• Billiam@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      11
      arrow-down
      2
      ·
      3 months ago

      I heard all cowboys were Black. If they were white, they were called “cowhands.”

      • Semi-Hemi-Demigod@kbin.social
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        7
        ·
        3 months ago

        I’d love to see a citation on that because then I’d feel more comfortable repeating it, as it’s a pretty good fact if true

        • Billiam@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          21
          ·
          3 months ago

          It’s something I had heard before but didn’t see an attribution (though the perjorative “boy” referring to Black men vs “hand” for white men seemed to me to give credence to the idea). The Rancho Los Cerritos Historic Site makes the same claim:

          Originally, White cowboys were called cowhands, and African Americans were pejoratively referred to as “cowboys.” African American men being called “boy” regardless of their age stems from slavery and the plantation era in the South. Many southerners moved to the West and westerners would have been familiar with southern racial etiquette. So, it is no surprise that the racial issues prevalent in the North and South were also impacting the American West.

          While they do provides sources for that blog post, they don’t directly attribute that statement to a particular work. However, this clip from PBS is an interview with Tyree A. Boyd-Pates, curator at the Autry Museum of the American West and he also states that “cowboy” would have referred to a Black cowhand.

        • preach224@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          4
          ·
          3 months ago

          just to tack on come context from wikipedia -

          ““Cowboy” was first used in print in 1725, and was used in the British Isles from 1820 to 1850 to describe young boys who tended the family or community cows.”

          not to say it might have taken on some racial connotations later (or, in fact, if we believe swift’s words literally), but i’m not sure it’s 100%.

  • DrPop@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    31
    arrow-down
    1
    ·
    3 months ago

    I’m happy for her and all, but I feel this would be more impressive if it was anyone Else. Beyonce has a huge following and “The Hive” would help prop her up more than anyone else. Get your bag I guess.

  • Son_of_dad@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    34
    arrow-down
    12
    ·
    3 months ago

    I’ll never quite understand the hype to artists like Beyonce. Of course “she” won. She is actually a conglomerate of like 100 song writers, dozens of producers, hundreds of engineers, mixers and editors, backup vocals, etc. It’s not like back in the day when an artist got big by their own merit, now it’s an over produced and manufactured artist that wins, and yes she’s talented, because she’s been manufactured to be

    • EssentialCoffee@midwest.social
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      5
      ·
      3 months ago

      It’s not like back in the day when an artist got big by their own merit

      Back in what day? Small tribes where there was no collaboration with outside sources before the written word?

      • Son_of_dad@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        3
        arrow-down
        6
        ·
        edit-2
        3 months ago

        I mean if you’re stupid and don’t know about the history of say rock and roll, let alone music. Artists in the 60s and 70s like the stones, Beatles, hell even newer people like Nirvana, foo fighters, etc. Write all their songs, most even do their own editing and mixing. The Beatles didn’t have a hundred people in the studio writing and mixing while they sipped margaritas and got their nails done.

        Dude there are literally documentaries about musicians and the writing process, and they didn’t always involve 100 people.

        Edit: just want to look at my albums. So many like Metallica, all songs written and composed by the members of the group. Go look at the credits just for song writers in a Beyonce album, there’s like two dozen writers

    • ashok36@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      17
      arrow-down
      2
      ·
      3 months ago

      My wife has played me some of the songs. The music is fine, if boring, but the lyrics… Amateurish would be the the kindest word I could use. I know pop musicians aren’t known for deep meaningful lyricism but Beyonce sounds like a middle schooler that did her poetry assignment the night before it was due. It’s honestly atrocious.

      Even the covers are kinda bad too, at least to me. Your mileage may vary on those. At least the guitar on Jolene is pretty good.

      • Son_of_dad@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        4
        arrow-down
        2
        ·
        3 months ago

        People like her don’t write her own lyrics. She’s got a whole team. She doesn’t really do anything but show up, she’s got actual People who do the rest

    • scuffle (he/him)@midwest.social
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      8
      arrow-down
      4
      ·
      3 months ago

      Speaking as someone who has actually given the music a fair shake (sorry, other guy), it’s actually really good. I wasn’t super feeling it on my first listen, but it just keeps growing on me with each new listen lol. You’re gonna get a lot of people that hate on it for the same reasons they do hip hop in general, or black women in general, especially because she’s moving into the country space, but I wouldn’t put too much weight on those opinions. It’s a great album (except the Post Malone feature lol). I think DAUGHTER is a standout track if you just want to sample it.