Essays
- The Deep Cuts of a Randy Rainbow Song ParodySeptember 12, 2020 American comedian and musician Randy Rainbow has recently enjoyed YouTube success thanks to a group of people he apparently vehemently dislikes: President Donald Trump and his administration. One video alone has garnered as many as 6.5 million views.[1] Although mostContinue reading “Essays and Interviews”
- Refractions of a Rainbow: Randy Rainbow’s Multi-Layered ParodiesAugust 17, 2020 In September 2019, I stood in a blocks-long line of excited fans in front of the Merriam Theater in Philadelphia. The attraction was neither the latest teen heartthrob nor a jazz luminary, but Randy Rainbow, the YouTube sensationContinue reading “Essays and Interviews”
- Trax on the Trail: Researching Music on the U.S. Presidential Campaign TrailTrax on the Trail Research Assistant Sarah Griffin presented her research on campaign music at the Georgia College 23rd Annual Student Research Conference in April 2020. You can check out her poster here. Sarah Griffin (Student, Georgia College), Dana Gorzelany-MostakContinue reading “Essays and Interviews”
- Jamming with Andrew Yang: Rap and the Model MinorityMarch 26, 2020 Although businessman and former presidential candidate Andrew Yang preferred to ignore it, his campaign attracted a large number of disaffected Trump voters from the alt-right. At first glance, Yang and the former Trumpsters seemed like strange bedfellowsContinue reading “Essays and Interviews”
Interviews
- Singing a Song to the 81%: An Interview with Daniel DeitrichOn July 17, 2020, Trax on the Trail Research Assistant Haley Strassburger and Founder Dana Gorzelany-Mostak interviewed Daniel Deitrich, the South Bend Indiana singer-songwriter who created quite a stir with his praise anthem “Hymn for the 81%.” Read on toContinue reading “Essays and Interviews”
- Musicians. Organizers. Activists. An interview with Andrew Scotchie and Andrew Fletcher, Organizers of the Feel the Beat! Feel the Bern! Fundraiser, Asheville, NCOn May 19, 2020 Trax founder Dana Gorzelany-Mostak and Trax Research Assistant Sarah Griffin had the pleasure of chatting with the two Asheville-based musicians who organized Feel the Beat! Feel the Bern!, a concert to support the candidacy of Bernie Sanders.Continue reading “Essays and Interviews”
- Tommy Oswalt Weighs in on Pop Culture and the American PresidencyOn May 14th Trax Co-editor Dana Gorzelany-Mostak and Research Assistant Sarah Griffin had the pleasure of interviewing recent Vanderbilt University graduate Tommy Oswalt, who developed a TEDx talk and an interactive game exploring campaign playlists. Here Tommy weighs in onContinue reading “Essays and Interviews”
- On the Inside Trax: Dr. Nicholas Phillips, Pianist, Educator, and New Music AdvocateA search by genre in the Trail Trax database will reveal very few examples of classical music on the trail. There was Stephen Colbert’s live string quartet with underscore for the final debate, “Hillary” (Kate McKinnon) and “Bernie’s” (Larry David) “Waltz ofContinue reading “Essays and Interviews”