Yearly Archives: 2015

by Sierra Smith | October 22, 2015 · 7:00 am

Cam: The New Up-And-Coming Country Singer

Some people may think that seeing female artists become popular in country music is a rare sight. However, over the years, more women have been increasing their presence within this genre despite the difficulties of doing so. Everyone can agree that we have seen Dolly Parton, Carrie Underwood, Taylor Swift, Miranda Lambert, etc. come to fame with their songs hitting number 1 in country music charts. But recently, there has been a new and upcoming female country music singer who is said to have her new single “Burning House” become a number 1 hit as well.

Camaron Ochs, or more commonly known as Cam, is an American country singer born and raised in San Francisco, California. Country music for Cam has always been a passion of hers as she grew up listening to Patsy Cline, Bonnie Raitt, and Willie Nelson. With this passion for country music, she decided to move to Nashville, Tennessee to begin a career as a singer/songwriter. She released her debut song “My Mistake” in 2014 and it was featured at No. 58 on Billboard’s Country Airplay. But, more recently, Cam has come out with her second (and more popular) single “Burning House” that has reached the top 20 on Country Airplay and is already No. 4 on Billboard’s US Hot Country Songs. Last week her single was No. 7 and is up 3 spots, expected to hit No. 1 soon! “Burning House” has been on the charts for 18 weeks straight, and is looking to continue its streak within the next coming weeks. Part of the reason for its popularity is that it has caught the attention of all teenage girls because of its unique and emotionally intense dream sequence about clinging to a former lover.

This song uses the imagery of a house fire as a metaphor for Cam’s previous dying relationship. Years after the couple had been separated, Cam was invited to a party that her ex would be attending. All night she tried to come up with ways on how to apologize for her actions in the past. She opens with the first verse of the song stating that she “had a dream about a burning house/you were stuck inside/I couldn’t get you out/I laid beside you and pulled you close/And the two of us went up in smoke.” This song was written and based off a dream she had one night about him burning up in a house of flames, and her rushing into the house ready to die alongside him. She continues by stating, “Love isn’t all that it seems I did you wrong,” where she explains how she is the one at fault for how poorly the relationship had ended. This is an uncommon stance for most women when they sing about love and their past relationships because most of the time you hear them singing about revenge on another instead of admitting their own mistakes. Songs like “Before He Cheats,” “Two Black Cadillacs,” and “Gunpowder and Lead” all show a different perspective on how women typically sing about their past relationships. That is exactly why this song by Cam is so unique and relates to so many girls who are experiencing the same thing she is.

Throughout this entire song you can see how Cam wants to make things right between her and her ex again. She is at a loss of how to fix it, and ultimately realizes that its best to hold on until the flames have died. With this song already taking off and becoming increasingly popular, who knows what to expect next from Cam!

Kellie Pickler Loves The Camera

Kellie Pickler is back!!! And this time not starring on someone else’s show. Now she has her own.

I know that Idol is now a thing of the past, but it seems to be a reoccurring stepping stone for many artists, but one in particular. Pickler began her career as a contestant on American Idol season 5, catching the attention and hearts of America, country music fans, and obviously the judges with her infectious smile, surprisingly bold voice, and strong country accent.

She went on to be the 5^th runner up on season five of American Idol, where the legendary Carrie Underwood out shined her and took the win. Pickler’s American Idol debut did not end with a win, but little did she know that she had already won over the heart of country music fans worldwide. Pickler signed with BNA Records and 19 Recordings as a recording artist in 2006, the same year of her American Idol gig. Another big win for Kellie in 2006 was the release of her debut country album Small Town Girl, which reached Billboard 200 Top 10 at number 9, selling 79,000 copies within the first week.

If you know Kellie Pickler at all, you know that she came from a hard home life. Born in North Carolina, her mother left when she was only two years old, and her father was in and out of jail due to drug abuse. Kellie was put in the care of her grandparents when she turned 12 and they raised her into adulthood. She worked at sonic and competed in beauty pageants as a late teenager before her Idol audition. Her story is saddening, but also relatable to so many. Her loving and endearing attitude about her situation and her family was inspiring, and shone through in her singing and song writing.

