Country and western music originated from folk songs brought by English, Scottish and Irish settlers to the US southeast in the 18th century. The genre began to take shape in the 1920s with the first commercial recording and further development of radio, recording, touring and publishing industries. Popular artists mentioned include Taylor Swift, Johnny Cash, Billy Ray Cyrus, The Carter Family and Dolly Parton. Country music audiences have diversified but still include a core base of older rural and working class fans. Music videos are discussed for Taylor Swift, Shania Twain, Billy Ray Cyrus and Dolly Parton showing different styles and ways they appeal to target audiences. Album cover links to videos and images are also analyzed.

1. Country and WesternHannah, Arfa, Yasir and Leon

2. History of the genreIt wasn't until August 1, 1927 in Bristol, Tennessee, that Country Music really beganCountry and western music is directly descended from the folk songs, ballads, and popular songs of the English, Scottish, and Irish settlers of the U.S. southeastern seaboardThe first commercial country music recording was made in 1920: "Sallie Gooden," performed by fiddler A.C. RobertsonThe five elements that made commercial country music possible are radio, record making, live touring, song writing and song publishing (which all came together in Atlanta)Johnny Cash is considered the best country music artist of all time

3. Target AudienceToday's country music listener is not limited to the rural person or the blue collar worker. The audience has grown to include people from all walks of life. For example, the recent success of Taylor Swift’s cross between pop and country music that attracts a large teenage audience as well as the stereotypical country audienceCountry music is America's best liked music. According to a Harris survey, 60% of the adult population likes country musicCountry music delivers a large, exclusive audience. 25.4% of its listeners listen ONLY to country music64% of the country music audience are aged between 25 – 54Although females dominated Country music's fan base in recent years, Toby Keith says those numbers are changing and that there is now a big ‘guy audience’Another report we read for the CMA, which came out in April of 2009, said that 2 out of 5 adults age 18-54 'qualify' as country music fans

4. 5 Artists with brief history and key songs…TAYLOR SWIFTMost popular songs: Love Story and You Belong With MeBrief history: She is a country-pop singer and at age 14 she became the youngest staff song writer ever hired by the Sony/ATV tree publishing house.JOHNNY CASHMost popular songs: Ring of Fire and I Walked the LineBrief history: Cash began playing guitar and writing songs as a young boy. His first recordings were released in 1955 under Sun records. He died in 2003.BILLY RAY CYRUSMost popular songs: Achy Breaky Heart and I Want My Mullet Back Brief history: He is a a multi-platinum selling recording artist, has scored a total of eight top-ten singles on the US. He re launched his career in 2007.

5. 5 Artists cont…THE CARTER FAMILYMost popular songs: Keep On the Sunny Side and Wild Wood FlowerBrief history: Made their first recording in 1927, by the end of 1930 they had sold 300,000 records in the US. They stopped recording in 1987DOLLY PARTONMost popular songs: Do I Ever Cross Your Mind, Something Special and 9-5Brief history: she remains one of the most-successful female artists in the history of the country genre which garnered her the title of ‘The Queen of Country Music’. Parton began performing as a child, singing on local radio and television programs in the East Tennessee area.

6. Country Music Videos Taylor Swift – You Belong With MeIt is a narrative (and performance) music video. It would appeal to the new teenage target audience for country/pop/western music as it shows the different social cliques in high schools and it refers to a teenage love story, which the target audience would be able to identify with. It also contains the singer and portrays her “innocent” image, which appeals to her target audience as it is selling her USP.Shania Twain – Man I Feel Like A Women - It is a performance music video that plays on role reversal of Robert Palmer’s ‘Addicted to Love’. It contains lots of close ups to sell her ‘sexy’ image, which would appeal to the growing male audience and a female audience because she is still portrayed as being a strong women because she dominates the men behind her.

7. Country Music Videos Cont. Billy Ray Cyrus – I Want My Mullet BackIt is a performance music video that almost seems to parody the traditional stereotypes of country and western. It also shows his fun-loving attitude to life. They may have chosen to do a performance music video as country and western music was largely performed live and this would therefore, appeal to his target audience as it creates a fun and care free atmosphere. It also appeals to the 60% of the adult population that listens to country music because it represents that fan base in the music video and appeals to younger generations through the parody of traditional country music.Dolly Parton – Jesus and Gravity It is a concept/performance music video, which sells her image. The first shot is of her on album on an iPod, which sets the tone for the music video being a way to sell her image. The music video is in black and white at the beginning and then changes to colour at the end which suggests that her love of God has brought light/hope into her life. This would appeal to her target audience because country and western originated from gospel music and normally attracts people with spiritual beliefs. Country Music Videos Cont. Tim McGraw – My Little GirlThe music video for this single is a performance video because it clearly shows Tim McGraw performing exclusively along with an orchestra, however, there are elements of narrative involved in the music video but this is solely due to the fact that it relates to the film ‘Flicka’- in which McGraw stars in. McGraw is the main character in the video as he features predominantly throughout the video, furthermore, the single cover for this hit, is of no relation to the music video. It would appeal to his target audience because the image that he is portraying is a typical country image, with cowboy boots and a cowboy hat, which is target audience could identify with it.

