Posted on No Comments on PAS5: Morgan Wallen

PAS5: Morgan Wallen

Morgan Wallen is an American singer who has overtaken the country world over the last few years. His first big debut was his album “If I Know Me” in 2018. This album included several popular songs that kick started his career. His second album, “Dangerous: The Double Album,” came out in 2021 and was number 1 on the Billboard 200 list for many weeks. 

This was the proper start-up for Morgan Wallen as his music reached a much broader audience, and his following confusion increased. He started his career by auditioning for The Voice and working with music producers while on the show. He then released his third album in 2023, “One Thing at a Time,” which was an even bigger hit than his second album. 

This album included 36 songs and was on the Billboard 200 list and in the number-one spot for over 12 weeks. Morgan Wallen began his world tour for “One Thing at a Time” on May 9, 2023, in Hershey, PA. 

Unfortunately, he had to cancel some concerts throughout June and July due to a vocal cord issue. I was supposed to attend one of these concerts, which has now been rescheduled, and I cannot wait for it! These cancellations, though, did cause an uproar among many of his fans and sparked many rumors about his well-being. He denied any accusations and replied with numerous videos addressing rumors and saying his doctor said he could not sing for six weeks to protect his voice. 

He began touring again in mid-July and rescheduled all of his postponed performances. His tour consists of traveling to three countries and spreading his music worldwide. He went from a boy who grew up in Tennessee to a major country music star in a matter of years. 

He has won several awards, including Best Country Artist at the Billboard Music Awards and Album of the Year for “Dangerous” by the Academy of Country Music. He has broken records and logged 86 weeks in the Billboard Top 10 list.

Morgan Wallen is my favorite artist in country music and all other genres. I was recently given a signed “Dangerous” album, my favorite one. More specifically, I enjoy his song “Sand in My Boots” the most out of all of them. It is a bit slower and sad, but I love the tone and message. 

I also love his newest album and many of its songs. The lyrics mesh together so well; I can understand everything he portrays through his music. To me, he is the, and his songs are some of the only songs I listen to on every occasion. If you have not heard Morgan Wallen’s music, I highly encourage it!

Posted on 1 Comment on RCL4: Opinions on Gas Prices

RCL4: Opinions on Gas Prices

This sticker caught my eye as I was scrolling through political bumper stickers. Maybe because it is white on a black background or has a cartoon aspect when most were just a nominee’s name, but the viewpoint was apparent as I looked at it. 

While this sticker shows a specific debatable view, it also endorses a political view, which is why I thought it would be perfect to analyze. When looking at this bumper sticker, What it is trying to portray is obvious. The saying on the sticker reads, “thanks Biden,” and hints at the rising gas prices the United States saw in many areas around the country. 

Now, what is stated is different from what the sticker means. It is not meant to thank Biden but to thank him sarcastically. It implies that the gas prices are too high and would be lower if someone else was in office. 

The cartoon depicts a cartoon person trying to pull the empty gas arrow to full. This expresses the struggles of getting gas at the moment and how the expense was too much for some people’s income to handle. The cartoon allows the bumper sticker to be slightly lighthearted while expressing the person’s views. 

The commonplace and ideology of the American people was that gas prices had risen significantly, but the two political sides claimed it happened for different reasons. The political view of the person with the sticker is related to the pipeline shutdown. Stopping the pipeline inhibits the United States from producing oil for gas and causes us to rely on other countries. 

Biden stopped the pipeline for environmental reasons, and conservatives did not agree with it. This leads to conservative people putting stickers like this on their cars. The ideology of the American people tends to be that conservatives care about foreign relations and not relying on other countries’ goods for the good of the economy, while liberals care about the harm oil could do on the environment.

This topic is political and can be debated by the two sides. People use items like bumper stickers to express their views to other people and try to get a quick message across. I believe this sticker is effective because it has short wording, and the cartoon is easy to understand without being too political or aggressive. 

Bumper stickers show the freedom of speech the United States provides for us, and we should be grateful that we can express our views to the world without repercussions.

Posted on No Comments on PAS4: Country x Outer Banks

PAS4: Country x Outer Banks

While country music is a distinct genre, it has been influenced by pop over the years. Many known country artists have reverted to country music, with a mix of music on the radio, such as Taylor Swift. One of the prominent country pop artists is Kelsea Ballerini.

She is 30 years old and signed her first contract in 2014. She wrote music as a child and gained fame, which allowed her to start making music for real. She has many songs that have made it to the top of the charts. While she is an awe-inspiring artist, I want to address a bit of a different topic than her music.

