Music and Identity

There's no harm in music, correct? Everyone who said yes, well I'm sorry to say, but you are quite wrong. In todays society, music is everywhere. Restaurants, school, the beach, and all over the internet. People listen to music everyday, whether it's on the radio, in gym class, or just as something to keep them from getting bored.

                The music people choose to listen to is the type of music that can change them as a person. Studies have shown that people who listen to classical music have a higher grade point average than someone who listens to something such as rap or rock.

                Also, more aggressive music, like rap, metal, rock, et cetera, can affect how a person acts in public. Lyrics like in the song Justt Don't Give A F*ck by Eminem suggest that people should just, well, not give a f*ck.

Please excuse the Language

So when you see me on your block with two glocks

Screaming Fuck The World like Tupac

I just don't give a fuck!!

Talking that shit behind my back, dirty mackin

Telling your boys that I'm on crack

I just don't give a fuck!!

So put my tape back on the rack

Go run and tell your friends my shit is wack

I just don't give a fuck!!

But see me on the street and duck

Cause you gon' get stuck, stoned, and snuffed

Cause I just don't give a fuck!!

          Telling teenagers and younger/older audiences that this is how a celebrity lives his life, will most likely cause them to react and try to do the same. This is not good!

                Whatever music someone listens to may also cause them, not only to act differently, but to dress differently, talk differently, be friends with different people, etc. For instance: if someone listens to mainly country music, they may dress in "country-style" clothing like plaid shirts, blue jeans, possibly a pair of cowboy boots and a noticable belt buckle. They may also try to talk using the language that country singers and bands use, their type of lingo. And, not saying this is all true, friends can also be chosen by the type of music they listen to. What is one of the first questions that comes up in a conversation with a complete stranger? "What type of music do you listen to?" If you are a big fan of indie rock, and the person you are talking to says they are really into r&b, while you hate r&b, are you really going to want to hang out with them ALL the time? Most people would say "It doesn't matter what type of music they listen to, it's all about their personality."

                But let's be serious. Would you ACTUALLY want to hang around with someone who absolutely detests your favourite genre of music? My guess is, probably not. People are basically shaped by their favourite type of music, whether it's rap, reggae, rock, metal, screamo, country, punk, r&b,  pop, hip hop, techno, you name it! Everyone is changed by the music they listen to, we don't really have a choice. 

How Does the Media and the Messages Brought to Us Affect of "Identity"?

The media is everywhere. On television, internet, magazines, even in schools and on the streets. Almost everywhere you look, there is something being advertised in one way or another. These advertisements send out messages to people that strongly affect our "identity" or who we are/will become. Now how does this happen? 

                Companies have targetted a certain group of people for their products. For instance, a clothing company such as American Eagle or Hollister would target teenagers, therefore, they need to think of a way to sell their products to these teenagers. In order to do this, they send out advertisements of teens wearing (or not wearing) their line of clothing.

One may also be affected by the prices of the product. They may feel like they fit in better if they have a more expensive brand than the cheap Walmart clothes, and since they wear these more expensive clothes, they now fit in with the rest of the teenage population.

This can change a person's identity because once someone sees these images and these advertisements,  they may feel they need to have the product, or they need to change so they can be like the person in the ad.

Making Chemistry With Dentyne Ice

Before you read this, please take 33 seconds from your day to watch the video posted above. I don't know about other people, but I personally find this commercial very offensive.

First of all, I'd like to point out that this commercial is supposed to be advertising gum, but in the commercial, it portrays a girl. This girl seems to be looking for her perfect match, and where does she go to do this? A club, in the middle of the night! Before she even gets inside, she is scoping out guys, showing their personal traits from what she observes in the 3 seconds she looks at them. Of course, this is how one finds true love, right?

Not only does she find her "Mr. Right", but she completely ignores this guy, who just so happens to be the one for her, and goes for "Mr. Right Now" implying that she is a complete and utter slut, who would rather flaunt herself in front of a guy who she will probably only be with for one night.

Now let me ask you this question: If you wanted to impress a guy, would your first thought be to pop a piece of gum in to your mouth? And if you were a guy, would that be what you would want to see from a girl trying to impress you? My guess is probaby not.

This commercial, which is supposed to be advertising their brand of gum, switches what gum should be –giving one fresh breath or something to chew on- to, what other than, sex. Because it seems that all marketing companies think everyone wants to see sexual advertisements for gum on their television every day.