8. Kenny Rogers ‘The Gambler’ Treatment…Kenny Rogers’s ‘The Gambler’ is known for it’s deeper metaphorical meaning of being about life and knowing when to stand your ground (when to hold 'em) and when to retreat (when to fold 'em). The song itself is a concept as it encourages people to go below the surface of the lyrics and work out the deeper meaning behind it. As the song has a deeper undertone it deserves a music video that will portray this, which is why we have decided to do a pure concept music video. Furthermore, as Kenny Rogers is really well known in the country and western music world we can afford to take risks. We want to ‘go back to basics’ and do a black and white music video in order to convey the seriousness of the song and also it stops the audience being distracted so that they can concentrate on the music video.

9. Kenny Rogers ‘The Gambler’The concept: we want to show the song has a universal relevance so we are going to include mini stories of lots of different types of people within society. For example, a gang beating up an individual and a member walking away as he knows that it’s time to ‘fold’. (This would appeal to a modern audience). To make it appeal to a traditional audience we would also have a shot of a cowboy trying to tame a wild horse to give an example of when not to fold and when you should ‘hold em’ as his determination will eventually pay off. To start the music video there will be a man dressed in black walking down a dark cobbled street with a street wearing cowboy boots and a cowboy hat. This will introduce the audience into the country and western feel of the song and will appeal to the traditional audience without distinguishing the cowboy’s identity to keep the universal relevance of music video. (It would also make a good image for the single cover).

10. Kenny Rogers ‘The Gambler’By the end of the song the ‘ace’ that Kenny Roger’s refers to is the advice that he has been given by the gambler. It becomes clear to the audience that this advice has brought enlightenment to his life, which is why towards the end of the music video we want to use brighter lighting to signify how this advice has changed outlook on life to a more positive view, We got this idea from Dolly Parton’s popular music video ‘Jesus and gravity’, which is black and white throughout most of the video and then turns into colour towards the end to show the hope that her faith has brought into her life.

11. Album Cover AnalysisDolly Parton- Jesus and GravityThere is a direct link between the single and the album cover as the album cover is advertised in the beginning of the video through the use of an iPod. The use of the album cover in the music video sells Dolly Parton as a mainstream artist as the iPod is a symbol of mainstream culture and modern technology. Also, the inclusion of the album cover in the video advertises her whole album, not just her single. Shania Twain- Man I feel like a womanThe single cover links with the music video because in the music video Shania Twain wears a corset with a white shirt and bowler hat and on the single cover she’s wearing the same clothes. Also, in the music video the background is a deep red, the single cover is also deep red. Furthermore, the fact that Shania Twain is on the album cover sells her sexy image, which, naturally, sells more records.

12. Album Cover AnalysisBilly Ray- I want my mullet back (Wanna Be Your Joe)There is no direct link between the music video and album cover. Billy Ray Cyrus is typically seen as being “uncool’’. The fact that he is against a white background and is wearing jeans and a white top suggests to the audience that he’s breaking out as a mainstream artist and is tearing away from his “old school image”. Taylor Swift- You Belong With Me There is a direct link between the music video and single cover as in the video Taylor Swift is in the a marching band at school and on the single cover she’s sitting on the bench in her band outfit inside the gymnasium. The whole music video is based on the fact that the boy that Swift loves is with another girl. The single cover highlights the split in the cliques. In the music video, Swift is a “nerd” and the couple are “popular”. The single cover shows a clear divide through the use of costumes. The band are wearing the same outfit whereas the popular couple are wearing mainstream clothing. Also, the fact that Swift is the only one on the single cover not wearing a hat suggests that she her love for the boy sets her apart from her clique.

13. Album Cover AnalysisTim McGraw- My Little GirlThere is no obvious direct link between the music video and single cover apart from the dark lighting that is used in some parts of the music video.

14. YEEE HAWWW