / It’s a mixed up, muddled up, shook up world, except for Lola / la-la-la-la Lola.”

Ray and Dave Davies Pushed Back Against the Criticism

For whatever it’s worth, it doesn’t seem like Moby’s argument that “Lola” was transphobic has done much to sully The Kinks’ reputation. Most people brushed off Moby’s comments—most importantly, this includes the individuals whom Moby felt the song was disenfranchising. Still, The Kinks’ Ray and Dave Davies took the opportunity to say their piece, too. The first question on both men’s minds? “Who the f*** is Moby?”

Speaking to The Telegraph in 2026, Dave Davies reiterated the fact that “Lola” was a celebration of gender expression, not a criticism of it. He also admitted that Moby’s comments were “quite upsetting.” “I worried that it could turn people against us because it can feel like people are becoming weirder by the day. They are always quick to judge and make assumptions about others. It is very rigid thinking. They don’t know that there is always a backstory. It can be dangerous to smear people.”

Indeed, it really is a “mixed up, muddled up, shook-up world,” but not because of people like Lola or the songs that The Kinks sing about them.

Photo by Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images