Carly Rae jepsen’s rise to fame

On August 7^th, 2018 at the Saskatoon Prairieland Park Grandstand for the Saskatoon Ex, I attended a live performance by Canadian singer/songwriter, Carly Rae Jepsen.

Carly Rae Jepsen was born on November 21^st, 1985 in Mission, British Columbia [1], and is a known name across North America and the world. She graduated from Heritage Park Secondary School in and soon became a popular contestant and finalist in the hit show Canadian Idol in 2007 [2]. This greatly boosted her music career as it opened her up to more possible connections and opportunities in the music world.

Jepsen excitingly released her first album, Tug of War, in 2008, produced by Ryan Stewart [1]. Her hit song “Bucket” from that album was popular to begin with and jump-started her career with a pop single. This song even has 6.8 million views on YouTube, which is a ton of views considering this was her first released song.

Even though her career was already climbing, Jepsen’s EP Curiosity, released in February 2012 was a turning point for her. Her most iconic song to date, “Call Me Maybe” became one of the most popular songs of the year and more years to come. This single also opened up an opportunity for her to sign with Schoolboy Records, a record company that also has signed Justin Bieber, managed by Scooter Braun. To be signed to the same record company as Justin Bieber created a lot of supper for Jespen from the company and from Justin Bieber himself.

This close relationship that Bieber and Jepsen formed helped sky-rocket the popularity of “Call me Maybe” after Justin Bieber tweeted about the song back in 2011.

Bieber also released a video of his own for this song, which included cameos of some of the biggest stars of the time such as Selena Gomez and Ashley Tisdale.

“Call Me Maybe” became the #1 song in over 13 countries across the world, including Australia, Ireland, and of course, Canada[4]. Also, this song caused Jepsen to be the first female lead to have a debut song his #1 in over two and a half years since Kesha and her song “Tik Tok“[4].

where is she today?

Obviously, Jespen is still performing today, but it is on a smaller scale than it was when her main single first debuted. She did release another album called “Emotion” in 2015 which also had another top 40s hit, “I Really Like You”, but since that, we have not seen any new albums. Recently, in April of 2018 she posted this video on her Instagram, teasing that there may be new music coming out very soon! This is exciting since there has been no new albums from her in three years.

Jepsen took some time off of music after being offered a lead role in Broadway’s “Cinderella” which she worked on and performed throughout 2014 [6].

                             Carly Rae Jepsen performing in Broadway's "Cinderella", 2014

Throughout the past year, Jepsen has been with Katy Perry on Perry’s tour, Witness, as the opening act for every concert.

She may not be talked about as much as she was when “Call Me Maybe” first came out, but she is definitely still relevant, as she still has over 5.9 million monthly listeners on Spotify alone.

                                         Jepsen on Witness: The Tour with Katy Perry [5]

Identifying her music

Jepsen is widely known as a pop singer/songwriter, and her music greatly reflects that. “Call Me Maybe” for example is a very upbeat, fast moving song that is classic of today’s pop music. It includes a steady beat, synthesized string chords (heard right in the intro of the song), and fun, relatable lyrics. This song in particular is about a girl who sees a boy she immediately likes and is caught off guard by this impression.

I wasn’t looking for this
But now you’re in my way

Your stare was holding
Ripped jeans, skin was showin’
Hot night, wind was blowin’
Where you think you’re going baby?

“Call Me Maybe” – Carly Rae Jepsen

As Jepsen grows and develops, her music is bound to change. Nowadays, as she works on more and more music, she tells the Vancouver Sun that

“I can’t explain what we’re doing right now, but we’re very much into disco-y things, whatever this next album may or may not turn out to be,” she said. “But I’m very much referencing ABBA a lot, and the Bee Gees, all of that stuff. It’s fun to dig into oldies and see what you can celebrate about it, like a good movie or good song — to take your favourite pieces of something and add some new stuff to create something different.”

So, even though she does not have any  new music out yet, we can see that she is taking a classic take on her new music, inspired by the 1960’s and the 1980’s dance, disco vibes. Her unreleased music is rumoured to be very “disco-y” as she says, because her Instagram bio was changed to “When you move it’s like a disco darling – all my dreams come true” [7] for a while, and “Disco Darling” is thought to be one of her new songs to come out soon.

the concert

The concert that I attended one August 7th at the Saskatoon Ex was such a fun time. Carly Rae Jepsen’s stage presence is just very fun, upbeat, and you can tell that she just loves performing. The venue was at the Prairieland Park Bandstand which is an outdoor, decent sized venue for a city like Saskatoon.

