recordyear
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Post by recordyear on Jan 11, 2021 7:39:45 GMT -5
Artist: Blake Shelton Single: Minimum Wage Album: Body Language Writers: Corey Crowder, Jesse Frasure, Nicolle Galyon Label: Warner Music Nashville Impact Date: January 19th, 2021 (AllAccess)
I guess it will be released this Friday.
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gonecountry
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Post by gonecountry on Jan 11, 2021 10:37:33 GMT -5
surprised that he is proceeding with this, he's gotten a bit of backlash on this for being tone deaf Blake Shelton Slammed Over 'Minimum Wage' Ballad ... Bro, You're a Millionaire!!!Reminds me of the classic (IMO) Josh Abbot Band song "I'll Sing About Mine" Because tractors ain’t sexy and workin’ is hard For small town people like me And the radio’s full of rich folks singin’ ‘Bout places they’ve never seen Now I ain’t saying that their lives ain’t hard, I’d love to hear about it sometime But let them sing about their own life And I’ll sing about mine
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.indulgecountry
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Best Country Poster 2011, 2017, & 2018
"You left a mark on my face // And brought a dozen red flags in a vase"
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Post by .indulgecountry on Jan 11, 2021 11:51:33 GMT -5
The song's lyric really isn't that bad per se (I get what the writers were going for with the analogy and it makes sense), but the timing of releasing it now just couldn't be any worse for him, so for that reason I do think this is probably not the wisest idea and I am a little surprised at the messy rollout for this one already.
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Ernesto
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Post by Ernesto on Jan 11, 2021 12:45:03 GMT -5
I assume he will get similar criticism to what Phil Collins got for "Another Day in Paradise."
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seak05
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Post by seak05 on Jan 11, 2021 13:29:47 GMT -5
The blowback was a little ridiculous (while Blake is a millionaire, he hasn't always been). The analogy is messy, actually trying to survive on minimum wage is more food stamps, and not being able to afford rent. Not being low middle class, and just not having a lot. Plus minimum wage is already a hot button issue. This just seems like a bad idea. I'm sure most of "country" will rally around it, because how dare you criticize, and frankly many country fans would like to romanticize the idea of minimum wage....but it just seems dumb.
(Also per a Scott Hendricks article this was apparently recorded like two years ago)
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LBTrocks
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Post by LBTrocks on Jan 11, 2021 21:46:22 GMT -5
The 'blowback' is about as dumb as the lyrics are
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jab820
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Post by jab820 on Jan 11, 2021 22:14:01 GMT -5
I'd say it's worth it to pull. Any time a song causes debate is not good for an artist. It's just not worth it.
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HeyHeyHey
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Post by HeyHeyHey on Jan 11, 2021 22:26:31 GMT -5
I haven’t even heard this one but yeah...since there is some talk about it already and not in a good way it is probably best to go another route. Maybe he should team up with Gwen again for a third collaboration in a row.
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.indulgecountry
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"You left a mark on my face // And brought a dozen red flags in a vase"
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Post by .indulgecountry on Jan 11, 2021 23:21:52 GMT -5
I haven’t even heard this one but yeah...since there is some talk about it already and not in a good way it is probably best to go another route. Maybe he should team up with Gwen again for a third collaboration in a row. Only if he actually lets her sing more. I think it's crazy he had the nerve to put her on two hit singles in a row and neither of them she got more than a background presence.
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seak05
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Post by seak05 on Jan 12, 2021 9:30:12 GMT -5
The 'blowback' is about as dumb as the lyrics are This. If you're going to deal with blowback on a song, it should be for a song that's really pushing boundaries or messages. Dealing with blowback on a standard, radio country song, just isn't worth it. There are other songs out there
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Post by countryisking on Jan 12, 2021 10:28:50 GMT -5
If the label really dropped this over the 6 people on twitter who needed something to be offended about that day, then Blake needs to have a long talk with them.
I imagine there was a similar backlash to Dolly’s “9 to 5” right?
...
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raylatch98
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Post by raylatch98 on Jan 12, 2021 11:05:20 GMT -5
If the label really dropped this over the 6 people on twitter who needed something to be offended about that day, then Blake needs to have a long talk with them. I imagine there was a similar backlash to Dolly’s “9 to 5” right? ... Different times, "9 to 5" was released back in the 1980s, and the environment in 2021 is a lot different. While I don't agree with the backlash 100%, if a song has any sort of backlash even before being released it is probably best to not send it to radio.
