Icon Analysis

Lil Wayne is one of the largest pop Icons in this time period. Not only is he a successful rapper, he has crossed over into many different genres of music which is making him a universal popular culture icon. He has numerous hit records and he has been featured on lots of hit records. Almost everything he touches become a hit! He has even introduced the world to the next big thing “Drake”. For all of those who do not know he is the guy from Degrassi that was wheel chair bound. Drake is multi-talented, he sings, raps, and act.
My second pop icon is Judge Mathis and Judge Hatchett. Believe it or not lots of people watch these television shows. I enjoy them so much because Judge Mathis and Judge Hatchett are popular icons to many. They are positive role models and leaders that many people especially youth look up too. Both judges have a success story to tell and their backgrounds are similar if not exactly the same as many individuals watching their shows, in their courtrooms, and around the world. Both of these individuals are pop icons to me because they are letting it be known that success is good, being educated is good, and not always hanging with the crowd is good. They both send very powerful messages to the individuals in their courtrooms, as well as, the viewers watching their shows.

My third pop icon is Flava Flav (or Flavor Flave). He has change reality television as we know it. He has made it cool to want to find love on the television, while the public is watching your every move. He has paved the way for dozens of other dating shows to be created. I don’t know if we should praise him or punish him. These shows have been the very interesting over the years. It seems like the host of these shows try to outperform the previous show by having their participants do even more ridiculous things than the previous group. Flava Flav and other reality celebrities such as New York and Real and Chance has made it okay to be dating more than one male/female at the same time.
I have choose all of these icons because they are genuinely good people who are trying to make a living helping out others, whether it’s through a song, in court, or on television. All of these popular culture icons have positive effects on large groups of people. Their small or large deeds make large ripples not only in their communities that they reside but globally. All of these icons are internationally known, which means they are helping individuals all over the world.

Lil Wayne photo retrieved from:

http://themovementfam.blogspot.com/2009/04/new-drake-and-lil-wayne-im-goin-in-nodj.htm

Judge Mathis photo retrieved from:

http://vptvcourt.blogspot.com/2008/04/judge-mathis.html

Judge Hatchett photo retrived from:

http://realgossip101.blogspot.com/2007/12/judge-hatchett-leaves-her-show-for.html

Flava Flav photo retrieved from:

http://scrapetv.com/News/News%20Pages/usa/pages-2/Government-proposes-change-to-911-number-to-reduce-idiocy-Scrape-TV-The-World-on-your-side.html

Weekly Analysis: “Dating” on Reality Television and the Internet

Whenever I turn on the television there is a new reality dating show. I am not going to tell you that I do not watch them because they are a good source of entertainment when I have nothing else to. I must admit that I am a fan a quite a few shows. I am amused and appalled at some of the things that happen on these shows. The show participants and producers should be more aware of what type of entertainment they are making because our children are absorbing everything that is put out there positive or negative. These shows on during times like 8 or 9 when the average child is still awake. I think that these television shows do great job at showing our children, young adults, and even adults how not to act or carry themselves in public or period for that matter; however they do not emphasize the point that they should not be mimicking the behavior. I wish children were given better examples to follow and better role models to mimic. Instead they are watching these reality television shows learning bad morals and values.

In the shows such as "Flavor of Love", "Rock of Love", "I love New York", and many more, children are being taught that it is okay to do any and everything to find love, even if it means making a fool of yourself on national television. I understand that everybody has to make a living doing whatever it is that can do, but tomorrow's leaders are being shown inappropriate behaviors. As a society, we need to do a better job a teaching youth what to do when it comes to dating. Children need to know the dos and don'ts of dating and getting involved in a relationship. Parents need to instill good morals and values in their children, which will make them better overall individuals. I am not saying that everyone that has been on a reality TV have no morals and values; however when individuals are on these television show they do tend to forget them or disregard them for the moment.
Another recent phenomenon is online dating. I think online dating is very scary and unsafe. I have never tried it so I do not know from experience; however every night on the 10 o clock news I hear about someone being robbed, hurt, or kidnapped all because they were talking to someone online. I understand that most of these dating site require that the participant be 18 but let's be realistic the internet access is pretty much available to almost anybody. Children and teens are lying to access these sites. I know lots of kids with Facebook accounts who are not even 16 yet. The access to the internet that the average kid has is ridiculous. Children can go to the public library to access these sites and many more.
I think that it is ok to watch dating reality television if you are of a particular age. I do not think that parents or guardians should allow their 10 year old to watch these television shows because it could possible corrupt their way of thinking and the same goes for these internet dating and networking sites too. Other sites parents should watch out for are artist websites such as Mariahcarey.com, thisis50.com and so on. Most artist websites have chat rooms and there are age requirements that children may disregard to get into the chat room. Parents should limit internet and television access until they believe that their child(ren) are ready and capable to make informed and educated decisions.

