For some artists, Music Row in Nashville, Tennessee can be a blessing, and for others it can be the bearer of bad news. Artists, groups and musicians spend copious amounts of time pounding the pavement, looking for their big break. For Luke Bryan that big break came in 2007 with the release of his album, I'll Stay Me, which was just the beginning for Bryan's sudden success. But some artists just are not as lucky as Bryan. Reckless Kelly's skill and talent, along with their over fifteen years of experience, should make them a direct competitor in the country genre with Bryan, but unfortunately they have not achieved the same type success that Bryan has found. The 2007 release of Luke Bryan's first album I'll Stay Me was the culmination of several years of work in the music industry. Bryan began his musical career in the mid 2000's when he joined a publishing house and began working as a songwriter for artists such as Travis Tritt and Billy Currington. Soon after, Bryan signed a contract with Capitol Records in Nashville, Tennessee and began writing and producing his first album. Staying true to his songwriting roots, Bryan wrote eleven of the songs on his debut record. I'll Stay Me scored Bryan two top ten hits with the songs “All My Friends Say” and “Country Man”, along with an award from Music Row for Breakthrough Songwriter. This initial success was just a small drop in the bucket of Bryan's eventual success in the country music world (GAC). The success of Bryan's first album made him, and co-writer and producer Jeff Stevens, strive for more when they hit the studio to work on his second album, Doing My Thing. Bryan is quoted as saying “My first album had great hits and it sold well, but everything about that album is beat... ... middle of paper ... ...reat American Country." Artists : Luke Bryan : Luke Bryan Biography : Great American Country. GACTv, 17 Mar. 2012. Web. 24 June 2014. "Luke Bryan Bio And Career." CMT Artists. Country Music Television, n.d. Web. 23 June 2014. "Reckless Kelly Bio and Career." CMT Artists. Country Music Television, n.d. Web. 25 June 2014. Easton, Anthony. "What 'Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy)' Did to Country Music."The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 25 July 2012. Web. 25 June 2014. Moore, Aaron M. Playing in the dirt: Stillwater and the emergence of Red Dirt music. Diss. Oklahoma State University, 2010. Peterson, Richard A. Creating Country Music: Fabricating Authenticity. Chicago: U of Chicago, 1997. Print. Shelburne, Craig. "CMT : News : The Wicked Twisted Humor of Reckless Kelly."CMT: Country Music Television. Country Music Television, 22 Feb. 2005. Web. 25 June 2014.
For centuries, music has been defined by history, time, and place. To address this statement, Tom Zè, an influential songwriter during the Tropicália Movement, produced the revolutionary “Fabrication Defect” to challenge oppression as a result from the poor political and social conditions. On the other hand, David Ramsey discusses, in mixtape vignettes, the role of music to survive in New Orleans’ violent setting. Furthermore, “The Land where the Blues Began”, by Alan Lomax, is a film and perfect example to understand under what musical conditions profound ways of communication are made to stand the hard work of cotton plantations. As a result, music plays a crucial role in the sources’ cultures and its creation relies on particular conditions such as the social
As a co-writer and producer, Brown has worked to develop many of the artists we have come to know today. Performers such as, Rick Barry, Status Green, Corey Wagar, Jerzy Jung, Natalie Stovall, Alex Brumel, and Andrew Holtz have all come to know his commitment to songwriting quite well, with some gaining major momentum because of it. His long career has seen him go thru several major label recording deals and at least three distinct publishing deals. He has achieved song placements in TV and film, and working with great producers and mentors like Danny Kortchmar (Don Henley, James Taylor, Rod Stewart), Peter Collins (Jewel, Rush, Indigo Girls), Monty Powell (Keith Urban, Lady A, Diamond Rio) and others that he’s no doubt picked up a few tricks from over the years.
Alan Shapiro is a poet whom uses the sorrowful tragedies that occurred in his lifetime and turns them into beautiful poems in which he greatly expresses through his poetry. Most of his poems symbolize either a type of sorrow or tragic death, and the expressions used throughout his poetry make it noticeable that Alan Shapiro endured a life of hardship and tragedy. While Shapiro was growing up he lost his brother and his sister in which the poem “Sleet” by Alan Shapiro beautifully encompasses his feeling of grief and sorrow due to the loss of his siblings.