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matty005
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Post by matty005 on Jan 12, 2021 12:50:02 GMT -5
If the label really dropped this over the 6 people on twitter who needed something to be offended about that day, then Blake needs to have a long talk with them. I imagine there was a similar backlash to Dolly’s “9 to 5” right? ... People can dislike a song idea and not be offended by it. I am not offended by the song's message but I am not going to play it on repeat when it is sung by a millionaire. It's really old that anytime people don't like something or whatever the other side jumps to, "oh snowflake sorry to offend you." If Carrie or Miranda sang a song about how people from reality signing shows shouldn't be on radio, I wouldn't listen to that. Or if Chase Rice sang a song about being careful during Covid I wouldn't listen to that either. It has nothing to do with being offended.
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seak05
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Post by seak05 on Jan 12, 2021 13:06:38 GMT -5
If the label really dropped this over the 6 people on twitter who needed something to be offended about that day, then Blake needs to have a long talk with them. I imagine there was a similar backlash to Dolly’s “9 to 5” right? ... People can dislike a song idea and not be offended by it. I am not offended by the song's message but I am not going to play it on repeat when it is sung by a millionaire. It's really old that anytime people don't like something or whatever the other side jumps to, "oh snowflake sorry to offend you." If Carrie or Miranda sang a song about how people from reality signing shows shouldn't be on radio, I wouldn't listen to that. Or if Chase Rice sang a song about being careful during Covid I wouldn't listen to that either. It has nothing to do with being offended. I mean at one point in his life, Blake was a poor struggling aspiring country singer. I don't think Dolly worked a 9-5 job when she sang 9-5, Chris Stapleton is a millionaire, I still liked millionaire. Not expecting country singers to sing about people who might be down on their luck, or don't have a lot of money seems rather restrictive and would knock out a good portion of country music. (note I'm meh about the song because the lyrics are banal, and minimum wage is a poor metaphor...it is in fact perfectly reasonable to dislike a song without being offended by it)
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matty005
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Post by matty005 on Jan 12, 2021 13:16:47 GMT -5
People can dislike a song idea and not be offended by it. I am not offended by the song's message but I am not going to play it on repeat when it is sung by a millionaire. It's really old that anytime people don't like something or whatever the other side jumps to, "oh snowflake sorry to offend you." If Carrie or Miranda sang a song about how people from reality signing shows shouldn't be on radio, I wouldn't listen to that. Or if Chase Rice sang a song about being careful during Covid I wouldn't listen to that either. It has nothing to do with being offended. I mean at one point in his life, Blake was a poor struggling aspiring country singer. I don't think Dolly worked a 9-5 job when she sang 9-5, Chris Stapleton is a millionaire, I still liked millionaire. Not expecting country singers to sing about people who might be down on their luck, or don't have a lot of money seems rather restrictive and would knock out a good portion of country music. (note I'm meh about the song because the lyrics are banal, and minimum wage is a poor metaphor...it is in fact perfectly reasonable to dislike a song without being offended by it) Very good point. I think what I should have said more clearly is that I think the label (or maybe even Blake) might be pulling this song because it seems kind of tone deaf. Not because, "six people on Twitter were offended." I agree, artists can sing about all types of songs and doesn't have to mimic their life. I just think in this case, when millions of people are out of work and businesses are closing left and right, I don't want to hear a song sung by a rich man who's engaged to a millionaire pop singer. Just seems like a bad idea. Edit: So the poster who thinks people are offended all the time, I have 0 issues with Blake and I have LOVED Gwen since the No Doubt days. They both deserve all the money and success they have achieved.
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3chords
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Post by 3chords on Jan 12, 2021 16:33:56 GMT -5
I'm not offended at all, a song is a song -- I'm more bummed because it's kinda bland and doesn't add anything special to his catalog besides another basic #1. I'm assuming guys like Blake & Luke & Jason have their pick of anything they wanna record and I wish there was some more substance behind their singles. I'd love to hear him record a real sad song, I feel like he just won't go there b/c people will assume things or maybe he's just not into it. Anyways, I'll always have Austin.
