Music Video: Old Town Road CSP

​BACKGROUND AND CULTURAL CONTEXT

1.) The debate of the songs genre is between different audiences considering it apart of different genres. Lil Nas X himself says that the song is “country rap” however country scoreboards kicked the song off the board claiming it doesn’t have enough conventions to be considered a country song. This could however be due to racism- the idea that a black man created a successful country song could anger right viewed audience members.

2.) It is revealed that Lil Nas X's life wasn't always perfect, originally the song described his lonely life, which was reflected through the character of a lonesome cowboy. 

3.) The “Yeehaw” agenda was a movement created within the black community where audiences realised the lack of representation of people of colour within western (as in cowboys and such), which then created a movement of western styled clothing and media pieces to be filled within the context of a black society as well as western clothing being more casually depicted on people of colour. 

4.) The music video sparked a debate in America surrounding the idea of race, particularly the idea of people of colour being portrayed. Lil Nas  X, a black queer man, being presented as a cowboy seemed to spark conflict and anger within a (supposedly) right winged viewed audience, claiming that the song was more rap then it was country, many believe this was said due to Lil Nas X’s race.

5.) (link stopped working and I couldn’t read the article without having to pay)

SALON FEATURE

1.) Lil Nas X made his sexuality known through his album cover by using a rainbow coloured tower which often communicates for LGBT identities.

2.) The "Old Town Road" music video is described as "genre-blurring" due to its hybrid mix between genres of country music as well as rap music, two genres that often juxtapose each other however they've been blended together to create a hybrid genre of country rap. 

3.) Country music is general, especially within the "Old Town Road" song,  has been shifted within our modern society to come to awareness and acceptance of many things they have most commonly been against (e.g. queer individuals, people of colour, etc).

OLD TOWN ROAD TEXTUAL ANALYSIS

1.) Todorov's equilibrium theory can be applied within the music video, there is a resolution within the narrative of the music video which is mainly the “happy ending” and the humour along with it. 

2.) There are mainly conventions of a western genre within the music video, e.g. cowboy hats, horses, denim on denim clothing, western cowboy style typography in the beginning of the video.

3.) Technical codes like editing are used to further convey the western styled video, typography is one example. Through an old styled western font the idea of a western film is conveyed, making audiences link the music video to a traditional western film.

4.) Race and ethnicity are presented to be liberated within the context of westerns were portrayed to be predominantly white within traditional western films. The idea that people of colour are acting within a western styled is reclaiming of their identity and representative of the true historical identity of the cowboy.

5.) There are multiple other representations within the music video, there is also a queer identity that is represented just by the fact that Lil Nas X is a queer identifying individual. Also due to the lack of portrayed of queer characters within traditional western films and media, the fact that Lil Nas X created a queer black cowboy builds immensely on representation.

OLD TOWN ROAD MEDIA FACTSHEET

1.) The celebrity cameos roar appear within the music video are most famously, comedian Chris Rock, producer Diplo, however smaller starts like Young Kim, Jozzy, Vince Staples are more where also within the cameo.

2.) Three key terms used within the article are “gatekeeping” which means to keep something exclusive or limited or hard to reach, “grassroots” meaning a foundational originally group of people in society, and “top-down” has the meaning of a management style where larger scaled concepts are formulated from best to be then filtered down to details, on paper it looks like an upside down triangle.

3.) Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” song became a trend on social media, mainly on Musically/TikTok, where people performed the same dance/action to a certain lyric of the song. This popularity allowed Lil Nas X to grow in his popularity through social media. 

4.) There are a few western conventions that can be found within the music video, for example at the beginning of the music video when each "character" is introduced there names are literally boomed onto the screen in a very traditionally western/cowboy way. Also just the general conventions of denim, cowboy hats and horses all add to the western conventions portrayed. 

5.) The video begins with a horse chase, very typical for a western, and that is what leads to each "character" being introduced by the western styled typography and editing style of the text. 

6.) The modern day part of the music video could perhaps be a direct parallel of the societies and communities that link- both communities are "othered" in a way and looked down upon in certain ways by the media. 

7.) The video could be seen as reinforcing capitalism/"The American Dream" through its revolving around appearance and wealth, also through the idea that anyone in American can be anything (reflected though Lil Nas X's change from "sleeping on couches" to being a popular music artist. The capitalistic ideologies are reinforced through the change from worn in dirty clothes to extravagant and glamourous clothing, enforcing the idea of consumerism which stems from capitalism. Also throughout the music video there is a fabric bag with a dollar symbol on it, being a bag filled with money from a height and their personal gain of wealth which again comes from capitalist ideologies. 

8.) The article suggests a sense of hyperreality through inclusivity and community above fear and violence. 

9.) Masculinity in the music video is mainly presented through the idea of the cowboy, linking to Judith Butlers idea of "gender is a performance". The male cowboys are performed as an act to be theatrical and almost melodramatic performance of the type of masculinity being portrayed. However it does also slightly rebel against the idea of being a "traditional" male through the idea that Billy Ray Cyrus wears a bright pink and glamourous western styled jumpsuit which isn't "traditional" conventions of male clothing, Lil Nas X also wears shiny earrings in the music video which again denies the idea of a "conventional" male. 

10.) Judith Butler (who I've already mentioned), David Gauntlets idea of identity theory, Paul Gilroy's post colonialism theory and double consciousness and also Stuart Hall's transcoding stereotypes.