July 4, 1776 marked a momentous occasion. On this day, a nation began that would eventually become the planet’s leading power. The United States braved the fires of the American Revolution and endured a bloody civil war, but Americans are far from cleared of civil issues. Specifically, In You’ve Got the Wrong Song: Nashville and Country Music Feminism, writer Claire Miye Stanford delves into the modern issues of the feminist movement and its relationship with country music. Country music has historically been profoundly anti-feminist, and Stanford cites Tammy Wynette for advising women to, “Stand by your man” regardless of however abusive “the man” may be. Of course, this message is now almost universally seen as degrading and offensive, but
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Rogers finds that the lyrics of music is every bit as important as the response. In her article, Rogers writes, “It is important to study the lyrical content of music, because without knowing the content in great detail, one cannot assume the response to the music. The lyrical content of a song is as equally important as the response to the song because the lyrics themselves could directly or indirectly influence the response.” (Anna Rogers 2013.) Rogers points out that lyrics are important, and that they have the power to influence the response that music gets. It stands to reason that if a music track is misogynistic, society will frown upon the track, for such ideas belong 50 years back. Despite this knowledge of societal repercussions, music continues to be against the feminist movement. Recent artist RaeLynn produced a track titled, “God Made Girls,” and, as expected, drew massive amounts of societal backlash as a result. In an online article titled, “RaeLynn Shakes Off Anti-Feminist Criticism of 'God Made Girls': Behind the Hit,” (http://www.etonline.com/music/160350_raelynnshakes_off_anti_feminist_criticism_of_god_made_girls_behind_the_hit/) RaeLynn responds to criticisms of being anti-feminist. When asked about whether or not she considered herself a feminist, RaeLynn responded with, “I believe that women should be treated just like men, so yeah, I guess I would.” Lyrics of RaeLynn’s hit song included, “Someone’s gotta make him get dressed up,” and, “Someone’s gotta teach him how to dance, so God made girls.” With these lyrics, American ideas of gender roles are reinforced. Flashback to a century ago – Divinely inspired gender roles dominate every American home, that is, unless
Rogers finds that the lyrics of music is every bit as important as the response. In her article, Rogers writes, “It is important to study the lyrical content of music, because without knowing the content in great detail, one cannot assume the response to the music. The lyrical content of a song is as equally important as the response to the song because the lyrics themselves could directly or indirectly influence the response.” (Anna Rogers 2013.) Rogers points out that lyrics are important, and that they have the power to influence the response that music gets. It stands to reason that if a music track is misogynistic, society will frown upon the track, for such ideas belong 50 years back. Despite this knowledge of societal repercussions, music continues to be against the feminist movement. Recent artist RaeLynn produced a track titled, “God Made Girls,” and, as expected, drew massive amounts of societal backlash as a result. In an online article titled, “RaeLynn Shakes Off Anti-Feminist Criticism of 'God Made Girls': Behind the Hit,” (http://www.etonline.com/music/160350_raelynnshakes_off_anti_feminist_criticism_of_god_made_girls_behind_the_hit/) RaeLynn responds to criticisms of being anti-feminist. When asked about whether or not she considered herself a feminist, RaeLynn responded with, “I believe that women should be treated just like men, so yeah, I guess I would.” Lyrics of RaeLynn’s hit song included, “Someone’s gotta make him get dressed up,” and, “Someone’s gotta teach him how to dance, so God made girls.” With these lyrics, American ideas of gender roles are reinforced. Flashback to a century ago – Divinely inspired gender roles dominate every American home, that is, unless