Posted on 01/24/2013 9:52:52 AM PST by a fool in paradise
The reigning Country Music Association Entertainer of the Year and reality TV personality Blake Shelton made some disparaging remarks about traditional country fans in a recent interview with GAC as part of their Backstory series. The “Hillbilly Bone” singer and judge on NBC’s The Voice made the remarks as part of an update to the original GAC Backstory episode to include more information on Blake Shelton’s continued success. In connection with Blake’s first CMA for “Male Vocalist of the Year” award in 2010, Blake Shelton said,
If I am “Male Vocalist of the Year” that must mean that I’m one of those people now that gets to decide if it moves forward and if it moves on. Country music has to evolve in order to survive. Nobody wants to listen to their grandpa’s music. And I don’t care how many of these old farts around Nashville going, “My God, that ain’t country!” Well that’s because you don’t buy records anymore, jackass. The kids do, and they don’t want to buy the music you were buying.
The new version of Blake Shelton’s GAC Backstory aired first in mid December 2012, and will be airing numerous times in February.
Blake Shelton’s comments are not only hurtful to classic and traditional country fans, they are incorrect. According to a study of country radio conducted by Edison Research and released during last year’s Country Radio Seminar in Nashville, listeners actually want more classic country on radio, and the lack of it has been given credit for the contraction being experienced in the radio format. Edison Research President Larry Rosin last February said,
I believe that we as an industry have really made a mistake in our conception of our own stations. While many people don’t want to listen to classic country music, some still do, and we’ve let them float away…We run the risk that we just are more and more pleasing to fewer and fewer people until all we are is ecstatically pleasing a tiny, unsustainable number of people.”
Blake Shelton also specifically mention “records,” but statistics shows that older music listeners are the ones that still by music in physical formats, while younger listeners (aka “kids”) tend to download music illegally, stream it at very low margins for artists and their labels, or purchase individual songs.
Furthermore Blake Shelton brought up the common misconception that classic and traditional country fans do not want country music to evolve. Though this may be true for some traditional fans, as Saving Country Music pointed out in a piece titled Progress Vs. Traditionalism in Country Music, the progression of country music while still keeping it tied to its roots is the foundation of Americana which has benefited from tremendous growth over the last few years.
Blake Shelton has landed in hot water before for making inflammatory comments, especially on his infamous Twitter account. In May of 2011 Blake got in trouble for seemingly advocating violence against gays by re-writing the words to a Shania Twain song. The singer later apologized.
Blake is one angry Indian.
No, he is an A-hole.
Anyone know of any good “classic country” stations that stream live on the web?
When we’re in WV, we listen to Big Buck 101.5 (whose spots sound like they’re saying “Big Butt 101.5” half the time, LOL), but I can’t tune them in here in NE Ohio and can’t seem to get their streaming to work.
I call it “crock” country-rock. I saw some doofus, self-acclaimed country singer with a rooster spiked hairdo singing the anthem at a football game Sunday. I muted the tv. Today’s “country star” wears skinny jeans, untucked shirts, and is basically acts that could not make it under a R&R label so they rebrand themselves country.
I haven’t bother to buy or “download” a song by anyone who has entered the “biz” in the last 15 years aside from Zona Jones and Aaron Watson. The rest are absolutely hideous. I haven’t listened to FM radio in 10 years.
I may be a old fart according to this Shelton kid (whom I’ve never knowingly hoid), and I cannot get enough of new music for which I search on bandcamp.com, noisetrade.com and a couple other sites. But I’ve been around long enough to recognize the real thing from the mass produced manufactured and over produced candy (which also shows up on these portals). I’ve got so many Likes and “friends” on Fakebook among these artists now, that few have heard that I have trouble keeping up. Nashville has long longed for a guaranteed method of producing hits, sort of a Brill Building, Motown, or better yet, the late Cameo/Parkway factory, and lucky mediocrities like this Shelton have alw3ays been happy to serve, kiss ass and suck, putting out 4 singles and two albums filled with filler each year, while artists like Waylon in the early 70s would take a walk, and succeed despite the corporate MBA run factory.
Great recent albums: Red Wanting Blue, John the Conqueror, new single from Nicki Bluhm, Jesse & Noah. You only gain by boycotting Nashville.
Recalling a couple bars in small towns in Wyoming where with that yap, you’d be lucky to make it to the door.
I too saw George in Gruene in the 70’s and other places. Before he started selling out arenas I used to go anywhere within driving distance to dance on a dance floor while he sang on the stage. I bet I have seen him at least 50 times before Blue Clear Sky came out.
I also remember seeing dozens of real country stars sing at the old Longhorn Ballroom in Dallas where they played while we danced. George, Mo and Jo, Conway, Merle, Eddie Rabbitt, George Jones, Ronnie Milsap, and others. Tickets were less than $20 most times. Then the late 80’s and 90’s came and the “hat bands” like Mark Chesnut, Tracy Byrd, Tracy Lawrence, and Rick Trevino along with Little Texas, Shenandoah, Diamond Rio, Alan Jackson, Keith Whitley, Travis Tritt... That was a great time for dancing.
Actually went to Turkey for the Texas Playboys (never saw Bob though) reunion before the original band got too old or died out.
I actually created my own country “station” on Pandora. Works pretty darn well (via the Music Genome Project), and it also introduces me to artists I haven’t heard about before.
Being a white, male, middle-aged, Christian Republican, I am getting used to the “old fart” label.
LOL. Same here but I call myself an “old fart” It took me years to earn that title.
Country music, or at least what came out of Nashville, would occasionally return to the roots from the commercial phase that we are again seeing, and as I noticed in the past that return would coincide with another comeback by the great John Anderson (no, not the loser who would be POTUS!), who himself started out as alt-country, before even the term was invented, with his first recordings on a decidedly not country label Warner Bros. But that return hasn’t happened for a while, and neither has a John Anderson comeback.
Nobody wants to listen to their grandpa’s music. And I don’t care how many of these old farts around Nashville going, “My God, that ain’t country!” Well that’s because you don’t buy records anymore, jackass. The kids do, and they don’t want to buy the music you were buying.
A bit of a stretch from the title of the story as usual.
LOL. Same here but I call myself an “old fart” It took me years to earn that title.
Wow. How amazing that you think he was talking to you. Did you even read the article???? Ugh! FREEPERS reading the title of the story and blasting away. So typical. Love ya Bitsy, but you are better than this!
One hint is if the artist name starts with "'Lil" it's likely not country
I'm kinda confused. I was just responding to Southside being used to being called an old fart. I am not much of a country music fan so I really didn't relate much to the article (I was one of those urban cowboy people of the ‘70’s. After that phase, not much.
Shelton better watch out for the old farts in Oklahoma who may decide to show up at his home near Tishomingo to discuss why he’s been dissing George Jones or Tom T. Hall or whatever country music legend happens to be their favorite. People take disagreements about country music as a personal insult in those parts unless things have changed since I lived there.
We’ll never forget you Flake.
I remembered the song I was think about I wanted to post on the other thread that isn’t any more.
Can’t you hear Willie Nelson singing;
Old Farts, Jackasses and Watermelon Wine.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.