The reviews of “Pumped Up Kicks” differ on their perspective views of whether “Pumped Up Kicks” is “creepy” and “unsettling” or something worthy of being “pumped” about.
Ann Powers’ review of “Pumped Up Kicks” mainly focuses on what the words in “Pumped Up Kicks” are saying rather than looking at the song as a whole. Powers’ review also expresses an overall negative connotation toward “Pumped Up Kicks”. Powers works for National Public Radio (NPR) and she is one of the nation’s most notable music critics. Just as NPR has a reputation for being very professional and serious, Powers’ review reflects her working environment. Because of Powers review being published through NPR, her target audience would have been the people who wanted a professional opinion on “Pumped Up Kicks”. They would have wanted an in-depth review of the song, not just a surface level review of how popular “Pumped Up Kicks” was.
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Powers refers to Foster as a “twenty-seven-year-old songwriter who's been kicking around L.A. for almost a decade, never quite making it.” Here Powers portrays Foster as a guy in his twenties who really hasn’t made anything of himself. Even when Powers says that Foster was “working at a fancy L.A. ad-jingle lab”, who can almost hear a mocking tone in her words. You can also Powers mocking Foster in that he doesn’t want to try anything new but just copy what others have done when she says that there is whistling in the songs because “these days there is always
In the article “ From Fly to Bitches and Hoes” by Joan Morgan, she often speaks about the positive and negative ideas associated with hip-hop music. Black men display their manhood with full on violence, crime, hidden guilt, and secret escapes through drugs and alcohol. Joan Morgan’s article views the root causes of the advantage of misogyny in rap music lyrics. In the beginning of the incitement her desires shift to focus on from rap culture condemnation to a deeper analysis of the root causes. She shows the hidden causes of unpleasant sexism in rap music and argues that we need to look deeper into understanding misogyny. I agree with Joan Morgan with the stance that black men show their emotions in a different way that is seen a different perspective.
Cherly James and Sandy Denton better known as Salt 'N Pepa are one of the most known female groups ever. These two women were able to create music that spoke about sex, men, and other issues that most women were not. One of their hit songs "Push It" changed the game for females in the music industry. "Push It" was nominated for a Grammy in 1985, but Salt 'N Pepa boycotted the show when the rap categoru wasn't televised (Rollingstone)." This was something that was not suprising back then and even today because of the way that female artist are acknowleged. Many of the female artists back then were overlooked because of the way females were seen in the rap industry. In this essay I will go into detail about Salt 'N Pepa's music career, the
Some weaknesses of James McBride’s “Hip Hop Planet” include its cynical tone and his attitude towards the musical side of Hip Hop. McBride opens the essay with a reflection on what his ultimate nightmare is. He showcases the Hip Hop community in a negative light with phrases like, “music that doesn’t seem to be music—rules the world” (McBride, pg. 1). This starts the essay off negatively because it misleads the reader by letting them think he is not a supporter of the Hip Hop movement. As you read the entire essay you realize this is not the case. The article itself isn’t very inviting because tone of the entire essay is very cold and cynical. He also doesn’t agree with the typical Hip Hop sound saying things like, “It sounded like a broken record” (McBride, pg. 1). The sound of Hip Hop music is what helps define it and is a crucial aspect of
I picked the song “Pumped Up Kicks” by Foster the People. This song is about a school shooting, some people associate this song with the Columbine shooting incident that happened in April 20, 1999. While all the students were in the auditorium, Tyler went around and chained up all the doors that led back out to the hallway besides the one he used to get inside the adoration. Tyler is making comments stating he is thirsty, he then says, “All I ever asked for was a chance. A chance like you gave him or her” (Nijkamp 96). As shots were fired, students began to panic and run, in the song Pumped Up Kicks, the lyrics stated: “All the other kids with the pumped up kicks/ you better run/ better run, outrun my gun/ all the other kids with the pumped up kicks/ you better run, better run, faster than my bullet.” (Pumped up Kicks 11-14) With the students and teachers locked up in the auditorium, Tyler was at an advantage. Everyone was an easy target, especially the teachers up on stage and the students who were close enough in perfect firing range. This song also fits in with this part because everyone in the auditorium has no clue what is going on or why Tyler is committing this act of violence towards
Music can be traced back into human history to prehistoric eras. To this day archeologists uncover fragments of ancient instruments as well as tablets with carved lyrics buried alongside prominent leaders and highly influential people. This serves as a testament to the importance and power of music, as well as its influence in society. Over its many years of existence, music’s powerful invocation of feelings has allowed it to evolve and serve many purposes, one being inspiring change. American journalist and author Hunter S. Thompson once said, “Music has always been a matter of energy to me, a question of fuel. Sentimental people call it inspiration, but what they really mean is fuel.” This fuel is the very things that powers the influence of Rock ‘n’ Roll on American society, that author Glenn C. Altschuler writes about in his book, “All Shook Up – How Rock ‘n’ Roll Changed America.” Between 1945 and 1965 Rock ‘n’ Roll transformed American society and culture by helping to ease racial integration and launch a sexual revolution while most importantly developing an intergenerational identity.
Ryan, John. “The Seventh Stream: The emergency of rock n roll in American popular music,” (Book reviews) Social Forces (1994): March, p. 927. Star, Alexander. “Hole in Our Soul: The Loss of Beauty and Meaning in American Popular Music” (book reviews)
Music is regarded as a method of passing a message. Though some songs do not intend to do that, the message in them is still perceived. The song, “Get up, ...
