Media blog 2

  Background and historical contexts 1)  Why does the writer link the song to cinematic soundtracks and music hall tradition? Formed in 1977 and arguably the most influential band of the UK’s  2 Tone Ska  scene, “Ghost Town”, a skewed ska oddity, was written by Jerry Dammers, The Specials’ keyboardist and released in June 1981. It was their last song before splitting up and reforming as The Special AKA and stayed at the top of the UK charts for three weeks. It’s an odd, eerie song, nodding to pop convention and sitting wilfully outside of it. It’s included, in passing, in Dorian Lynskey’s beautifully written book on protest songs,  “33 Revolutions Per Minute” , but unlike the band’s “Free Nelson Mandela” does not merit its own chapter. Perhaps because “Ghost Town” cannot be “placed”. It’s not explicitly against any one event. It does not exhort its listeners into any one particular political view. It is not part of any one social movement for change. It is, rather, a stealth protest s

Wider reading on race and Old Town Road 1) What are the visual cues the article lists as linked to the western genre?  cowboy hats cow prints rhinestones fringed suede jackets 2) How did the Yeehaw agenda come about?  In September 2018, the trend of black pop-culture figures wearing cowboy garb was dubbed the “ Yeehaw Agenda ” by  Bri Malandro , a Texas-based pop-culture archivist. Her Instagram account, also called @theyeehawagenda, functions as both an archive and celebration of black cowboy aesthetics in popular culture.  3) Why has it been suggested that the black cowboy has been 'erased from American culture'?  Wrangling cattle and the riding, training, and keeping of horses are practices that have been mastered by black Americans since the 1800s, but the impact that African American men and women have had on cowboy culture is not well known. During the Civil War, Texas slaveowners left cattle wrangling up to the black slaves they purchased while the slaveowners fought in

  Background and cultural contexts 1) What is the big debate regarding Old Town Road and genre?  Earlier this year,   Billboard removed “Old Town Road” from its country chart, which boosted the rapper’s profile to a wider audience while fueling a debate about what defines country music and who gets to decide. 2) What do you learn about the background of Lil Nas X and Old Town Road from the podcast transcript? Old Town Road” debuted in the 19th spot on the March 16 edition of Billboard ’s Hot Country Songs chart. But the following week it was gone — having been moved to the Hot Rap Songs chart, where it entered at No. 24. 3) What is the Yeehaw agenda? The Yee haw agenda . This woman, Bri Malandro, tweeted about how a lot of black artists are getting interested in sort of the country aesthetic. And the way that Lil Nas X factored into that is, while people were picking up on the good ol’ cowboy/cowgirl aesthetic, his song was circulating on Twitter and he made it available for free on T

  Music Video introduction   1) What is the purpose of a music video? The purpose of a music video is to sell products, the most obvious  of which is the song featured in the video. However, other connected  products are also marketed by a music video. For example, the  album the song is featured on, the film the song is part of the  soundtrack for, an upcoming tour by the artist and merchandise like  t-shirts. However, music videos are an unusual form of marketing   as they allow the audience full access to the product they are selling.  When a music video is shown, the audience is able to hear the song  the video is for so they are ‘getting’ the product that is being  promoted. When other products are advertised, such as a brand of  coffee or an item of clothing, the advert suggests the product is  desirable but the audience does not get to taste the coffee or wear  the clothes. 2) How has the digital age changed the production and distribution of music videos? Prior to the digital