https://padlet.com/stephanierutherford/fgpi78vbhxot Summary en-us 2017-11-06 04:10:53 UTC 2017-11-06 05:50:01 UTC hello@padlet.com https://padlet-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/icons/Lightdecrease.png stephanierutherford https://padlet.com/stephanierutherford/fgpi78vbhxot/wish/203731179 In my media report, I analyzed the dance-pop song entitled Look What You Made Me Do by Taylor Swift. During this process, I found many new things involving the aspects of both this song as well as its genre. While the genre of Pop is not one that I listen to 24/7, it is not one that I would say that I completely despise either. The Pop genre is one of the most commonly-listened to genre among people that are my age, so even when I'm not listening to this music, it is usually almost always around me. I feel that the song that I analyzed in my report is one of the songs within the genre that when I started, I was not a huge fan of. Although this is true, I think that because it is within the category of songs that I do like, something about it has grabbed my attention, and I cannot seem to put my finger on it. Whether it be the beat of the song, the sounds and lyrics of the song, or its constant repetition, I was intrigued to look into what aspects of pop have made this song so popular among the media as well as the public.]]> 2017-11-06 04:14:05 UTC https://padlet.com/stephanierutherford/fgpi78vbhxot/wish/203731179 stephanierutherford https://padlet.com/stephanierutherford/fgpi78vbhxot/wish/203738368 I believe that Taylor Swift wrote this song to send her audience a certain message. Known as Swift’s comeback song, Look What You Made Me Do is believed to be directed towards anyone and anything that has affected Swift throughout her career as an artist thus far, and she is showing no mercy to anyone. She is letting go and overcoming the past in this song and this is very easy to see, especially in the song’s new music video. This song has shown me how simple words can affect someone and impact their lives in huge ways. In Look What You Made Me Do, Taylor Swift sort of makes her debut as a new artist and a new person after so many years of listening to what other people say to her and about her. Throughout the song, we can receive a message about using others' judgement towards ourselves to only make us better. We can understand that we will always be socially impacted by what others think of us, we can choose whether or not we fall down or get back up.  The artist is sort of overcoming these things, while I’ve learned she is also exposing the industry that she has so diligently been a part of for many years. Swift uses a lot through her lyrics and in her music video to teach her audience that she has been controlled for so long in the industry by everyone in it. This includes the other celebrities that she has encountered, her own ‘higher-ups’, and even the musical audiences in general. “In short, it is a typical product of today’s toxic popular culture” (The Vigilant Citizen Article).]]> 2017-11-06 05:15:51 UTC https://padlet.com/stephanierutherford/fgpi78vbhxot/wish/203738368 stephanierutherford https://padlet.com/stephanierutherford/fgpi78vbhxot/wish/203739346 Throughout her video, we see Swift's change and how she is using it to pass up all of her doubters. We are really about to see the message she wants to convey to her audience. Towards the end of the video, there is a scene of Swift singing while standing on a pile of what seems to be past characters of herself from many of her old music videos. This scene is then followed by Swift talking on the phone over the music and she says “I’m sorry, the old Taylor can’t come to the phone right now. Why? Oh, cause she’s dead”. In this exact moment of the video, we clearly receive Swift’s message of her moving on to other things in her career, ready to use all of her challenges as a tool to move to the top. This idea was verified by one of Swift’s backup dancers in an interview who says “and when she says, 'Look what you made me do,' she means, Look what you made me do.... You made me break records, you made me sell more records than anyone else.... It's just really insane." (Glamour Article) ]]> 2017-11-06 05:23:28 UTC https://padlet.com/stephanierutherford/fgpi78vbhxot/wish/203739346 stephanierutherford https://padlet.com/stephanierutherford/fgpi78vbhxot/wish/203740246 In Miley Cyrus' song Malibu, we are hit with another new 'comeback song'. Cyrus' hit song was one of her first songs back in the industry as the 'new' Miley. We saw her go through a few phases in her music that suggested big changes for her, that some could argue were not in her best interest as an artist in the Pop industry. With her song Malibu, we see her will to change back into the old Miley we all loved and knew after regaining her mojo. In the last few lines of her song, Cyrus sings the lyrics "Sometimes I feel like I'm drowning and you're there to save me And I wanna thank you with all of my heart It's a brand new start A dream come true". Most argue she is talking directly to her fans that stuck by her side through everything she went through. We see a brand new Miley and are able to see her new journey ahead of her. I believe that Cyrus' song is another song in the Pop genre that was a big change for the artist, therefore different for her audience and hard to hear herself in; but like Swift's song, once we really look into it, we can see her meaning behind it and what she wants to achieve through her music.]]> 2017-11-06 05:31:12 UTC https://padlet.com/stephanierutherford/fgpi78vbhxot/wish/203740246 stephanierutherford https://padlet.com/stephanierutherford/fgpi78vbhxot/wish/203741302 When I started my report I was a bit nervous and very reluctant to invest my time, but since I do not necessarily despise this genre, I felt I would be able to sort of deal with it. Because of this, I told myself that I would try to be as opened minded about things as I possibly could. In doing so, I tried to look more into what the song really was and I tried to get a better understanding of the messages and the meanings behind it all. I think that understanding this concept is a huge part of appealing to a genre or a song; at least it is for me. This was only be a bit harder for me since it is not the type of song that I have always heard growing up or anything within my actual culture. With this in mind, of course I was more reluctant to even listen to the song more than once, much less even try and understand it; but I do believe in learning to like things. Once I gave it a chance, I think I was able to at least push through until the end; and at the end of it all, I can admit that it definitely grew on me!]]> 2017-11-06 05:41:14 UTC https://padlet.com/stephanierutherford/fgpi78vbhxot/wish/203741302