The picture was retrieved from http://www.coverbrowser.com/image/bestselling-movies-2006/870-1.jpg

Weekly Analysis "Obsessed"

I have chosen to analyze Mariah Carey’s hit new single “Obsessed” from her new album “Memoir of an Imperfect Angel”, which is due to be release September 29, 2009. The song was officially released on June 16, 2009. A digital copy was release on July 6, 2009. The digital single hit Wal-Mart stores August 11, 2009 (MariahCarey.com, 2009). This release is so crucial to popular culture because this is the first time that an R&B singer has made a dissent song about a hardcore rapper like Eminem. I think that it was a pretty good song despite the negative connotation of having a stalker.
We see this type of event happen every day to ordinary people. Two people are dating one another, one break it off, while the other wants to continue. It was sort of a shock to see that celebrities go through the same thing. I would think that if a relationship did not work out then a celebrity would just move on to the next candidate in line. I do not know the extent of Mariah Carey and Eminem’s relationship but they clearly have differing stories. Eminem has put out a response to Mariah’s song Obsessed basically stating his side of the story.
Whatever the truth may really be, I think that they both are not setting good examples for the youth in our society. To me they are saying that it is okay to publicly humiliate an ex girlfriend, boyfriend, or just someone who you thought you were interested in. That is just not cool. Since they did not work out they should have acted maturely about the situation. They should have not gone and spread each other’s business publicly on records that can never be destroyed now. Personal relationships are meant to be just that personal. To me these two songs really show the true Character of both entertainers.
I understand that making music is there passion; however they could have been more tactful. Mariah did not have to dress up as Eminem in her video and Eminem did not have to call her and her present husband Nick Cannon out on his reply to Obsessed.

Popular Culture Artifact

A popular culture artifact that represents pop culture to me is the singer Mary J. Blige and her music. Mary J Blige is an entertainment icon. She and her music have evolved with the times. She has produced music that people on so many levels could relate too. Her music is universal and it touches people’s souls. Mary J. Blige has cried with us, smiled with us, been angry with us, and most importantly she has experienced happiness with us. So many individuals have listened to her music to help them get through some hard times. Mary J. Blige has taken us as a society on the journey of her life. She is the epitome popular culture because she has experienced so many things that the average person has been through or may have been exposed to. Popular culture is all about being able to relate. Relating is what makes people, music, books, and so on popular. No one would think something or someone was popular is they could not relate or identify with.

Popular Culture in Business

Businesses and individuals need to know what popular culture is and how it affects them as individuals and as organizations. In order to survive businesses and organizations have to keep up with the latest trends in all industries. Understanding popular culture is relevant to individuals because businesses are created to serve the needs of a particular niche market. It would behoove businesses t o know the exact needs and wants of their consumers. Knowing the market and how customers react to the market could save a business and its customer’s money. Being aware of all the latest popular trends and market trends can assist businesses overall day to day activities, which could shed some light on the business future and the future of the organizations employees. Queen Latifah is the celebrity endorser for mascra. The purpose of that advertisement is to show ordinary women that they can have great eyes lashes like celebrities at an affordable price.

What is Popular Culture?

Popular culture, as defined by Browne, is a system of attitudes behavior patterns, beliefs, customs, and tastes that define the people of any society; it is the entertainment, diversions, icons, rituals, and actions that shape a society’s everyday world (2005). Popular culture is anything from the food that we eat to the music that we listen to. Popular culture is everywhere in the world and it means something different to everyone. Popular culture is anything (music, clothing, books, food, and so on) that is popular at any point in time. Ordinary people and celebrities continuously re-shape popular culture every day.

Browne, R. & Browne, P. (2005). Profiles of Popular Culture: a Reader. Popular Press. Wisconsin.