“If I was gay / I would think hip-hop hates me / Have you read the YouTube comments lately? / ‘Man that's gay’ / Gets dropped on the daily / We've become so numb to what we're sayin.'” In these few lines, Macklemore brings up the fact that the genre of hip-hop has become one that is “anti-gay.” Hip-hop is a very common genre of music and it reaches a large population of people, mostly young people who will have an effect in the future of America. This is Macklemore’s target audience: the general public who can make a difference. Macklemore has surprised many by coming out with this popular, pro-gay, hip-hop song. It is rational to see that he took a stand against the issue as well as a risk in his career by supporting this idea. The listeners understand that those lines are very truthful; the hip-hop genre and most of society has become anti-gay. Almost all of his audience is familiar with YouTube and can understand where Macklemore is coming from in these lines. Most of his audience has seen comments on YouTube similar to “Man that’s gay.” Macklemore is bringing attention to the fact that his audience has become numb to harsh words like so and the general public has lost a sentimental feeling. Macklemore goes on to give an example of the desensitizing of society by giving the reference to “faggots”, “a word rooted in hate, yet our genre still ignores
The genre of horror films is one that is vast and continually growing. So many different elements have been known to appear in horror films that it is often times difficult to define what is explicitly a horror film and what is not. Due to this ambiguous definition of horror the genre is often times divided into subgenres. Each subgenre of horror has a more readily identifiable list of classifications that make it easier to cast a film to a subgenre, rather than the entire horror genre. One such subgenre that is particularly interesting is that of the stalker film. The stalker film can be categorized as a member of the horror genre in two ways. First, the stalker film can be identified within the horror genre due to its connection with the easily recognizable subgenre of horror, the slasher film. Though many elements of the stalker film differ from those of the slasher film, the use of non-mechanical weapons and obvious sexual plot points can be used to categorize the stalker film as a subgenre of the slasher film. Secondly, the stalker film can be considered a member of the horror genre using Robin Wood’s discussion regarding horror as that which society represses. The films Fatal Attraction, The Fan, and The Crush will be discussed in support of this argument. (Need some connector sentence here to finish out the intro)
Within the booming business that has become the rap world, certain musical themes and issues are more prevalent than most. In addition to such topics as drugs, alcohol and police brutality, a dominant theme within rap music is the denigration and derision of women. Indeed, as the above lyrics to Akinyele's song “Put It in your Mouth” illustrate, many male rappers use violent and misogynistic lyrics to create an image of women that is both degrading and disgusting. The graphic and shocking nature of this particular type of rap causes it to be widely publicized, and thus it serves as a definition of rap for a majority of people today. However, there are a number of female artists within the rap music genre spreading messages of female empowerment and respect, not denigration. These female artists, often ignored due to the hype surrounding their male counterparts, use their lyrics to create raps which focus on life as women; dealing with issues of love, power, and discrimination. The face of women in rap culture is both multi-faceted and contradictory.
From its conception in the 1970's and throughout the 1980's, hip hop was a self-contained entity within the community that created it. This means that all the parameters set for the expression came from within the community and that it was meant for consumption by the community. Today, the audience is from outside of the community and doesn’t share the same experiences that drive the music. An artists’ success hinges on pleasing consumers, not the community. In today's world, it isn’t about music that rings true for those who share the artists' experiences, but instead, music that provides a dramatic illusion for those who will never share the experiences conveyed. This has radically changed the creative process of artists and the diversity of available music. Most notably, it has called in to question the future of hip hop.
Women have consistently been perceived as second-class citizens. Even now, in times when a social conscience is present in most individuals, in an era where an atmosphere of gender equality 'supposedly' exists, it is blatantly apparent that the objectification and marginalization of women is still a major social issue. In reality, progression in terms of reducing female exploitation has been stagnant at best. Not only is the degradation of women a major problem that to date has not been eradicated, but it is actually being endorsed by some music celebrities. There are a growing number of people who purchase rap albums that support the fallacy that women are mere objects and should be treated as such. As the popularity of rap continues to climb at unprecedented rates, so too does its influence on the perception of women. In the vast majority of hip-hop songs, the depiction of women as sexual objects, the extreme violence directed towards them and the overall negative influence these lyrics have on the average adolescent's perception of women make rap the absolute epitome of female exploitation.
Dixon, Travis L., TaKeshia Brooks. “Rap Music and Rap Audiences: Controversial Themes, Psychological Effects and Political Resistance.” Perspectives. 7 April 2009. .
Many criticize the involvement of sexist views in rap lyrics, however, doesn’t consider that to the widespread view of this sexism is still prevalent. It is even more common to see male-dominated sexism in the music industry because without the help of male figures women in the industry wouldn’t have the opportunities they could. Rose talks about sexism in rap which can take the standpoint from black male's perspective to protect themselves from rejection. This rejection on a cultural level could further impact its listeners in negative ways. The overarching theme is that culturally sexism is prevalent to all social groups as seen with the marketing slogan sex sells. This not only needs to be discussed to overcome problems of sexism but looked at in terms of what it’s real meaning
The lyrics of music play an important part of interpreting the meaning of the song. The roles which women have been allowed by the society to embody have changed drastically. Women may question their roles because of what they see portrayed by popular culture or media. Change in female’s identity can be seen in how women are viewed or how they portray themselves in popular culture specifically through music. In general, music continues to...