Walking the Line of Gender Inequality Country music is a staple of American culture, however it does not properly represent over half of its audience. Female musicians in the country music genre are heavily outweighed by their male counterparts in terms of radio airplay and sales. Why do the successful country music artists not reflect the demographic of the audience? Has representation of each gender in country music always been as skewed as it is today? Female artists in country music should receive the same opportunities or treatment from the industry that male artists do.
Country music originated in the 1920s in Tennessee. The genre was influenced by folk music from the Appalachian Mountains and revolved around themes of love, faith,
…show more content…
Commercially, some women have experienced extreme success while under the country music umbrella. Shania Twain, one of the most popular artists in the 1990s, “Not only is [...] country music’s most successful female artist, she also recorded the genre’s most successful album of all time, Come On Over in 1997” (McCarthy, par. 3). Taylor Swift’s 2013 arena tour to support her last country album was the most lucrative tour in North America that year, bringing in more than $113 million in ticket revenue (Sisario, par. 16). Critically, women have fared extremely well in recent years. A movement to make music acknowledging the genre’s roots has been lead by a group of female country musicians- to the admiration of critics and fans alike, if they get the chance to hear the music. Since 2014, seven of fifteen nominees for the Grammy Award for country album of the year have been women, with two of the three winners being female (Leight, par. 28-30). If women are given the opportunity to be heard on the radio and develop a fanbase, the chances to achieve a high level of prosperity are just as high as their male counterparts’. The level of critical success experienced by some new female artists shows that women and the themes they portray in their songs appeal to many people, even if the music is not being heard by the
Southern music known today as country music became popular in the 1920’s. This was music that was based on folk music of cowboys in the southeast (Collins English Dictionary, 2003). In most of the early music the artist played stringed instruments like fiddles, guitars, banjos and some were even playing harmonicas. When this type of music started some people called it
Another source that will help with a certain aspect of understanding Americana music is the journal article “Nashville and Americana Music” by Garrett Harper and Chris Cotton. I think one of the most important aspects of Americana music is that it truly is American music, and I don’t want my research to be pigeon-holed into one particular style from one location. There is no denying, however, Nashville’s influence on just about all popular music styles, especially those that are related to country or Southern music. I’m sure this source will be useful.
Women’s music came from radical, grassroots origins in the 1970s thanks to contributions by brave women, mostly lesbians (Mosbacher, 2002). These women used non-violent, peaceful force to forge their own way into the music industry. It was a peaceful yet political revolution of togetherness and liberation. It brought together women of different backgrounds who produced easy-listening, mellow harmonies played with lyrics filled with tumultuous
There are so many talented female artists in music today that it's hard not to think of some right off the top of my head. Not only do they have great voices, but they're successful and confident, not to mention pretty darn rich! Some of these artists knew that they were going to become a star while they were still in diapers. The two females that I will be highlighting are two of the younger musical talents that are out in the industry at this time. They both worked hard to get to where they are today by starting off with many of the same dreams and aspirations many of us women share. These women have contributed so much at such a young age that it's almost hard to believe. Music is such a
Country music has changed over the past decades, as all music does, stepping away from the focus on freedom, family, friends, faith, and home, to songs about women, drinking, dirt roads, and big trucks. Many people feel that this has led to the objectification of women, creating an unrealistic expectation for women to live up to. Most artist have followed the lead of this and are writing more and more songs about these issues to stay with the trends, as many people enjoy this twist because it is coming with incorporations of other styles of music. This concept has become know as bro country, music that men can relate to when they are talking to their buddies or bros. In “Girl in a Country Song” the lyrics tell a story of the girls
songs say, negative things about women, they will still listen to them and support the artist.
Country music originates in the southern states of America in the early 1900s, however, the many influences of country music came from centuries of European immigrants bringing their musical traditions to the country; these variety of traditions then fused together to create many different styles of popular music, one of which being country and western. Some of the musical traditions came from countries such as Britain, Ireland, Germany, India, Spain, France, Mexico and Africa; British folk culture and Afro-American influences are the strongest in country music, with the African elements also being heard strongly in more sub-genres such as Jazz, blues, rhythm and blues and ragtime. The people of the south shared similar cultural traditions
When looking at country music from the early 20th century, to what it is today there has been some change but most of the concepts have stayed the same. Much of the country from the early times had music about religion, or hardships that were being faced. This is the same as in the present, there are many songs about turning to religion to find hope. There are also the instruments that are used, the bajo, and other stereotypical country instruments are still used to today. This sound that they have, and that these instruments make are what really categorize the music as country. The sound of country has been modified but the underlying sounds have stayed the same, and the messages that are being sung about have been consistent throughout time. This shows that country is very much like its older counterpart with a few modern changes that are made.
Tennessee is considered the birthplace of country music. Country started in the 1920s and was inspired by folk music and the blues. The American middle class developed the genre when they mixed folk and blues music. It was not until the 40s that country was called country. Before then country was called hillbilly music. Today there are many subgenres of country, including bluegrass, honky-tonk and progressive country. On the other hand, metal music emerged in the early 70s in the United Kingdom. Black Sabbath is generally credited with kicking off the genre. Metal stems from rock and roll and punk music. Metal also has several subgenres, including thrash metal, black metal, and death metal.
Everyone loves music, don’t they? Or at least grow up listening to it? I Sold My Soul to Rock and Roll by Kristina Grey, the text I read, made Rock and Roll seem controversial to the general knowledge I already had on this "loud" and "raucous" music. In my head, rock stars had crazy fun nights and partied on every tour they adjourned. However, Grey expressed how the lives of males in Rock and Roll were, because of this I agree that women are not portrayed accurately in the category of “white music," and I say this because I am studying women's feminism.
‘Country music’ or ‘country songs’ is a popular genre of American music that mainly evolved in the Southern part of the country. Widely considered as American folk music, these songs are based on the local customs and traditions. As per the experts of western music, the country songs also have a touch of western music, as many musical effects of western music or songs are noticed in these songs as well. However, most of these experts agree to the point that country songs often consist of dance tunes and ballads that make them very popular among the dancers as well.
Country music also can called country, is a genre of United States popular music that originated in the USA in the 1920s. The roots of American country music from the British folk . Country music is the white American national music. It takes its from the southeastern kind of music of USA , such as folk music, blue music. Especially blue moodes have been used extensively throughout and its record in history. country music is one of the most popular music in the tagrag.
Sexism is a significant problem in popular music. This prejudice in the industry becomes most apparent in music videos, which usually have little relation to the lyrics of the song they are portraying. These videos of popular songs often show women as objects of desire for the male gaze, not as individuals with any sense of agency. Even songs produced by women have their female protagonists in the video focused solely on getting the guy and chasing after him. Ella Yelich-O’Connor, known by her stage name, “Lorde,” does not conform to any of these standards set by the music industry.
There is a shift from traditional to more modern country music. Modern artist Carrie Underwood shows a significant shift from traditional to modern country music in her 2005 song, “Before He Cheats.” Although there is not complete feminism inserted into her song, being a liberated woman is feminist. For example, Underwood reaps the benefits of the sexual revolution and the feminist movement without her music being feminist. This change in modern country music causes the lyric content, sound, stage performance, and artist clothing to also change from the traditional artists. The “Before He Cheats” lyrics below will show a change in the lyric content and sound:
When I was little, all I would listen to would be country. I lived with my grandparents for the first three years of my life. They would only listen to country music because that was the only thing they liked and that’s what they grew up listening to. My dad even listens to country music, that's about the only thing he listens to also. To this day I still listen to country music. I like mostly the older country music, but there are some new artists that I like.