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.
For almost 90 years, The Grand Ole Opry has withstood the test of time to become one of the tried and true traditions in country music. From the show's humble beginnings as an obscure radio program, to it's renowned place today as one of the premiere stages for music, The Grand Ole Opry has had an extremely colorful and interesting existence. Over the 88 years that have passed since the show's inception, The Grand Ole Opry has featured many talented performers. Those performers, along with social changes and economics, have all contributed to the growth and success of The Grand Ole Opry.
“Luke Bryan” Newsmakers. Vol. 2. Detroit Gale, 2013. Student Resources in context. Webb. 4 Feb, 2014
"Concert Review | Luke Bryan: Cheesy Show Can Be Lots of Fun." The Columbus Dispatch. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Mar. 2014.
Pecknold, Diane. 2007. The Selling Sound: The Rise of the Country Music Industry. Durham: Duke University Press.
"Kanye West Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2014. little more information about kanye
Widely considered country music’s first superstar, Hiram/Hank Williams was born September 17, 1923, in mount olive, Alabama. Williams, the third child of Lon and Lillie Williams, grew up in a household that never had much money. His father worked as a logger before entering the Veterans’ Administration hospital when young hank was just six. Father and son rarely saw each other over the next decade, with William’s mother, who ran rooming houses, moving the family to Greenville, and later, Montgomery, Alabama. (Hank Williams) Everyone knew Hank was a good guy, but like any man had his ups and his downs throughout the short life he lived. Hank grew up rough and he knew it; however nothing was going to stop this young man from doing what he set out to pursue. What he did was astonishing changing art or “so called” music. Hank redefined country music with his personal opinion on what music really was.
Working in the fields of Mississippi Delta, Water’s was brought up surrounded by the “field hollers” that provided blues with its distinctive vocal textures. Amongst these were also a number of musicians who were able to begin to break free from the confines of working the fields. Arguably the most notable being that of Robert Johnson who created a body of work which summed up the Delta culture and sound. At first this received little attention outside of Delta but it did influence other blues musicians in the area such as Muddy Waters and this is evident in his early acoustic recordings such as “Country Blues”. Johnson’s recordings also inspired Alan Lomax to visit Delta on behalf of the Library of Congress in search of similar artists. After recording some early acoustic tracks with Lomax, Water’s was able to hear himself back and he later recalled that the experience of hearing himself on these records convinced him he could be a serious professional.(2)
Roy, W. (2010). Reds, whites, and blues social movements, folk music, and race in the United States. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
respected greatly. After listening to a few songs he had recorded, They decided to make a
Being a “Small Town Southern Man” is what Alan Jackson has always known and is what he repeatedly sings about. He has also sung patriotic music such as Where Were You When the World Stopped Turning? It is a recollection of the emotions felt by Americans on that shocking day of September 11, 2001. Encyclopedia.com declared that it was “Perhaps Jackson’s biggest and poignant hit…” (“Jackson, Alan). Before Jackson began writing songs, he grew up in Newnan, Georgia. He lived in a small house with his four sisters, grandparents, and parents. Eventually he moved to Nashville, Tennessee to pursue his music career after marrying his wife, Denise, out of high school. After many rejections, Jackson found success in signing with Arista Records. Since then, Jackson has recorded plenty of songs that became instant classics. The contributions to country music demonstrated by the career of Alan Jackson, proves beyond a doubt that Country Music Hall of Fame should induct this artist. He has shown that he is worthy of this honor through his awards, talents, and inspiration to others.
After a rough day, when people come home from work, they need something that will make their day better. Any music helps to release people from their everyday lives. For some it is like going on vacation, or a home away from home. It not only gives strength, hope, but it helps relieves stress. Music is essential to everyday life in this world. People have become what they listen to. “The most important requirement of popular music is that is must appeal to a large number of people” (Yudkin 284). Pop country music is one of America’s favorite genre’s to listen to. Its roots began in rural America. Looking back, country music has drastically evolved and changed moving away from its original sound. Pop country is what has taken over much of the country genre. The joining of country and pop began in