For this showcase, I would like to focus on a recent event that led to the country music industry being questioned. On January 31st, a popular country music artist, Morgan Wallen, was filmed coming back home after a night of drinking by one of his neighbors. Wallen was caught saying the n-word during this recording, which has led to him losing many music deals and suffering huge amounts of backlash. While this specific incident is an example of a single act of racism, it highlights an underlying problem the country music industry has. There were varying views and remarks made in response to this video from fans and other artists. There were a few a white artists, such as Kelsea Ballerini, that tried to defend the country music industry on twitter and say that this incident was not representative of the industry as a whole. However, several Black artists also tweeted about this and had very different views on the subject. A few days after Wallen was filmed, Mickey Guyton tweeted, “When I read comments saying “this is not who we are” I laugh because this is exactly who country music is. I’ve witnessed it for 10 gd years. You guys should just read some of the vile comments hurled at me on a daily basis. It’s a cold hard truth to face but it is the truth.” Miko Marks then responded to Guyton’s tweet by saying, “Agreed. @MickeyGuyton There are so many layers to this. It’s systemic. Until that can be acknowledged and addressed, the circle will continue to be unbroken.” These varying views between white and black artists shows how different the experience of the artists are in the industry based on their race. It is clear that many Black artists feel the industry has been plagued by systemic injustices that create a system that benefits white artists over Black artists. Since the white artists are the ones that benefit in the industry, I believe they can be defined as the Ones and Black artists are defined as the Others. As the Ones, many white artists don’t witness the problems in the industry, so they continue to go on as usual since it is working for them. Until white artists also realize the problem and step up to help their fellow Black artists, the country music industry will remain a system in which white artists are the Ones and Black artists are the Others. Marks comment was right on because she referenced the industry as systemic and that it needs to be addressed for any real change to occur.
The following link is an article that references the quoted tweets above and many more that addressed this incident.
https://www.vulture.com/2021/02/morgan-wallen-racial-slur-video-reactions.html
The following is a link to the video of Wallen saying the n-word along with other videos of him that night and the next morning.
https://www.tmz.com/2021/02/02/morgan-wallen-n-word-nashville-neighbors/
This was a really interesting post. I didn’t even think about the acts of racism that occur in the country music industry and I’m so glad you brought attention to this. You mentioned that there is disagreement between country singers and others that this instance does not represent the industry as a whole, but if those that are being subjected to the racist remarks believe it is not one person but the industry how could you not take their word. I understand that there probably are country singers out there that are not racist and are appalled by these instances and it does not Make everyone in the country music industry racist but it creates the idea that it is apparent in that industry.
There is a lot more racism in the music industry then people realize. When it comes to award shows, black female artists have a hard time being properly represented. People tend to just say that there music wasn’t as good as other artists, but looking deeper into the picture, there is more behind who wins the awards then just quality of music. Country artists should also be more aware of the racism and injustices in there industry so they can start changing the norm to make it better.
I listen to country music everyday and love what I listen too. I never thought of the country music artist as racist or having it easier because of their color of skin. Yes, the industry is predominantly white but that should not have anything to do with it. I do notice some unfairness in representation in the news or maybe in award shows as previously commented. I think people should just be more aware and not group everyone as a whole if one person has a slip up.
I think your post on this brings attention to the fact that many people have been able to get away with racist comments in the past. But now, people are speaking out and not letting those comments slide. I feel as though many genres of music have lyrics that have derogatory meanings, and could be hurtful to individuals. Things that may have been overlooked in the past, are now being shut down as they should. Going forward, artists need to be more conscious and aware of what they are saying, and how some of the terms that are being used are offensive. By educating themselves on the situations, an artist can eliminate their one-sided story of what they think makes up the culture because of how they were raised.
After reading your assignment, I agree with your points and ideas. Many black artists are indeed dissatisfied with this, making the entire industry plagued by systemic injustice. This unjust system has created a system that makes white artists Benefit from the design of black artists. Besides, it is difficult for black female artists to be adequately represented when it comes to award shows. Simultaneously, through self-education of the situation, artists can eliminate their one-sided stories about how to develop their own culture.
I thought you did a nice job at displaying a current example of systemic injustice. We are often unaware that racism can happen anywhere, even in the country music industry. I also thought it was interesting how you mentioned that Kelsea Ballerini tried to defend the country music industry and state how the incident with Morgan Wallen does not represent the country music industry as a whole. I also think that racism does exist in the music industry and it is unfair towards certain artists especially black female artists.