Being a product of the graduating class of 2008, I think that me and my peers have a very unique perspective of the world. At the time of our graduation, we were mere months away from one of the most severe economic downturns in history, and definitely one of the most severe economic swings in our lifetimes.
Some quick stats on what happened during the recession:
- We knew it was coming.... and had coverage on it beginning in January 2008
- It was caused by a credit crisis, a sub-prime mortgage crisis and was prolonged by a EU debt crisis, chronic unemployment (despite periodic upswings spurred by government investment) and a terrible oil spill in the gulf
- By 2009 it had thrust more than 2.6M Americans into poverty
- It soon penetrated all aspects of our lives, even having some unexpected ways: the increased interest in making things last longer, a decrease in emissions and the slowing of global warming
- The government invested ~$700B in TARP funds to revive the stricken industry, with many of the strongest ailing companies being also the most well known-JP Morgan, US Bank, etc.
- Even in the beginning of 2011, the economy still struggles to come to grips with its new place- especially in the shadow of new rising stars in the BRIC
I thought it might be interesting to juxtapose these trends against the main way that my generation usually communicates its feelings- mass media, specifically, music.
Let's begin with Lady Gaga. She released her first album The Fame in 2008, around the same time things really started going sour. It's hit song was "Just Dance"- a song about not caring about anything and going out to have a really good party. In hindsight, this song could be sung from the perspective of all the predatory mortgage lenders or from the perspective of the poor middle-class worker, now unemployed and with increasing pressures to pay his credit cards back...
"Just dance...gonna be okay...just dance...spin that record babe...Go! Use your muscle, carve it out, work it, hustle/ I got it, just stay close enough to get it"
2009 introduced Jay-Z's new album (after approximately 8 retirements) The Blueprint 3, filled with your typical rap anthems like "On to the Next One" but also with "Young Forever", mixing both defiant denial and nostalgic longing for the good ol days....
2010 introduced the break out band The National to the mainstream with the release of their album High Violet. Where he claims "I still owe money to the money to the money I owe..."
2010 also introduced a hit from Broken Bells, titled The High Road, where they admit that "'Cause they know and so do I/ The high road is hard to find"
So it seems we've run the gamut- we're purely escapist, defiant and in denial, melancholy and losing hope but also deeply philosophical...It's only been the first few months of 2011 so far, but on a post some time soon, I expect to look into the trends of late 2010 and early 2011...just to make sure my demographic is feeling a bit better...
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