Final Project: Pop Music and the Culture of Cool

https://www.dropbox.com/s/ojrv7eqxhgjuopr/Nile%27s%20Final%20Video%20Render.mp4


I couldn't get the video to embed correctly so I there is the link.

We felt that music and its effect on people and culture was underrepresented in this class so we went to the billboard charts and picked from the top songs to show how these songs shape the dress, attitude, and lives of the listeners.

*we don't claim any ownership of the music used in this video, it is used for educational purposes only. All music credit goes to the owners and copyright holders*

Nile Wright, Jenna Jessen, Raegan Werner, Michael Mathis, Nathan Maude

Culture of Food

        Before this course, I never took into consideration that the media affects the culture of food in our society. By using social media like Facebook and Instagram to document our everyday food experiences, the web has changed the way society views food. Let’s take fast food for example. This fast food is affordable food, however, it is known as dangerous food as well. The invention of fast, cheap food has led to a decline in family incomes. This means the only food families can afford is fast and cheap food. This fast food is not just cheap, but it is also extremely unhealthy. This doesn’t just effect families but all types of people, including myself. It is not easy to get away from being exposed to cheap, fast food. Big food chains, like McDonalds or Taco Bell, are constantly advertising their food. Not only advertising their food, but also their specials on their corrupt food. Last year on 12/12/12 McDonalds decided to make Big Macs only $.12. Poor college students, like myself, took full advantage of this opportunity. I found out about this Big Mac special through a picture posted on Instagram. After I saw the post, my friends and I went straight to Macdonald’s to indulge in cheap Big Macs. I took advantage of this because it was a lot of food for a little amount of money. Taking this course has given me the knowledge to connect the dots when it comes to social media and culture of food in America. It has definitely made me reconsider what food corporations I support.

Female Athletes

       In the United States, sports are a huge part of our society. American’s love a good, intense sporting event that will keep our attention. We don’t just like watching sports for the love of the game or for playing the game, but because it is a way to bring people together. For example, super bowl parties are held across the country every year. This gives people a chance to catch up while bonding over something mutually cared about. It seems like there would not be any negatives with gathering people together to support a favorite sports team; however, would there still be the same support of female athletes in America? Would there be the same amount of parties thrown for a big game in the NBA and WNBA? Or would less people care about supporting women’s athletics in America? It’s the sad truth, but people do not encourage women in athletics as much as men. It isn’t just on a personal preference either, but it is how the media exposes male athletes verses women athletes. Male dominated pro-sports teams receive much more coverage and attention than women’s pro-sports. This coverage is seen from mediums like magazines, newspapers, TV, Internet, etc. Since we are exposed to more coverage of individual male athletes, we push aside the idea that women can be just as good. People are not going to go out of their way to research a woman athlete if she is not getting any publicity for her accomplishments through the media. With less changes to be exposed by the media, women’s sports do not stand a chance in our society. I’m not sure that is ever going to change.

Social Media and Relationships

            Throughout this course we have talked about the Internet and relationships. These relationships can be between couples, family, friends, etc. Many relationships can start from the Internet, but how effective and meaningful is that? I believe the most interesting relationship to talk about is the communication between couples via the Internet. Technology seems to almost bind people together. Even though it’s bizarre, it tends to mean more than people realize. It gives them a chance to bond over ideas or thoughts they might be too scared to expose in a face-to-face situation. The phenomenon of Facebook and Instagram seem to be the leading source of communication on social media between boyfriends and girlfriends of my generation. Things like “Man Crush Monday” or “Woman Crush Wednesday” on Instagram gives couples the chance to post pictures of their current boyfriend or girlfriend. It’s viewed as almost an idolization of your partner. From here, one can share this picture on Facebook. Some people may believe this is annoying, but I view it as a way to show care towards your significant other. Facebook and Instagram give people the chance to communicate without actually having to have a conversation. This is important because it’s a new way to show how thankful you are for the person you truly care about. Pictures are normally followed with a heartfelt comment, which adds to the overall effect of gratitude. Seeing someone put their thoughts on a social media for everyone to see is risky, which is why couples feel a different type of appreciation when something is posted about them rather directed straight to them, like a text.

Honey Boo Boo

        Recently we have discussed the problems with how the media portrays certain television shows. One television show that stands out in my mind is Honey Boo Boo. Honey Boo Boo is a child from the popular TLC television program, Toddlers and Tiaras. Living in their rural hometown of McIntyre, Georgia, the Thompson family is portrayed as dumb. The media uses many different types of strategies to frame how they want our society to view Honey Boo Boo and her family. An example of this would be how subtitles are placed at the bottom of the screen. The producers want the cast to look as stupid as possible. The fact there are words on the bottom of the screen sends the message that this Georgia family talks too messed up for anyone to understand it. They also use the strategy of taking them out of their normal, everyday environment and placing them in an unusual or unfamiliar place. This allows the audience to watch the family struggle even more while our judgment of their lack of intelligence is decreasing. Reality TV shows like to highlight on the weird and negative things of the cast. The producer will show clips of moments that are extremely odd to the “norms” of the American society. This ostracizes the family and makes them into outcasts. We often take the time to wonder why we even pay attention to shows like this to begin with. Which in turn is exactly what the producer’s want. They want the drama, even if it’s staged, in order to keep their audience. It’s sad that this is the normal pattern “reality” TV shows follow.

Hipsters

     Over the time of this course, we have covered a lot about hipsters. A hipster is considered a person who follows the latest styles and trends. This could be a trend of any subject, including: clothes, food, art, music, shoes, jewelry, haircuts, hair colors, books, technology, etc. A hipster style also stems from an artistic background. This may seem like a hipster would be appreciated, but in our society that is not the case. The “hipster” style is looked at as posers. There have been arguments on whether these people are doing products rather than art. Not only do they follow and look for the newest trends, but they also become annoyed of the followers they attract. Hipster’s like to be the first person to discover something, and become easily disinterested in a product or trend the second it becomes popular.        

         For me, I appreciate the modern day “hipster.” I like the idea of someone searching for the things that describes them and mean the most to them. If someone is willing to put themselves out there and search for themselves, I do not think they should be ridiculed. Of course they would become annoyed once their favorite trend became popular. I think we all become possessive over the things we feel strongly about, and a little territory comes with the finding of new ideas. I think we should try to look at the hipster, who’s trying to find themselves, from a different perspective and maybe we would learn a little about our selves too.