                          My photo from the concert on August 7th 2018

Unfortunately, Jepsen was sick during the performance, but that did not stop her at all. She still performed with 100% energy and the best that she could! It is very impressive to see someone be sick but still have the determination to go out there and perform her heart out.

The entire audience was just so upbeat, everybody was having a great time and was really engaged in the concert, which makes the atmosphere just that much better.

                                   My photo from the concert on August 7th 2018

My reflection

Personally, I was happy that I was going to the concert but I wasn’t overly excited. I had always heard Jepsen’s music but never really listened to it, nor did I follow her as an artist or creator. To me, she was always just another pop singer that you heard on the radio.

After the concert and reading up on her life growing up, I am definitely more of a fan of hers and I hope to see her music continue to grow and become even more unique as the time goes on. It was quite meaningful to see her passion and her drive, despite her illness or the small venue that is was, especially compared to opening for Katy Perry on her tour. She still put everything she had out there, and it was definitely appreciated by the fans and very enjoyable for everyone that attended!

Overall the concert was meaningful to me, and, in my opinion, for the audience that attended mostly because of her commitment and passion that was evident during the concert. I think that is an overriding theme throughout music history: that if you have passion, the drive, and commitment, people will see that, appreciate that, and support you along the way.

                                         My photo from the concert on August 7th 2018

[1] “Carly Rae Jepsen.” Biography.com. November 15, 2015. Accessed August 10, 2018. https://www.biography.com/people/carly-rae-jepsen-20858431.

[2] Monger, James Christopher. “Carly Rae Jepsen | Biography & History.” AllMusic. Accessed August 10, 2018. https://www.allmusic.com/artist/carly-rae-jepsen-mn0002089077/biography.

[3] “Who Is Carly Rae Jepsen? Everything You Need to Know.” Childhood, Life Achievements & Timeline. Accessed August 10, 2018. https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/carly-rae-jepsen-14653.php.

[4] Montgomery, James. “Carly Rae Jepsen’s ‘Call Me Maybe,’ By The Numbers.” MTV News. June 14, 2012. Accessed August 10, 2018. http://www.mtv.com/news/1687413/carly-rae-jepsen-call-me-maybe/.

[5] Mkygod. “Chron.com: “Katy Perry, Carly Rae Jepsen Bring Pop Shimmer to Houston”.” Carly Slay Jepsen – A Carly Rae Jepsen Fan Site. January 08, 2018. Accessed August 10, 2018. http://www.carlyslayjepsen.com/wp/2018/01/08/5585/.

The “Payola” what?

By the mid 1950’s, the rise and advancement of technology was growing exponentially. This growth demanded a need for more disk jockeys, and by 1957 there was over 5000 DJ’s in the united states alone [1], growing almost 2000% in only 7 years. Music, as always, was one of the most popular sought after careers, living a life of fame and luxury. The desire for this lifestyle caused people to do whatever they can to be the most famous and to get their music out there. The main way people attempted to get their name out there was by paying disk jockeys on radio stations to deliberately play their music, and to play it often. This was known as “payola”, with “pay” meaning to give money, and “ola” stemming from the name for a gramophone called the Victrola.

1950's radio [2]

Even though payola was mostly a known thing, the scandal did not break out until a couple of incidents on popular game shows occurred, most popularly the show Twenty One [1], where some contestants were caught bribing hosts or other people to give them the answers. This may not seem related, but it only brought attention to the issue of bribery and the unfairness of it all.

The famous game show Twenty One

After these incidents on the game shows, the Payola scandal broke out, and the  Congressional Payola Investigations took over and decided to try and put an end to the bribery in the world of music [3].

Who got caught?

Many radio stations were put under the spotlight when the Congressional Payola Investigations took over, and even let go of a lot of the disk jockeys just to avoid any more disruptions. On the other side of that, many disk jockeys also publicly spoke out about the payola and their earnings. For example, Wesley Hopkins of KYW in Cleveland admitted to receiving over $12,000 in payment for playing certain songs in just the years of 1958-1959. That is a lot of money now to receive now for just playing songs, but it was worth even more in 1959 [4]. Stan Richard, another disk jockey, also admitted to receiving thousands of dollars as well.

