Postcolonial theory: blog tasks

 Wider reading on race and Old Town Road

Read this W Magazine deep dive on the Yeehaw agenda and answer the following questions: 

1) What are the visual cues the article lists as linked to the western genre? 

Visual Cues:

Cow print

Cowboy hats 

Rhinestones

Fringed suede jackets 

2) How did the Yeehaw agenda come about? 

Started in 2018 by Bri Malandro who created an instagram account ‘@theyeehawagenda’ which posts about black cowboy aesthetics in pop culture.

3) Why has it been suggested that the black cowboy has been 'erased from American culture'? 

Despite black cowboys accounting for 25% of the cowboy population, their role in cowboy culture has not been widely acknowledged. Representation in media has been mainly focused on white cowboys.

4) How has the black cowboy aesthetic been reflected by the fashion industry?

Pyer Moss and Telfar both incorporate western inspired looks into their runway shows. These outfits mainly consist of cowboy hats and other parts of a stereotypical cowboy outfits as seen in western media. 

5) Read the section on Lil Nas X and Old Town Road. What does it suggest about race and the country music community?

Old town road being removed from the billboard country music chart caused the internet to revolt with many people believing this revealed the true racial bias in the country music community. 

6) What elements of the song and music video are suggested to be authentically country and western?

Lil nas X has a “southern twang” which is found in the voices of all popular country music artists. The video also has the appropriate setting for a country music video and the track includes a banjo which is a common instrument in the western/country genre. 

7) What genres of music does the article suggest have been shaped by black influences? 

Rock and roll, punk, riot grrrl, and electronic music

8) In your opinion, what do you think has been the driving force behind the Yeehaw movement? 

I believe the driving force behind the Yeehaw movement is the idea that people want to pay homage to black cowboys and the role they had in the cowboy community. Social media has been used to promote modern day black cowboys but i believe they intend to promote the culture behind it as well. This has probably become a focus for many people as it’s a common thing in the media to see black historical figures being forgotten while white ones are being praised for their work.  

Applying postcolonial theory to Old Town Road

Revise the postcolonial theories we have studied and apply them to the Old Town Road music video: 

1) How does the Old Town Road music video both reinforce and challenge black stereotypes in the media?

The Old Town Road music video reinforces black stereotypes through the scene at the start where Lil Nas is seen as an outsider both in his own world when the man and his daughter see him and get scared and when he enters the neighbourhood and everyone gets worried which is a classic racist trope. However it also subverts from black stereotypes as we see Chris Rock as a sheriff which isn't the image of a stereotypical sheriff as he's a black man.

2) How could you argue that the Old Town Road video challenges Gilroy's theory of double consciousness?

You could argue that the video challenges the theory of a double consciousness as we see Lil Nas seamlessly transition from his life as a cowboy into his new life in the modern world where he seems to fit in and is accepted by society as we see the local people dancing with him and accepting him into their culture at the bingo and in the neighbourhood and the old lady hugging him.

3) How does Lil Nas X and Old Town Road provide an example of Hall's theory of race representations? Alternatively, you could argue against this if you prefer.  

Hall's theory states that the main representations of black people in media include: the slave, the native and the clown. In the music video we see an example of this through Chris Rocks character who is represented as a clown through his comedic comments.

4) Are there any examples of Alvarado's theory of black stereotypes in the Old Town Road video? Why/why not?

Yes, there is an example of Alvarado’s theory visible in the music video which is the use of the clown stereotype. We see this stereotype being used multiple times throughout the video, mainly through the use of Chris Rock but also the man he raced.  

5) How does Lil Nas X provide a compelling case study for bell hooks' theory of intersectionality? 

Lil Nas X provides a compelling case study for bell hooks intersectionality theory as he’s a young gay black man trying to produce music within a genre dominated by straight white men who have tried to remove him from their field.