Brian Leonard
Lady Antebellum
12/03/12
Two Mainstream Hits
Lady Antebellum’s first major hit was “Love Don’t LiveHere Anymore”. The song peeked at number 3 on the country charts and 53 on Billboard’s hot 100. The song uses an electric guitar heavily and has Charles Kelly on lead vocals. The song is a catchy tune that has a distinct pop sound to it but is more tied to country music lyrically, where its main subject is about a past lover who is trying to come back into the artist life but is unwelcome. Kelly sings about how he doesn’t care about the women and is telling her to just get her stuff and leave because he doesn’t want to have anything to do with her anymore.
The music
video shows all three members of Lady Antebellum going on a road trip and
having a good time which is just showing the whole idea of getting over the
person and moving on while still not being focused on new love or any other interest.
In the video they are all wearing black which is likely symbolic of the death
of the relationship and how they plan on letting it die. In the video they end up in at a small gig
which is probably how they got their start and what they came up through. Like
most musicians they would’ve started with little gigs before they got signed
and were paying homage to that at the end of this video.
The use
of an electric guitar and the mandolin for the base of the music show that they
are coming out and trying to be more upbeat and pop sounding than many
traditional country artists which continues to be true today. They were wearing
fashionable clothes that weren’t distinctly country and they showed no signs of
trying to fit into one of the troupes that defines country music. They are defiantly
trying to break off into a more mainstream audience just like many other modern
country artist.
“NeedYou Know” has been Lady A’s biggest hit. It is a duet sung by Charles Kelly and
Hillary Scott, which peeked at #1 on the country charts and #2 on the Hot 100
and pop charts. The song is about two people who have ended a relationship and
are now feeling weak and hopeless and want to get back together. The song reminds
me a lot of Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow’s song “picture” which was another major
pop-country hit about a couple trying to move on after a breakup. Both songs
are centered on two people who are having trouble after their breakup and want
to get back together. The feelings of heartbreak and trouble after a breakup are
two of the most common themes of country music, and are sung about in a very country
style in these songs. In both songs alcohol is involved and they are singing in
a clear, slow, depressing style.
In “Need
You Now” Lady A is dressed in mostly black as they usually are. This is common
attire that you see many country artist wear, namely Johnny Cash who always
wore black at his concerts. In the music video they stick to their style of fashionable
with a hint of country but not overtly country/western style. The song has more
of a country feel than many of their other songs. It sticks to their country
roots with it’s simple melodic and somber sound as opposed to the more upbeat
and catchy tunes that they often go with.
This
song is relatable to by many of the audience which has had heartbreaks where
they want to get back together with the other person and hope that those other
people feel the same too. Many country
fans enjoy this kind of song but Lady A was clearly able to give it broader
mass appeal as it made it all the way up to #2 on the pop and hot 100 charts.
This mass appeal is a result of how they
are able to sing in a way that is more accessible to everyone not simply blue
collar working class.
The content of this blog is great. You were very thoughtful and creative in your analysis overall from song lyrics to the videos to the attire Lady A sports. You need to pay more attention to little spelling and grammar errors because this takes away from the thoughtful writing and makes it look as though less time was spent on your writing. The blog would have benefitted from a picture and/or an embedded video. You are missing your sources, but you put forth some good information. I like the connection you made to the Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow song. I am also glad that you picked "Need You Now" since it really shows the modern pop-country aspect of Lady A's music.
ReplyDeleteYour post was very intriguing and informative in regards to the nature and overall direction of Lady Antebellum’s songs. It’s very interesting to see how the most “country” aspect of their songs are the lyrics, which is in turn mirroring the commonplace standard of country music in general while being unique and “crossing over” at the same time. Lady Antebellum (or their record label at least) seems to really know what they are doing; implementing a balanced mix of traditional country and contemporary pop elements to create a hybrid that speaks to the wide ranged audience they have acquired. You effectively portray their intentions and success in becoming popular and accepted by both the contemporary pop and traditional country fans as much as they can. I thought you should have perhaps implemented quotations from the song lyrics to make your points more valid right away. I thought it was great that you pointed out the similarities between “Need You Now” and the Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow duet where both songs are centered on two people who are having trouble after their breakup and want to get back together. This shows how standardized a “love song”, for example, in country music has become.
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