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.indulgecountry
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"You left a mark on my face // And brought a dozen red flags in a vase"
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Post by .indulgecountry on Jan 12, 2021 19:36:31 GMT -5
It's all about timing; there would be no pushback on this song being 'tone deaf' if it weren't for the state of the country right now, so trying to compare this to "9 to 5" (a song released 40 years ago and when people could afford to live on minimum wage) is incredibly flimsy. It's a touchy subject currently with the pandemic where unemployment for the past year has been at a way higher level than normal. It's also similar to how "Coalmine" by Sara Evans probably would've been fine at another time, but it was released while a big coalmine disaster was still fresh on people's minds so it got the wrong kind of attention.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 13, 2021 21:31:30 GMT -5
All Cox country stations will be playing this song song every 2 hours this Friday. So that confirms it is being released as a single.
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rbundy1987
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Post by rbundy1987 on Jan 13, 2021 21:59:54 GMT -5
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recordyear
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Post by recordyear on Jan 14, 2021 8:04:16 GMT -5
Written by Corey Crowder, Jesse Frasure & Nicolle Galyon.
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jab820
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Post by jab820 on Jan 14, 2021 18:28:09 GMT -5
With all due respect he is an idiot for continuing with this release. Agree or disagree there is conflict surrounding this song and that is enough to pick something else. If he wrote it and it was deeply meaningful to him then you can make an argument to release the single regardless... but in this case it does not make sense to me.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 14, 2021 20:15:33 GMT -5
With all due respect he is an idiot for continuing with this release. Agree or disagree there is conflict surrounding this song and that is enough to pick something else. If he wrote it and it was deeply meaningful to him then you can make an argument to release the single regardless... but in this case it does not make sense to me. I listened to this song this afternoon and I really don’t see what the issue is. He uses a line that says “Playing for pennies on stage when no one knew my name”. He is looking back on the days when he wasn’t rich.
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rbundy1987
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Post by rbundy1987 on Jan 15, 2021 0:07:33 GMT -5
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🌺CountryLineDancer
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Post by 🌺CountryLineDancer on Jan 15, 2021 0:19:09 GMT -5
I don't really care about the backlash that this song is receiving, but as a song, it's super average. I don't hate it, I don't love it. I certainly prefer his last 3 singles (yep including Hell Right).
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LBTrocks
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Post by LBTrocks on Jan 15, 2021 0:29:08 GMT -5
Well, damn it all.... I wanted to hate this, and thought I would just based on the title and lyrics, but omg this is such a JAM!!!! I really love it!!!!! Whyyyy
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dm2081
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Post by dm2081 on Jan 15, 2021 7:38:26 GMT -5
This is fine. The production is a little different so that’s something. I agree that it’s probably not the best time to release this song, but I also don’t find it to me super offensive or anything.
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seak05
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Post by seak05 on Jan 15, 2021 9:23:54 GMT -5
It's probably helpful to keep in mind that on average country radio listeners are well heeled and conservative. The idea of looking back fondly at that time in their life when they were young and working for low wages will probably resonate. And they are less likely (although certainly some are) to currently be struggling, or have experienced poverty while trying to support a family.
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bamaefule
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Post by bamaefule on Jan 15, 2021 10:19:34 GMT -5
Decided to listen after reading over the mini “controversy” and come on! This is another solid track from Blake that sonically sounds different than his usual singles. Everyone is different and plenty are obviously struggling during these times but who can’t relate to connecting with a significant other when they weren’t making much or were lacking that financial security? Another hit from Blake imo.
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rbundy1987
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Post by rbundy1987 on Jan 15, 2021 10:49:35 GMT -5
He says early in the video that "Minimum Wage" was recorded like a year or so ago, and that is the first single off of his upcoming new album. I hope "Happy Anywhere" is somehow included.
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rsmatto
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Post by rsmatto on Jan 15, 2021 12:38:51 GMT -5
There’s absolutely nothing groundbreaking in this song. It’s a fluffy relationship song. No “poor optics” either. I really wish people wouldn’t create “controversy” where there isn’t any. The melody and production make this work for me, even if it’s “ louder” than a typical Blake song.
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