Kelsea Ballerini has been in the spotlight recently because of her relationship. She is dating Chase Stokes from the popular Netflix show Outer Banks. This show had an influx of viewers during COVID-19, and now they are filming the fourth season. Some drama has appeared with the actors and their love interests, involving Kelsea.  

The main characters in the show are John B and Sarah, whom Chase Stokes and Madelyn Cline play. Chase and Madelyn were together in the show and in real life until their relationship ended. As viewers noticed the disdain, this caused awkwardness on set and in the show.

In a short time, rumors started that Chase Stokes was dating Kelsea Ballerini. People had differing opinions about this because many fans still wanted Chase and Madelyn together, but now most people find their relationship adorable.

The reason I am mentioning this relationship is I think it helped Kelsea gain more fans being a country pop artist, as people knew who she was, but many did not know much more. Many people of all different ages latched onto Outer Banks and watch it right when a new season comes out. These people also tend to follow information about the actors and actresses on the show.

This has allowed Kelsea to gain a new following and more publicity. She has become a more prominent name in the country and pop industries. She has now gone on to perform at music awards and do many more with a much bigger following, not only for her music but also for her life. 

She had a fantastic outfit change at the Video Music Awards that went viral and has shown a loving side with Chase. I am excited to see what more she has in store with her music career and the development of her and Chase Stokes.

Posted on 1 Comment on RCL3: Balenciaga Scandal

RCL3: Balenciaga Scandal

When thinking of a poorly done ad, I thought of the Balenciaga scandal in 2022. When Balenciaga released the ads above as part of their holiday ad campaign, it uprooted many people. There was a popular hashtag saying to cancel Balenciaga, and people were throwing away things they had bought from there. The stores were being boycotted, and celebrities were cutting all ties. 

I am here to directly discuss the ad and why it was so negatively viewed. As you can see, the ad depicts two children holding teddy bears wrapped in bondage and on a couch and bed. There are Balenciaga pillows and other designer-brand items scattered throughout. The colors of the ads are mainly pink, purple, white, and black, and they remind me of Halloween. 

A significant issue makes this a terrible ad that caused people to turn away instead of buying the items as intended. The ad is wildly inappropriate and does not appeal to anyone for the most part. 

It appears as if the brand is sexually promoting very young children. The visual elements of the child standing on a bed holding a teddy bear in bondage-like clothes are uncomfortable for viewers. The one ad appears to be in the child’s bedroom with an odd layout of jewelry and sunglasses. It is also inappropriate that one of the ads in the duo had wine glasses (which is cut off in the picture above) and is hinting towards alcohol. 

Children being depicted like this is frowned upon and inappropriate for any audience. It makes it seem like the company is for child pornography, which is illegal and a horrible thing in general. I can’t imagine what they were thinking and who they were targeting with this ad. 

The intended audience is people of the higher class buying designer items. This would not persuade people to buy this brand but rather avoid it, which is exactly what happened when no one would go into the stores or buy anything from the brand. It made people very upset and did not do the job of persuading in any right.

I believe Balenciaga mistook what the ad portrayed as a play on high fashion. They must have been trying to do something different and get people’s attention, but it came off as aggressive and highly inappropriate. Their runway show at Fashion Week also had this theme, but with adults walking, it was not seen in that light. They must have been trying to make the ad innovative, but it ended up being just another terrible ad.

Posted on No Comments on PAS3: Bailey Zimmerman’s Fame…and TikTok

PAS3: Bailey Zimmerman’s Fame…and TikTok

There have been many new country artists arising in the past few years. The genre has been growing, as well as the fans. Some artists that have been watched throughout 2023 are Megan Moroney, Nate Smith, Corey Kent, and Warren Zeiders, to name a few. The most notable new artist, and the one I will be addressing today, is Bailey Zimmerman.

Bailey Zimmerman is 23 years old and from Louisville, Illinois. Before creating music, Zimmerman worked in the meatpacking industry and for a pipeline. He released his first song in 2020, which did very well and allowed him to continue making music.

As his career has grown, Bailey has had some notable hits that made the top charts. His first major hit is a song called “Fall in Love,” which ranked 31 on the Billboard Hot 100. This song blew up on Tiktok in 2022, as it was all over many people’s ‘for you page.’ Shortly after this song, he came out with “A Rock and a Hard Place” in 2022, which also went viral on TikTok. Both of these songs reached a chart position, and his song “Religiously” from his new album released this year.