Although many disk jockeys got in trouble, the main two culprits were Dick Clark and Alan Freed.

                                             Dick Clark hosting American Bandstand's in the 1950's [6]

Dick Clark was a popular, good looking TV host and later, disk jockey, that was one of the more famous of the time. He ended up going to trial, but not receiving any consequences for the most part [4]. It did, although, burn some bridges with potential clients or people to work with because he was put in such a bad light, even though many, many other disk jockeys were doing the same thing.

More severe, iconic disk jockey Alan Freed was punished for the wrongdoings with payola done by almost all disk jockeys in the country [1]. By the end of the trials, Freed ended up with 26 counts of commercial bribery, and was made to pay many fines [4], while all other disk jockey’s, including Dick Clark, walked away clean. Because of all these charges, Freed lost everything he had created: his radio show, his television show, and any professional relationships he may have had [3].

Alan Freed in the 1950's [5]

So… what happened?

Basically, Alan Freed ended up taking most of the fall for all the disk jockeys that participated in payola. The Congressional Payola Investigations resulted in the disk jockeys not being able to make any program decisions anymore for the radio shows. There would be directors and coordinators that would take over the set-list and would pick which songs would be played based on their popularity, not how much money they could provide.

It still exists today

The payola was a big deal at the time, but over the years has resurfaced dramatically. Record labels will pay people to go to radio stations and give the stations money, products, or other wanted items to play specific songs, making the listeners hear it more and for it to become popular. The songs that are played on the radio are not always what is new, or what is most popular, but the songs are from companies that can convince radio stations to play their music.

Other than radio stations, record labels can also pay other music providers, for example Spotify, one of the world’s most popular streaming services, to put their songs on pre-made playlists. Most listeners choose to trust in the streaming services to pick songs that sound good or are similar together on playlists so that they don’t have to. Companies can pay providers, such as Spotify, to put their songs on the most listened to playlists, so consumers will hear it more often, even if they are not aware.

[7]

Is it positive, or negative?

In my personal opinion, payola is not a good way to get good music out into the world. All payola does is provide listeners with songs that come from companies with the most money, not songs that may actually be beneficial for the listener. It also fools the consumer into thinking that they are listening to the “most popular songs right now”, but they are not. Most often they are listening to the songs that come from the most money. Our society nowadays wants what is easy, so instead of searching or finding new artists or new songs, they put on a pre-made playlist with songs put there on purpose by the streaming services. I think the music world would be a lot more diverse, and smaller artists would have more of a chance to make it big, if payola

[1]”Alan Freed, Dick Clark and the Radio Payola Scandal.” Performing Songwriter Ent., LLC. August 24, 2015. Accessed July 20, 2018. http://performingsongwriter.com/alan-freed-payola-scandal/.

[2]”1950.” Philco Radio Gallery. Accessed July 20, 2018. http://philcoradio.com/gallery2/1950a/.

[3]Kelly, Kim. “A Brief History of American Payola.” Noisey. February 14, 2016. Accessed July 20, 2018. https://noisey.vice.com/da/article/64y8y9/a-brief-history-of-american-payola.

Biography

The World’s Greatest Minstrel Man, James Alan Bland, is one name that is seldom heard in the ever-changing music industry that we have today. Bland was born on October 22^nd, 1845 in Flushing, New York and one was one of eight children [1]. As an African-American man in the mid 1800’s, it may seem like Bland would have had a very tough childhood as acceptance of black folk was not overly common, but he actually did very well for himself given the socio-acceptance and rate of slavery at that time. His parents were very educated, which influenced Bland to study at Howard University in Washington, D.C. [1].

                      Howard University, Washington D.C.1870 [4]

His campus-life did not last very long as he decided to pursue music as a career instead of getting a degree, and performed at whatever gigs that he could get at that time. By the late 1970’s, Bland chose to join a band, the Georgia Minstrels, which led him to become one of the first successful people to be in a black-minstrel company [2], while also composing hundreds of songs throughout his years. Minstrel bands were used to entertain through the mockery of African American people, but Bland took advantage of this mockery to become very successful.

