Paper Topics

I'm having a hard time figuring out exactly what I want to base this project on, but I did think of two possible ideas. The first one would be what it is like to live with a fine art major. My apartment is always filled with wacky things because of my roommate and her "works in progress". The second idea was to involve something with interracial dating or  sex and love anonymous. I wanted to incorporate some psychology in my project. But both of these topics are really undeveloped so I'm open to changing them.

Assignment 2: Boy Bands

The cultural text I’m going to explore are 90s Boy Bands. “Boy Bands” consists of a youthful all male pop group that market themselves mainly to females ranging from a teeny-bopper age group all the way to premenopausal women. These Boy Bands (usually five members to a group) perform choreographed dances while singing sweet nothings to a catchy pop beat dedicated to their estrogen based fan group. 

Thinking about Boy Bands as a cultural text is interesting to me because I grew up with them. They represent an innocence linked to males where as society usually pin points “purity” on women.  Backstreet Boys, N’sync, O Town, New Kids On the Block, 98 Degrees, and Boyzone, to name a few, all market a softer side to males which is ingenious because women love it; the bands and their songs represents an ideal “love”. It makes fans feel that boys think the same way about “love” as girls do. I think Boy Bands almost represent what girls wish men can be. As cheesy as these bands are, any girl would be flattered if a man told them “No one else comes close to you. No one makes me feel the way you do. You're so special girl to me, and you'll always be eternally”.(Backstreet Boys)

Going back to the thought of Boy Bands representing a woman’s dream man, I feel there will always be a need for them because no one ever wants to give up on the bubble gum version of love. It represents easy, uncomplicated, puppy love with the most important factor; the fact that it is being delivered by men. The typical Boy Band has evolved over time, but it is still here. Justin Bieber, Jonas Brothers, and Big Time Rush are to name a few. I think Boy Bands will remain an active cultural text in society because they are the “Hallmark card of music”. They make girls feel appreciated, they say what women want to hear after a break up, and they give listeners the illusion that boys are looking for love and if you give them a chance it could be what you always dreamed of. 

Assignment 1

     Hey everyone! I’m Deanna and I’m from Michigan. I have a ton of different interests and hobbies but I’ll narrow it down for this blog. I love to sing, play my guitar/keyboard/harmonica, and write songs. Right now I'm recording my first demo, so I'm pretty stoked. Music probably takes up eighty percent of my thought process throughout the day. Another hobby I’m obsessed with is going on food adventures with my sister. We find all of these hole-in-the-wall places in different states and try a variety of unusual ethnic food and explore our palates. I also love to dance. I danced for nine years; the typical jazz, ballet, tap, and point, but I also took belly dancing and Ukrainian folk dancing. Out of all of the different styles my favorite, to this day, is improve 80s dance moves. My friends and I use to break out and do the “running man”, the “shopping cart”, or any other 80s move in random public places; people thought we were crazy but it was uber fun.

     Some musicians I truly admire are Mumford and Sons, Citizen Cope, and Emma Louise. I feel as though they are my musical soul mates whose lyrical styling reflect my own. I have an odd interest in psychology and studies about human behavior related to the brain and hormones. So I feel as though science is a type of art. I’m also a huge fan of poetry. Some of my favorite poetry books are “Blushing”,”Kiss Off”, and “The Hell With Love”. These are all collections of different poets’ work, all relating to “love” in some form.

     The reason I’m at Columbia is because of their Music department’s CUP program. I was originally a Vocal Performance major but due to health reasons I made the decision to switch to Music Business. But Columbia’s contemporary music department program was a dream for me. Everywhere else I visited only offered classical training. Plus, how can you pass up the chance to live in downtown Chicago?!

     I’m really excited about this course. I don’t really have any concerns yet, but that might change in time. (haha)The mediums I’d probably end up using are music, sketches, or maybe even some of my lyrics/poems. I’m looking forward to this project!