I can remember specifically jamming to “Don’t You Know You’re Beautiful,” Pickler’s leadoff single on her self-titled second album in 2008. Kellie Pickler was someone girls could look up to, and a person who proved that no matter your situation, you can rise above.

Kellie’s will to rise above and conquer shone through as she won season sixteen of Dancing With The Stars with her partner Derek Hough. America could not get enough of the sweet southern girl who was constantly defying the odds.

After an impressive and still on-going music career the present and future with Kellie is notable. Get ready to see 29 year old Kellie starring in her own docu-comedy TV show “I Love Kellie Pickler” premiering this November 5^th! She and her husband Kyle Jacobs are going to be giving viewers an inside look at their every day lives.

So if you remember the sweet, good-humored, relatable girl from American Idol, tune in. And if you don’t remember, and her successes and prevailing spirit didn’t convinced you that her show will be worth watching, I don’t know what will.

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Filed under Blog Post 3, Movies and TV

by Amanda | October 20, 2015 · 7:00 am

5 Reasons Why The Country Music Lover Would Love Nashville TV Show

ABC’s hit TV show, Nashville has just begun its fourth season and its popularity is only continuing to grow. It has a large fan base and audience, but I believe that any country music listener could easily become a fan of the show. The show features all aspects of country music. TV Guide even says that its plot lines can be told by real country songs. Check out these five reasons why any country music lover would also become a lover of the show, Nashville.

1. The Tunes

Clearly, the biggest thing country music listeners like about country is the music. Nashville surprisingly devotes a significant amount of time each episode to pure music, whether this is through extravagant concert performances of the characters, or footage of them writing/ creating songs. The entire show is centralized around the music, so when watching the viewer is completely immersed in the sounds of country.

All different sounds are included through each character, with the more gentle and innocent sounds of Rayna’s two daughters, the fierce, Miranda Lambert-esque songs of Juliette, and the bro country vibes of Luke, just to name a few.

2. Attractive People

What is there not to love about some good- looking cowboys and country queens? It seems like every star of the show is fortunate in the good looks department, making the country music lover even more in love with these characters and the show.

We’ve got the blonde hunk in Will Lexington, the handsome, high profile city boy in Jeff Fordam, and the tough, chiseled man in Deacon Claybourne. Of course the country queens are all gorgeous, with the timeless, classic beauty in Rayna James, the blonde bombshell in Juliette Barnes, and the natural prettiness of Scarlett O’connor.

3. The business side of things

Not only can we watch the drama unfold between all of the characters, and get to hear some great music along the way, but we also get to see a little bit more into the way that the country music world works. A lot of episodes focus on the production of the music, the process that goes into signing an artist to a record label, as well as the booking and publicity events that consume most of the artists’ lives.

This lets the country music lover get to get more insight into the way that the music we love so much is created and developed.

4. History and Famous People

The truly devoted country music lover probably has a good intellect of the historical aspects of country music, or artists that have been prevalent in the country music world for a while. Nashville constantly references the ever- famous Grand Ole Opry where the most famous of performers have sung.

The show even has many famous country performers guest star on various episodes. These artists include Kellie Pickler, Carrie Underwood, Brantley Gilbert, Luke Bryan, Vince Gill, Kelly Clarkson, Sara Evans, Kip Moore and Trisha Yearwood to name a few.

5. The Outfits

The fabulosity of the gowns, cowboy boots, and sequined ensembles throughout the show is outrageous. Everything is bigger and better in this show, especially the girls’ hair. The women are always dressed to the nines, and the men even get dolled up from head to toe in their cowboy hats, denim, big belt buckle, and boots. The country boy swagger is taken to a new level in this show. Rayna and Juliette always seem to be in some type of over the top sequined and tight gown or outfit. Even Scarlett has her own intense wardrobe with a more subtle, earthy country girl feel.

The glamour and fame is clearly embodied through many of the characters on the show. However, many aspects of themes central to country music are highlighted constantly in the episodes, such as being a hard worker, valuing family, and being a loyal person despite the insane, complicated business of the country music industry. The show has made great waves for country music, exposing more people to the genre, gathering more fans for it, and even adding some great songs in the mix. I highly recommend the show, no matter what type of country music you may enjoy.