TikTok allowed Bailey Zimmerman to release more songs and albums. He announced his tour, which will take place in 2024 in three countries. He grew highly famous in only a few short years, creating many top songs and now an album to tour!

I want to address what TikTok has done for country artists and their music. Many people started posting videos of their music on TikTok, and while many don’t get anywhere doing this, some music content creators went viral. Going viral even one time could enable someone to be something much more. 

Bailey Zimmerman is a perfect example of what TikTok has done to help many content creators to blossom. When Bailey started posting on TikTok, he gained a following; others used his music to make their videos. This spread publicity about his songs and caused people to download them on their phones, causing him to become famous enough to go on tour!

While TikTok can be seen as addictive and a time waste to many, it can also be something great. It is an app that can be used as a marketing tool and let average people become something. When someone goes viral, millions of people get to see their video, which worked in Bailey’s favor. 

TikTok has also aided in the rise of country music, which I discussed in a previous blog post, because many started using country sounds to make videos. Country music and artists have been growing by the day, and Bailey Zimmerman is a primary contributor.

Posted on 2 Comments on RCL2: Vietnam Vs. WWII

RCL2: Vietnam Vs. WWII

The two artifacts I chose are invitations to civic engagement regarding war. The first artifact is titled “Stick ‘em up!” by Edmond Valtman. This political cartoon was created in 1964 and published by The Hartford Times right before America joined the Vietnam War. The second artifact is from November 15, 1942. This propaganda poster was created by the Office of War Information and is titled “Americans will always fight for liberty.” 

The first artifact being discussed calls people to action against the Vietnam War. The cartoon portrays Lyndon B. Johnson holding nuclear bombs in Vietnam, holding a sign about America being the mightiest nation. There is also a Vietnamese soldier in the cartoon with Gorilla warfare written on him and holding a gun. 

This artifact wants people to go against sending troops into Vietnam because people thought it was not our war to fight. America could not go into another country and drop nuclear bombs like we did during World War II, and the Vietnam soldiers fought very differently from us. People thought we were sending out troops to die because they would be fighting hand-to-hand aggressive combat in the jungle. 

This cartoon uses ethos to mock the president and the country. We may have had potent weapons, but we could not use them, and LBJ is portrayed as a cowboy coming in to “save the day.”

The second artifact is shown in one showing pride from WWII. This poster was made to encourage the war effort and call people to action. It makes the US seem very united and robust with military men from current times and also the past. Many Revolutionary War battles were fought during 1778, and it appears people are dressed to represent George Washington and our victory. 

Ethos is used here to encourage people and give them a sense of belonging. It shows what the United States has done to obtain liberty and what we will continue to do together. 

I chose these two artifacts because I have always been interested in both wars. I knew that the public had different views when sending troops into Vietnam versus sending troops overseas to help fight in WW2. They are adequate options to compare and contrast because they are the same topic of war but with different messages. 

The artifacts contrast very much in color and meaning, and I wanted to dive deeper into the ethos and logos that both put out to the world. I will use The WWII poster for my speech and compare and contrast both in my essay.

Posted on 3 Comments on PAS2: My Luke Combs Experience

PAS2: My Luke Combs Experience

Today I will tell you about a concert I will never forget. I have attended many concerts, including Taylor Swift and Bruce Springsteen, but this one has been my favorite. I have never been a huge concertgoer and don’t often look at tickets for random ones, but when I heard Luke Combs was touring, I knew I wanted to go. 

It was this past December, and I typically never ask for anything for Christmas, but my twin sister and I asked for Morgan Wallen or Luke Combs tickets. We were overjoyed when we received our wish and got tickets to both concerts. I cannot share my Morgan Wallen experience yet, but I will share my fantastic experience at Luke Combs.

This was my first country concert, as I was not much of a country fan until a few years ago. I knew the atmosphere would be slightly different from the typical Taylor Swift shows I attended in the past. He performed at Lincoln Financial Field and sold out two nights in a row, which I am very impressed with. 

I noticed people of all age ranges and variety there, and as you may assume, lots of them were drinking beer in their cowboy boots. I could feel the excitement and anticipation. It rained a little, but it did not hold back the show much, and soon enough, the openers went on. I was thrilled when I found out one of the opening acts was Riley Green, another country artist I enjoy. 

The crowd erupted when Luke Combs came on around 9:30 p.m. The stage was simple overall and lit up with different colors based on the mood of the songs he played. 

