Not So Far Apart?

The first essay in the textual analyses section, "Parallel Worlds: The Surprising Similarities (and Differences) of Country-and-Western and Rap", really struck me. The author, Denise Noe, really made me think of both of those genres in a different way. I am not a huge fan of rap, there are some songs that I like to dance to though, because of how graphic most of the songs are. There is one Eminem song, "Stan", that graphically depicted a crazed fan tying his girlfriend up and sticking her in the trunk of his car, then drives it off a bridge. After hearing that song for the first time, I swear I heard the girlfriend's screams of terror in my sleep. Rap songs no longer speak the minority blacks and their triumphs despite being born on the streets, like they used to. Now it is all about who has the best car or who can have sex with the most women. But, as Noe pointed out, country can be that way too. The men of country too speak of themselves as superior to women. Although country songs aren't as graphic, there are some songs that don't put women in the best light. On the other hand though, I have never heard a rap song put a woman as high up on a pedestool as almost every country song ever made does. Most country songs involve the woman leaving the man, and it is always the man's fault, and the men aren't afraid to admit that. But let me tell you right now, we women make some mistakes too.