More recent titles in the collection include Mars’ 24K Magic, Gucci Mane’s Mr. In a tumultuous period for the US, it’s no surprise that Nixon won by creating fear that he claimed he could combat.Another Great Side Effect of Vinyl’s Resurgence? Best-Of Albums Are BackĪmong the releases in the 75th-anniversary commemoration are John Coltrane’s Olé Coltrane, Yes’ Fragile, Dusty Springfield’s Dusty in Memphis, Phil Collins’ No Jacket Required, Hootie & the Blowfish’s Cracked Rear View and Crosby, Stills & Nash’s self-titled album. Humphrey and Wallace have typical and effective campaign ads, but when set against one that is truly terrifying, the competition can barely stand. Who would you vote for? Like Adams, Nixon decided to scare voters into supporting him. The differences between Nixon, Humphrey, and Wallace’s advertisements are clear and can be viewed here. The introduction of a new medium was significant and, while obviously different from campaign songs, was still impacted by the use of music. Though different from campaign songs, the use of music in elections extended to television commercials, the first of which were utilized in 1952. Perot’s choice of “Crazy” by Patsy Cline not only made him seem crazy, it emphasizes just how cool Clinton was for his choice in song and displays as a relatable candidate. Clinton’s choice could be considered the perfect campaign song in that it was effective, upbeat, had a general message that backed his campaign, and was popular. While Clinton emphasizes his youth and cool-factor, Perot emphasizes something entirely different. The two candidates present two entirely different characters. Opponents Bill Clinton and Ross Perot picked campaign songs that were certainly indicative of their personalities and only highlighted by the other’s choice:īill Clinton: “Don’t Stop” by Fleetwood Mac It’s based on a real battle that would have been well-known and doesn’t even acknowledge Adams.Ī more contemporary example is from 1992. Jackson’s song valorizes an event in which he functions as an American hero. “A vote for me is a vote against the bad guy” is a common approach to campaigning, but less effective when the “bad guy’s” message is so different. Adams chose to take the offensive: “famine’s coming if John Quincy not be coming.” This attempt to scare voters into voting for him sounds silly today, but could have been an effective campaign strategy. Listening to the two songs, the differences are clear. John Quincy Adams: “Little Know Ye Who’s Coming” These are their campaign songs, respectively: In 1828, Andrew Jackson ran against John Quincy Adams. Using examples of opposing candidates throughout the last 200 years, the impact of music is clear. While the use of music to define a candidate can work wonders for people like Clinton or Barack Obama in 2008, the impact of a campaign song can change when compared to the opposition. In the words of one journalist, “maybe it provides something the candidates can’t provide in their own speech or in their own presentation, and that was one song that was exciting, which John Kerry was not.” While the song could have worked out for Kerry, his public personality and the song itself didn’t match, which – while obviously not the reason for his loss – meant a misalignment of image that didn’t work out in his favor. Though their politics were in line, the message was just a little off. Kerry, on the other hand, may not have made the best decision when using the song “No Surrender” by Bruce Springsteen in 2004. By picking the songs like “9 to 5” by Dolly Parton, she was able to publicly embrace her gender while highlighting her attitude, creating a positive association for voters. In elections it’s often important for candidates to set themselves apart from others and Clinton’s ace in the hole was her gender. In 2008, Clinton used songs almost exclusively written by or about women. In recent elections, for example, candidates like John Kerry and Hillary Clinton have used music to appeal to voters for a variety of reasons. Since the advent of social media, especially, presidential campaigns have placed new emphasis on constructing a personality that voters can get behind. Candidates therefore often use music in an attempt to relate to voters and gain support. Not every voter is going to be educated on political issues or have strong political affiliation, so personality becomes a huge part of campaign strategy. Music may seem insignificant in relation to the numerous elements of an election, but campaign songs can play a major role in the way that a candidate is perceived and have represented the constantly shifting relationship between music and politics.
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