Ever listen to the lyrics of country songs? I mean really listen? I’ll be the first to admit that sometimes, I just play music and sing along without even knowing what I’m singing about. It becomes second nature after you hear a song a couple of times; the lyrics are constantly stuck in your head, the beat is catchy, and you can’t help but belt out the latest Luke Bryan song at the top of your lungs in the car. But when you really listen to the lyrics, sometimes you catch things that you overlook during a normal, relaxed listen.
To combat this lack of awareness, new duo Maddie and Tae released a song titled “Girl In A Country Song” in July. When I first heard this song on the radio, I couldn’t help but laugh and turn it up, because every single lyric was SO TRUE. Here’s a sampling of the lyrics:
“Bein’ the girl in a country song / How in the world did it go so wrong? / Like all we’re good for / Is looking good for you and your friends on the weekend / Nothing more / We used to get a little respect / Now we’re lucky if we even get / To climb up in your truck, keep my mouth shut and ride along / And be the girl in a country song”
And that’s not even the best part. The song takes so many jabs at the typical lyrics of a male-sung country song, from Luke Bryan’s “That’s My Kind of Night” to Thomas Rhett’s “Get Me Some Of That.” These girls take sarcasm, humor, and attitude to a whole new level, but at the same time, they really are trying to draw attention to a huge issue in modern-day country music.
Role reversal from the music video
When objectifying women is the norm of a genre and people don’t think twice about it when singing along, that’s a problem. Most people associate lyrics like that with rap songs, where they constantly talk about women shaking what they’ve got for the men around them. So when did it become so accepted in country lyrics? The sad part is that I’m completely guilty of the “in one ear, out the other” habit when listening to songs. But this song really made me stop and think about the songs that I listen to, especially this lyric:
“Aww no, Conway and George Strait / Never did it this way / Back in the old days / Aww y’all, we ain’t a cliché / That ain’t no way/ To treat a lady”
They said it perfectly. What happened to the old George Strait songs when a woman was treasured? The Conway Twitty songs about his “darlin’” rather than the generic label “girl.” You know, I honestly couldn’t even tell you. All I know is that I genuinely wouldn’t want to be the girl in a country song.
Girl In A Country Song – Maddie and Tae (music video)
I am so glad that you wrote this blog post. I have to admit I am one of those people who sometimes just sings a song without even realizing what I am singing. When this song first came out and I heard it, it really caught my attention. At first, I didn’t quite get the gist of what they were talking about, so I listened to it a few more times. I must say they have a pretty good point. I remember listening to George Strait with my dad when I was little and how in those songs, being the girl in a country song was not what it is today. I like how you make a connection between rap music and country music because both genres do portray women in a song the same way. I hope that this song will catch people’s attention. Maddie and Tae did a good job of getting an important message in a pretty catchy song.
Tori: I arranged this week’s posts so that yours would come right after Mark’s about “bro country,” which is arguably the kind of country music that exploits women the most. Since I’m a nerd, I am especially interested in Maddie and Tae’s references to country music history. Conway Twitty gets credited for treating ladies respectfully, but the song that some of your classmates explored in class this past week — “You’ve Never Been This Far Before” — is very sexual and graphic enough that some radio stations refused to play it. Anyway, I wonder if “bro country” really is that much worse than the country music that came before it.
I completely agree that this song really opens up a good conversation about how women are perceived in country music. It definitely doesn’t hurt that it’s so catchy! Maddie actually went to my high school so I may be a little bias. It’s super weird to hear them on the radio or being interviewed because I feel a weird sense of pride and accomplishment for them . Anyways, I love that they found a way to make a statement song that is so relatable but also light hearted. I have a habit of just listening to beats so maybe I should really start listening to the words! If you really like Maddie and Tae check out some of their other songs like “Smoke” and “Sierra.” They have a really unique way with words!
I loved reading this post! so true. When did it become acceptable for men to be singing about women in such derogatory terms? A lot of country songs used to describe women’s great attributed, beautiful eyes, hair, smile, kind nature ect. Now it has become way too acceptable for country male singers to talk about “shaking their junk” and looked as as a sex symbol of some sort.
I also love seeing that I am not the only one guilty of singing songs I have no idea what they are talking about!
which makes me sad, because music is supposed to be a way to represent our thoughts and feelings, and it has become to easy to fall into the trap of catchy melody and pretty tunes, and kind of forget what were singing about, and why we are even listening to a song.
This post reminded me how important it is to listen to the lyrics of a song, because the kind of music you like and the kind of songs you hum along to are in a way representation of your own thoughts and feelings, and I dont want to condone the wrong kinds of songs!
Well first I think just about everybody is guilty of just listening to a song and not really interpreting the lyrics. This blog really opened my eyes and made me think about the way country music is headed. Personally, I do not really think this is even country music anymore, its more just pop. But anyways, I had not really heard the song “Girl in a Country Song” until reading this blog. After watching that, then watching the other two videos by in your blog, it makes a lot of sense. In both of these songs, the girls attract the guys just by being sex symbols. There is no depth to it, just be hot, tan, and shake what your momma gave ya and thats just about all you have to do. I think the role reversal in “Girl in a Country Song” paints a perfect picture of how sexiest and disrespectful these new country songs are to women.