Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Jay-Z's Power Over Trends - Does it Translate into Music?


Since he came on the scene, Jay-Z has been the one guy that can change fashion trends by one line in his song. Let's take a trip down only a few"

Line: Fake Manolo Boots Straight from Steve Madden (Excuse Me Remix)
Impact: Caused all the girls with the Steve Madden boots stop wearing them

Line: The Only time she wear Burberry to Swim (Bonnie and Clyde)
Impact: Everyone started buying Burberry bucket hats and matching belts (most were fake), AND people pronounced it BUR-BERRY, which is completely incorrect.

Lines: I keep you workin; that Hermes Birkin (Bonnie and Clyde) AND Used to Bag chicks like Birkin Bags (Deja Vu)
Impact:Not everyone can spend $6000 or even get on the wait list for a Birkin, but girls did try

But now, with the release of his new single DOA, I wonder if his power to turn fashion trends can translate into music trends....

With the new song "DOA - Death of the Autotune," Jay Z is basically calling to an end of the Autotune craze, but even after the song's release, I have heard a new song with Drake and Mary J Blige, and a new song by Chris Brown called "Smash". It has me wondering if anyone is taking his song seriously, or is it just a song. This is an important question especially since Jay Z has killed trends with just one line, so it is strange that an entire song has had little or no effect on the autotune epidemic. The song is still relatively new, but again, his influence has historically been instantaneous upon release. Furthermore, evident from the lines mentioned above, his influence has been much more powerful in fashion than in music. While I think that he is a prototype for other Rap Artists, and definitely a pinnacle for the Hip Hop Culture, I am not sure that he dictates the trends in music. Think about it: autotunes, talking about Swag, Lil' Wayne; these are the current trends - all dealing with autotunes. If DOA doesn't work, then I urge Jay-Z to make a song about the following:
Death of Mohawks
Death of Liquid Leggings
Death of Anything Against Q-Tips
Just let me sing the hook Jigga!

1 comment:

  1. LOL. . . u really despise those liquid leggings Q! You'll be happy to know I will be rocking my pair one last time this weekend under a dance leotard and cut off sweat shirt. . . 80's party!!

    ReplyDelete

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