Combs went on to play 24 songs, and I loved every second of it. One of my favorite parts of this concert was that I knew every word to every song, which I cannot say for most. I was looking forward to his cover of “Fast Car.”. He sounded exactly like the recording, and it blew me away. Combs sang his song “Does to Me” and performed it with Riley Green about halfway through, which was an exciting surprise. 

The concert was one I will always remember because It was my first country concert to go along with my newfound taste for it, and it was a wonderful experience. Luke Combs is one of my favorite artists, and it was surreal to see him in person and listen to him sing. The concert was natural with little show biz, making it more connective. I loved it so much that I even bought tickets to see him again at Beaver Stadium in May!

Posted on 3 Comments on PAS1: The Rise of Country Music

PAS1: The Rise of Country Music

Welcome to my first-ever passion blog post! This thread is where I will share all about my love for country music. The topics covered will range from the latest country songs and artists to my experience at the Luke Combs concert this past summer. I can’t wait to share all this and more with you on my passion blog!

Today, I am addressing the undeniable rise in popularity of country artists and their songs. More specifically, their songs which have been climbing to the top and making history. For the first time in 65 years, three country songs by different artists held the top three spots on the Billboard Hot 100 list. To make it even better, this happened twice between August 4 and September 2! 

Morgan Wallen’s song “Last Night” took the spot of #2 the first week and #3 the second week. Then, Luke Combs’s cover of “Fast Car” held the #3 spot the first week and #2 currently in the second week. 

The controversial song by Jason Aldean, “Try That in a Small Town,” captured #1 in the first week, making all three songs on the Billboard in the country genre. More excitingly, the song that made #1 this week has a great story.

The song was written and performed by a man whom no one has heard of named Oliver Anthony. He recorded the #1 song “Rich Men North of Richmond,” which blew up only days after he released it. He is the first artist to have a number-one hit song on the Billboard with no prior appearances on the list.

This story inspires me because it exemplifies a man pursuing his passion and great things happening for him. While this may not happen to everyone, you should have hope and keep doing what you love! 

I developed my love for music about three years ago when I heard some of Morgan Wallen’s pieces. The tone and lyrics captured me; since then, I have noticed many more people surrounding me becoming country fans. Country music is making history; I have seen more listeners through my experiences. 

During the summer, I work as a beach lifeguard, and many guards play a country playlist while on the stand for the day. The music fits the setting beautifully, and everyone has grown to enjoy it while guarding on the beach and in many other places. 

While I am still determining exactly why country music is on the rise, I am thrilled to see all this history being made and others enjoying it as much as I do.

 

Posted on 1 Comment on RCL1: Why do People Have Such Differing Opinions on the Effects of Climate Change?

RCL1: Why do People Have Such Differing Opinions on the Effects of Climate Change?

The use of rhetoric when speaking on a topic such as climate change is very different based on the news channel you watch or the articles you read. Why is this? I believe that the extreme rivalry between the main two political parties, Republican and Democrat, has fueled people’s need to persuade the public, and the news uses rhetoric to do just that.

The main form of communication that the public uses to receive information is the news. News channels such as Fox News and CNN tend to have bold claims on issues worldwide, but especially in our country, that they stand by no matter what problems may arise. 

The topic I am addressing is climate change. Scientists have been studying climate change since 1896, and the issues are worsening as they continue to be checked. Industrialization around the world and the use of fossil fuels during the late 1700s and the early 1800s have led to consequences we may not recover from. While it did allow for massive improvements in manufacturing, industrialization has been proven to have harmful causations on the modern world, such as wildlife extinction, severe weather, melting of the ice caps, and rising temperatures. 

These effects are backed by science, but both sides of the media take extreme stances on the topic and use rhetoric to get the public on their side. This causes not only communication issues but also splits the country in two. The overuse of rhetoric as a means of coercion in the media is detrimental to the state of our country when discussing climate change, and similar topics. On one hand, right-wing news says that climate change does not exist; on the other, left-wing news seems to exaggerate the effects of climate change and global warming. If all news stations presented only the scientific facts, there would be no communication flaws and no need to persuade anyone. 

Politics has made its way into most conversation topics, including this one. Persuasion has become the media’s primary goal, not simply relaying information to the public. There needs to be an influx of data and a deduction of opinions. The environment is most frequently discussed during political debates or significant climate events. I think the topic should be addressed using numbers when new research comes out. 

This will give all citizens a better understanding of climate change and the actual effects occurring worldwide. The rhetoric used by the media and public should be taken out of the topic for the most part. It is not an issue of persuasion but rather an issue based on facts.