                                        Music Poster from James Bland and his band, The Georgia Minstrels, featuring typical minstrel mockery of African-American folk,1879 [5]

By 1880, Bland was one of the most successful performers in America, but decided to move to London, England. He did not move back until 20 years later, and unfortunately was sick and had spent all his money that he earned while being famous. Even though he was an incredible composer, and composed an estimated 700 songs [3], the excitement over minstrel shows and James A. Bland himself had passed over, and there was nothing left for Bland. He later died from tuberculosis, but his music still lives on as timeless and revolutionary.

His Importance and Contributions

James A. Bland contributed a lot to the African-American community of the 1800’s. Some people may think that it is awful that he participated in the racism that minstrel shows were created for, but it may actually have been a good thing. He was a very successful black man, no matter where his success stemmed from, and successful African-American’s were scarce because of the discrimination and slavery that occurred during that time. He showed that taking advantage of your situation, even if it is unfair and not right, is still possible and you can still live a successful life, no matter what.

His Life Challenges

As a black man during the 1800’s, Bland had some major hurdles to get over. Luckily, his parents were educated and wealthy enough to get Bland out into the world and go to school, but it was still difficult as a black man. Slavery was a huge issue, and black people were overly not accepted, which is why minstrel shows became so popular. James A. Bland overcame this racial hurdle by using it to his advantage. He saw the opportunity to take this misfortune of African-American’s at the time, and become successful through it. He used what the rest of society wanted, a mockery of African-American people, and did just that.

                                    Music Poster from James Bland and his band, The Georgia Minstrels, featuring typical minstrel mockery of African-American folk,1879 [5]

The band he was in, the Georgia Minstrels, even blackened their faces more, put red makeup on their lips, and moved around in stereotypical and extravagant ways to entertain the audience [2]. No, the racism or discrimination is not fair, but Bland took that unfairness and made it positive for him and his life.

Examples of His Contribution

“Oh! Dem’ Golden Slippers” – James A. Bland

Oh, dem golden slippers!

Golden slippers I’m gwine to wear,

Becase dey look so neat;

Oh, dem golden slippers!

-James A. Bland, 1879

Bland was a very thoughtful writer. He influenced the music world has he used his compositions to tell stories of issues of his time, especially those affecting his community, the African-American people. This song is a good representation of his situation, as he writes about material things, such as a white robe, a banjo, and of course, golden slippers, which are all things that he had in his life due to his success. He writes, “t’s good-bye, children, I will have to go”, possibly meaning that he either has to get away from the fame or the American society, which he did by moving to London, or it is possible that he is referencing breaking away from the slavery that was occurring in the United States at that time. It is not clear what exactly Bland means, but either interpretation reflects the current time period for him. This shows his contribution as he used his platform to address problems that personally affected himself.

“Carry Me Back to Old Virginny” – James A. Bland

There’s where I labor’d so hard for old massa,

Day after day in the field of yellow corn,

No place on earth do I love more sincerely

Than old Virginny, the state where I was born.

-James A. Bland 1878

“Carry Me Back to Old Virginny” is un-arguably Bland’s most famous song that he ever composed. This had a huge contribution to his community and to the music world as a whole because it was chosen as the official state song of Virginia in 1940 [7]. A song adopted has the State Song Emeritus is one of the biggest compliments that any composer or song-writer could ever get, and puts a lot of emphasis on that singer and that song as important to the state and its history. He clearly made a huge impact, one big enough to grant him the honour of having his song as a staple in Virginia culture. Yes, there was an influx of discrimination occurring, but Bland still loved his state, and this is evident in this piece.

“De Slavery Chains Am Broke at Last” – James A. Bland

“Go carry the news to Sister Hannah,

Slav’ry chains am broke at last.

and tell her to Sweet Johannah,

Slav’ry chains am broke at last,

Go tell de brudders goodbye,

De slav’ry chains am broke at last”

-James A. Bland, 1880

Although Bland is known for his work in minstrel shows, he did not let go or approve of what was going on during that time. This song may be overlooked often when people argue that he had negative effects on the black community because it shows his actual feelings towards the happenings. Bland clearly shows his underlying contribution to the African-American community through this song, as it addressing the true issues of the time, even though African-American humility was the reason for his success.

   
Recorded version "De Slav'ry Chains Am Broke At Last" is not available. Here shows original sheet music and music poster from the song release in 1880 [6].

[1]”Bland, James A. (1854-1911) | The Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed.” St. Clair, Stephanie (1886–1969) | The Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed. Accessed July 18, 2018. http://www.blackpast.org/aah/bland-james-1854-1911.

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