American Execptionlism on Country Music

1178 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: American exceptionalism ideologies and character

American Exceptionlism is basically the idea that we are different then other countries in the world. Which I believe is false because the U.S has these rules but there not really writing down rules there just like norms that American should have. There are certain attributes that a American should have there are things you should know as a American. Now what am I talking about it could be many things such as knowing who the president is in the big chair in D.C or having a huge truck that can drive up heels. Having the U.S flag out on Memorial Day. So many things can be things that make American. What I want to solely focus on is the idea that country music is what it is to be an American and accepted in the U.S. Now I know for myself I am not a big country music fan. I know the normal country music singers such as Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw, Keith Urban, Rascal Flats and etc. Country music I believe is what makes an America America. Now back in the 19 century days being an American was being white and having property and being male. (Foner,) Now when you compare country music to that, most country singers are male and white. And to be a country singer it’s only right if you have large sums of land to own with a big house on it. It’s funny how these two ideas relate to each other in two different centuries. Being male and white can really get you ahead in society. Its idea that isn’t right but it’s the reality of our country. Country music sets the standards on what an American should be life. If you ever google country music the definition of it would say something like an American popular music in the south. (Definition) Key word in the definition AMERICAN and also fiddles. Now all they had in the 1700’s was fiddles to play whe... ... middle of paper ... ...c shouldn’t be seen as what America is like cause it’s not. The U.S is supposed to be the great American melting pot with diverse people and music and jobs and lives and homes and lifestyles. But no one is expressing this cause being different isn’t welcome and that it might be suspicious to other people because you are not doing what they’re doing. References Yahoo. (December 6, 2006). Country Music and Hip Hop: They're Not so Different After All. Retrieved from http://voices.yahoo.com/country-music-hip-hop-they-re-not-so-different- 127930.html?cat=33 D. (November 28, 2013). American Exceptionlism will fail the republic will fail and black men will succeed. Retrieved from http://hiphopandpolitics.com/2013/11/28/today-american- exceptionalism-will-fail-black-men-will-succeed/ Dictionary. Country music. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/country+music

Show More
Related

  • Benjamin Chavis Muhammad: An African American Civil Rights Leader

    3098 Words  | 7 Pages

    Panel Members. (2014). Retrieved February 26, 2014, from The Brown & Black Presidential Forum: http://www.bbpresforum.org/panel.html

    Read More

  • Evaluation of Modern Country Versus Oldies Country Music

    596 Words  | 2 Pages

    Times have changed, and along with the times so has country music. American country music lovers have went from Loretta Lynn and Waylon Jennings, just two of the many classic oldies, to Carrie Underwood and Luke Bryan, two very appealing country music artists. However, it is not only the tune of the music that has changed, it is the image, the appeal, and overall the type of icons the media is portraying these modern music stars as. Icons such as Lynn and Jennings had identifiable features within their music as well as their appearance that spoke sweet southern belle and rugged twang. Whereas Underwood’s and Bryan’s appeal now is much more sexualized than it was during the oldies. These changes affect the way modern day singers are marketed compared to former country music stars, instead of focusing on talent it is now looks.

    Read More

  • Nativism In Lynyrd Skynyrd's Sweet Home Alabama

    1522 Words  | 4 Pages

    At the end of the day, racism and prejudice will always exist in some form for whatever reason is most convenient. Additionally, it’s not as if fans of country music are all raging bigots who dream of segregation and a return to slavery-driven southern values. After all, there are plenty of ‘southern pride’ songs that don’t feature race, nativism, and are beloved by most without an ulterior message that is appreciated by Stormfront. After all, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Sweet Home Alabama features anti-segregation lyrics. Charlie Daniels Band wrote and performed The Devil Went Down to Georgia, lyrically referencing the south as far as Georgia by name alone. Yet both of these are hailed as quintessentially southern pride songs, meaning that southern pride isn’t the same as white pride. The reason the comparison matters, then, is because there is a significant overlap between the two. It is certainly possible to enjoy country music without wishing for a return to Aryan values, and the majority of country music doesn’t advocate it. But enough popular songs feature nativism as a theme to the point that it shouldn’t be ignored. There is a tangible connection between Southern Pride and nativism through music, and a definite connection between nativism and the White Pride movement. Music connects people and spreads ideas; culturally relevant music tends to stay around for a lifetime. Music has power, and the power of hate music is not one that should be

    Read More

  • Johnny Cash and Luke Bryan

    2023 Words  | 5 Pages

    Country music is one of the most popular genres of music throughout America. There are many influential figures that have changed the way country music sounds, and how people interpret it. Two important people who have made a huge impact on country music overtime are Johnny Cash and Luke Bryan. From their early life, their career, and how society views them, they have opened the minds of people and country musicians all over the country. Johnny Cash’s songs help people to experience his life growing up through the Great Depression and how people lived back then. Through Luke Bryan’s songs people could understand what life was like for Luke growing up in Georgia and all the hardships he faced. Johnny Cash and Luke Bryan are two of the many country singers that have influenced country fans to be more optimistic and hopeful.