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Filed under Blog Post 3, Movies and TV

by Stephanie Sebo | October 19, 2015 · 12:34 pm

Discovering Country songs that I didn’t know existed

I don’t know about everyone else, but there is nothing quite like discovering old music and falling in love. It seems like a simple task, but how are we suppose to know where to look if we don’t even know what we are looking for? Stumbling upon music I never knew even existed can be so exciting!

One of the songs I’m talking about is Dolly Parton’s “Jolene”. It all started one day when I was watching 90210 on Netflix (yes, judge me), and one of the characters song this beautiful song that I couldn’t get out of my head. I googled the lyrics and a couple minutes later there it was! I had no idea it was a Dolly Parton song, and that fact made me love it even more. While the song is really not suppose to be too heavy, it comes across as a deep plea to another women not to steal her man. The song was so popular at the time (1973) that many people performed covers of it. Long story short, I fell in love with it, and you should check it out, too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGEubdH8m0s

Another country music song I didn’t know existed until my friend played it in her car was “If I were a Boy” by Reba McEntire. I know this song is a cover, but I still had no idea it even existed! I was so excited to hear it because Reba is such an inspiration and she sings this song so well. She adds the country “emotional” element to this song, which does it great justice. “If I were a Boy” sends a great message to men about how women really think about the things they do.

Lastly, “Busy Man” by Bill Ray Cyrus would have gone completely unnoticed by me if I had not discovered it while I was finding songs for my Buzzfeed article. In fact, a discovered quite a few songs when I was looking for the perfect one to include in my article. “Busy Man” made me feel sad. It reminds me of how people work, work, work their way through their life, but don’t ever slow down to enjoy the little moments that could mean a lot. I included it here because it’s a good reminder to enjoy life as it is and don’t take anything for granted.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hHNjfLKL8w

Whether it’s through a new Netflix series, friends or just by yourself, discovering new country songs can be fun. If there is one thing I’ve learned, never hesitate to show your friends new songs! You’ll never know who will fall in love with what you show them or how much a song can help get someone through a hard time.

3 Comments

Filed under Blog Post 3, Country Pop, Reflection, Song Analysis

by Claudia Boyd | October 18, 2015 · 7:00 am

Country Music Truly Keepin’ It Real

The other day my dad and I were discussing my Rhetoric of Country Music class and he asked me if we have looked at the actual rhetoric of lyrics. When I told him we were learning about the history of country music, he replied with, “You have to look at the rhetoric and strategies behind a certain James McMurtry song. These days whenever we think about which genre of music contains the most bizarre and catchy songs we think of Hip Hop and Rap. Look no further because I am about to show you how one country song tops those charts and truly “keeps it real.”

Have you ever heard “Choctaw Bingo,” by James McMurtry? If not I suggest you to give it a listen you will not be disappointed. Now some might say this isn’t a country sing, but I beg to differ, the bluegrass feel of this song definitely puts it in the country genre. I am serious, this song is the epitome of outlaw country. It makes sense that the artist, son of famous author Larry McMurtry, would cross the boundaries of country music and come up with the most unreal situations you could think of.

So how to describe “Choctaw Bingo?” Basically it is 9 minute song about a family reunion in a heavy meth county brought together by “Uncle Slayton” who resembles almost an alter ego of Uncle Sam. The song begins with,

“strap them kids in

give ’em a little bit of vodka

In a Cherry Coke, we’re going to Oklahoma

To the family reunion for the first time in years

It’s up at uncle Slayton’s ’cause he’s getting on in years”

I mean the first verse should have listeners’ eyes wide open and curious what else James McMurtry will rattle off next. The narrator starts the song by asking the other person to pack up their children and sedate them with vodka and, later, Benadryl… come on man.. Let me tell you he does not disappoint in bringing us the most outlandish and absurd song I have ever heard.

The song continues to talk about the family members and their backgrounds from Uncle Slayton who goes to Choctaw Bingo to bring money home to his Asian bride, to cousin Roscoe and his many packages of cigarettes to the second cousins who stop at a truckstop to buy a rifle. “Choctaw Bingo” is the “people of walmart” song of the 21^st century.

So country music can also step up to the plate with bizarre and outrageous songs just like popular Rap songs. Don’t believe me? Just watch.

4 Comments

Filed under Blog Post 3, Outlaw, Song Analysis