Mike Macgirvin
Diary and Other Rantings
Beyond Silicon Valley
   
Monday, Jul 07 2008, 12:50 pm
Jun 10, 2006
The Chicks

The Dixie Chicks are learning some hard lessons about marketing.  The current tour isn't selling many tickets. Their target market was the country music scene until those unfortunate political quotes a few years back. Country music isn't very political. Actually it is, but not in ways you think. Country music is very republican, and extremely patriotic. If you want to dis the president, you need to be in a different market - for instance the pop or rock-n-roll markets; which were born of rebellion. There, you can criticize most anybody or anything and get away with it.

They've actually got the right idea - they are more or less abandoning country radio - which won't play them anyhow, and trying to re-invent themselves as pop stars. But now their name is a liability. 'Dixie' isn't a very good rock-n-roll name. It still reeks of country. So the best way forward is to drop the twang, learn how to dance ala Madonna and Brittney, and just become the Chicks.

They might just stand a chance. 

Comments:

June 9, 2006 20:22
Jim Thompson
Just like when Jason and the Nashville Scorchers became just Jason and the Scorchers. Everybody remembers _that_. Right?

Cheryl (Cheryl)
June 9, 2006 20:43
Cheryl
Mike,

The political statements don't matter. A friend of mine bought the latest CD and doesn't like the music, and I don't either.


mike (Mike Macgirvin)
June 9, 2006 22:50
[*TOP MEMBER*] mike
I just had a listen on Amazon... and I have to agree.

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Jun 07, 2006
So you wanna' be a rock-n-roll star?

I thought it would be cool to do some internet searches for various folks that I used to be in rock-n-roll bands with in the late 70's and early 80's. Where are they now? Did any of them stick with their musical careers? This provided some interesting results -

2 are in county lockups

1 in federal penitentiary

1 on death row

1 is a registered 'extremely dangerous sexual predator' 

4 are dead

 

Spooky... Oh, but there's a bright side - 

1 runs a small computer business in Costa Rica

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A lie is an abomination unto the Lord and a very present help in time of
trouble.
-- Adlai Stevenson