    Read More

  • Hillbilly Influence On American Culture

    1252 Words  | 3 Pages

    Country music, as we know it today, was first called “Hillbilly music”. The name “Country” was not widely used until around the 1950s. The creation of this Hillbilly music, very much like American culture, was influenced from many different cultures and styles of music.

    Read More

  • Country Music: From Backwood to Hollywood

    943 Words  | 2 Pages

    Pecknold, Diane. 2007. The Selling Sound: The Rise of the Country Music Industry. Durham: Duke University Press.

    Read More

  • Black Artists in Country Music

    2843 Words  | 6 Pages

    Sanneh, Kelefa. "Country Music? Whose Country?" The New York Times. 11 Nov. 2005. Web. 21 April 2011.

    Read More

  • Washington Dc Trip Analysis

    716 Words  | 2 Pages

    America is such an amazing place that allows you to be yourself and to be whoever you want to be. Everyone always wants to feel accepted and wants to feel like they fit in. The good thing about America is that you will be accepted no matter what you believe in. People are often afraid of showing who they really are, but being

    Read More

  • Redneck Culture Analysis

    1504 Words  | 4 Pages

    The major ways in which these two articles, “I 'm Dying Here," in Jefferson Cowie 's Stayin ' Alive and Southern Rock Musicians ' Construction of White Trash, address the development of “Redneck” culture is through how the media and other social classes portray them and secondly how they as in poor white men in the south embrace and glorify the meaning of redneck and of their culture. These men are labeled as stupid and lazy drunks who are not educated very well, who are unemployed, violent, and racists. They get labeled hillbilly, white trash, and redneck but these men this group of people glorify themselves. Through music they embrace what they are called and even do what everyone is perpetually mocking them for being like. They use propaganda to help them glorify this culture, the use of the confederate flag is the most important and most prominent piece of propaganda used by this culture. This flag symbolizes more than a past way of life but man

    Read More

  • Music Played Key Role in US Civil Rights Movement

    3700 Words  | 8 Pages

    Roy, W. (2010). Reds, whites, and blues social movements, folk music, and race in the United States. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

    Read More

  • The History of Country Music

    359 Words  | 1 Pages

    Country music was brought over by the first European settlers. In medieval times, storytelling was a tradition that allowed history to be recorded when few were able to read and write. When the first British settlers came to America, they brought this tradition with them, along with songs that they had learned in Europe. The people who settled the Appalachian Mountains and the West did not have an easy life and their music gave them an outlet to express their hardships.

    Read More

  • The Rise and Fall of Country Music

    2579 Words  | 6 Pages

    Is country music still country music? Country music has roots unlike any other genre of American music. Country music was one of the most influential styles of music in the twentieth century. It had stars such as Hank Williams and Johnny Cash. These stars represented what the South felt. They understood shotgun weddings, not knowing where the next meal would come from, and fearing the wrath of God while simultaneously loving the sweet and instant satisfaction that sin brings. They took those pains and painted beautiful, harsh, and most importantly real portraits of life. The majority of today’s country music, the country that is played on mainstream radio, has lost its serious feel and replaced it with a more laid back sound—which at times makes it hard to hear the difference between a rock song and a country song—and it has left behind authenticity for its Nashville sound and pursuit of money and popular appeal.

    Read More

  • How Rock and Roll Changed America

    1919 Words  | 4 Pages

    Rock and Roll was the start of a new revolution in America. It introduced the world to many of the famous artists that continue to be a part of our lives today. "Artists who became popular in the 1950s such as Elvis, began to pave the way for others such as Jerry Lee Lewis and Buddy Holly" (The History of Rock 'n' Roll until 1960). With the introduction of rock 'n' roll, there came many new changes to the lives of many Americans. Rock and Roll was a major contributor for the change in teens' behavior in the 1950s because it encouraged new freedoms for teenagers, encouraged new fads among teenagers, and caused a generation gap.

    Read More

  • Similarities of hip-hop and the blues

    1217 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hip-hop is one of the major music genres of today like the blues were in the 1950's. Stanley Crouch views hip-hop as being vulgar and obscene while he sees the blues as being one of the classic music genres. In actuality, these two genres are similar in many ways.

    Read More

  • The Effects of Hip Hop on Today's Youth

    1578 Words  | 4 Pages

    Feminist.com 15 March 2014.Feminist.com Hicks, Jeffrey National Center.org December 2013.national center.org 15 March 2014 National Center.org Idolator.com/ hip-hop master rankers 15 March 2014. Idolator.com. Meara, Paul.Complex.com. June 2012 Complex.com 15 March 2014 Complex.com Dave, Miranda. Springer:‘’ Rap and Hip-Hop Genres Today’’ April 2004.

    Read More

More about American Execptionlism on Country Music

Open Document