Old Town Road 2019 Flashcards
Costuming (ML)
Lil Nas X’s dress codes are strongly associated with a rugged masculine identity – the cowboy.
His cross earring and necklace reflect his Christian heritage.
Props (ML)
The money bag with the dollar sign represent the typical elements of a rap music video as he is showing off his wealth.
Postmodernity
The song incorporates a number of pop music cliches, such as genre-blending, loose lyrics, a straightforward structure, a steady rhythm, a recurring chorus, and memorable hooks. By straying from traditional rap norms, the music video industry has become more postmodern.
Genre - Narrative
The music video follows a similar narrative structure to western movies, the horse chase and shootout at the start of the video.
It also uses technical codes, slow cuts between dramatic long shots and close ups of intense stares, high-key lighting of exterior shots, and guitar strings punctuating the scenes.
Genre - Music
When Lil Nas X uploaded the original track to SoundCloud, he selected “country” from the list of genres available.
He does rap about the “old town”, the harsh and dangerous “valley”, horse riding, bull riding, cowboy hat and jeans.
There is a tremendous sense of defiance and a wonderful spirit of independence in the chorus: “I’m gonna take my horse to the old town road / I’m gonna ride ’til I can’t no more”. These themes of loss and liberty are typical of the country music genre.
Genre
In an interview with Time Magazine, Lil Nas X defined the song as country trap – a fusion country music and rap. He also said it should have appeared on both the country and rap charts.
Music video - Performance mode
Most videos consist of footage of the artist(s) performing their song, usually with some direct address to the audience. The second verse when Lil Nas X is racing on his horse against the car. He delivers the line “Wrangler on my booty” while looking straight at the camera.
Lil Nas X also delivers the chorus on stage in the community hall. His movement, especially the expressive outstretched hand, the impassioned singing, and the microphone all remind the audience that he is a performer who we should see live on stage.
Music video - Narrative mode
The story in “Old Town Road” begins with our protagonists being chased by the sheriff. Escape with their bags of cash, they take refuge on an isolated farm. In terms of Tzvetan Todorov’s narrative theory, this dangerous routine is the equilibrium.
When the landowner shoots at the outlaws for trespassing on his property, Lil Nas X dives into a mine only to warp from Old Town Road in 1889 to its equivalent in 2019. Our hero then has to compete in the modern world to repair the disequilibrium.
Finally, he establishes a new equilibrium when he wins the hearts, minds, and dancing shoes of the bingo players.
What does the clothing signify within the narrative?
After Lil Nas X wins the street race against the rapper Vince Staples, he spends the money on a flamboyant outfit. Propp argues the heroes were often given new clothes to recognize their triumph over evil and their new status in society.
The change in dress codes, from the traditional leather to more contemporary fabrics and designs in “Old Town Road”, connotes the musician’s transformation.
Genre - Neale
The narrative western codes combined with the rap verses and Californian streets signify the rap/hip-hop, surrounded by signs of black American culture.
Representations of masculinity
Heroes test their masculinity in classical westerns by crossing the primeval landscape and bringing order to the wild frontier. They remain stoic and resolute throughout the story.
We have already seen how Lil Nas X performs aspects of this masculine identity in the music video, but his playful interpretation reminds the audience that gender roles are social constructs.
Van Zoonen
She argued feminist discourse defined masculinity by its sense of “competition, individualism, ruthlessness”. Westerns certainly reinforced this identity and there is a combative quality to many of the lines in “Old Town Road”, including “I been in the valley, you ain’t been off that porch”.
Malboro Man
Each depiction of an active and aggressive masculinity identity is yet another signal to the male audience that they too need to be active and aggressive. Billy Ray Cyrus even defends his masculine virtues by referring to the Marlboro Man – a character who was supposed to represent a “real” American man.
Butler
Gender is not a stable signifier but is “open to intervention and resignification”. However, any representations outside the traditional binary challenged the dominant ideology and caused gender trouble.
The reaction to Lil Nas X’s announcement that he was gay seems to prove Butler’s point. There were many messages of support, but the rapper also experienced a backlash on social media.
