Matthews 1

Mackenzie Matthews
Genre Analysis
Instructor: Malcolm Campbell
UWRT 1101
Cruise: An Analysis of Country Music
Music is what keeps the world functioning. Everywhere you go, whether youre in a
grocery store or driving down the road in your car, someone is singing and instruments are
playing in some type of melody that gets stuck in your head. You sing along and get carried
away, and to where you go depends on what that certain song means to you. For some of us,
though, music isnt just about where it takes you. Its about how it makes you feel. Every song
ever orchestrated was made to bring about a certain feeling in each of us, and I feel that the grand
purpose of music is an escape route. To evade from the boring, dull, humdrum of everyday life,
and to put aside all doubts and thoughts we have. We take a moment to breathe, to listen to
advice, thoughts, and stories put into a tune thats more enjoyable to our ears. We erase the rest
of the real world, and draw ours.
Music has become more and more categorized since it was invented. Just like everything
else, we put it all into genres, with each genre having its own set of characteristics. For example,
the genre Hip-Hop and R&B may usually sing about getting doped up on some wild drug and
partying all night, while Classical music is commonly characterized by an orchestra playing
instruments that are divided into sections based upon the type of equipment being used. The
genre that I chose to analyze for my analysis is New Country music. I chose this genre because
the atmosphere that I grew up in was the small town, southern traditions. Every person in my

Matthews 2
life, in some form or fashion, has influenced me to love country music, and now not a day goes
by that I dont listen to it. The song that I chose to analyze in this particular genre is called
Cruise by Florida Georgia Line. It was basically a number one hit as soon as it was released in
2012 and its still an all-time favorite song. The members of this new country band are Tyler
Hubbard and Brian Kelley, and the song is the first track on their album Heres To the Good

Formatted: Font: Italic

Times.

Commented [WC1]: Italics

Formatted: Font: Italic

Identifying the Conventions and Constraints:

So what are some conventions of New Country music? Weve all heard a song about the
poor ol country boy who lost the love of his life, or the song about drinking so much that you
cant remember a thing from the night before. Songs that fit into this genre are generally played
with a guitar, bass guitar, drums, piano and occasionally the banjo. Country songs usually have a
catchy melody so that when you hear a particular song, you start singing along with it. Country
music commonly has a progression of chord and a resonating chorus or bridge. Sometimes the
artists of this genre sing in the form of a letter directed towards someone, or the words in the
song will reference the subject theyre singing about to something else. Typical themes that are
sung in this genre include falling in love, drinking and partying, hunting/fishing, challenges that
lower class face, American pride and war, and riding around in big trucks.
Youve never heard a country song rap lyrics about the struggles of living on the streets,
and there are other specific characteristics you wouldnt find in this genre. Country music would
not appeal to individuals located in more populated areas, such as cities, though maybe some
cities in Texas or western states of the like may enjoy it. It also would not have some sort of
rhyme scheme, fast beat, or extreme crude words. Country music would not have electronic

Matthews 3
effects added to the song or extreme pitch of the sound like dubstep or hard-core rock typically
has.
My selection Cruise by Florida Georgia Line fits into new country music by what they
sing about. The duo two guys sing about finding a gorgeous girl, flirting with her, and taking her

Commented [WC2]: Easy fix

for a drive in a Chevy truck. They go off onto an old, dirt road and as the day comes closer to an

Commented [WC3]: Awful for her, should have been a Ford.

end, he plays his guitar for her, hoping she falls for him like he has for her. Throughout the
song, the boy refers to the girl as a song thats stuck in his head and he just cant get her out. The
feeling that she gives him is similar to the sensation of driving with the windows rolled down
and a nice, warm breeze moving throughout the car. The song is very popular, most of it due to
its catchy tune. A similar communication to Cruise would be Thats My Kind of Night by Luke
Bryan. Both songs have that catchy melody, which is really what makes both of them so popular,
and they generally have the same elements of the genre (riding in a big truck, meeting a pretty
girl).
Purpose, Rhetorical Choices, and Audience:
The main purpose of the genre is to express feelings, tell a story, or to inform listeners
about the hardships that are faced by the lower, working class in southern part of America.

Commented [WC4]: What region of America does this genre

most represent?

Artists in Country music likes like to express their emotions through their songs. I think a lot of

Commented [WC5]: Like

musicians in country just try to tell people how it feels to be them; to not have a whole lot of
privileges in life, but yet still have everything. Country music likes to tell about a way of life.
Where you came from, what your traditions are, how you were raised to treat others around you.
Its not all about wearing camo and boots, having a big truck, or living on a farm. Those are just
some of the perks of the lifestyle. Another purpose of country is to bring back up memories. Ive
listened to interviews between a radio-host and a famous country musician, asking the artist what

Matthews 4
the purpose behind their song was, and a great deal of them have said it was to take people back
to one of those memories that you just cant forget. My selection Cruise will always take me
back to last summer just because the song was similar to the situation that I was in and it was still
a popular song that was played no matter where I went.
The rhetorical choices that Florida Georgia Line makes to achieve the purpose of this
song is the topic. They chose to write and sing about a situation that could and has happened to
normal people. The response that they were trying to get out of the audience with Cruise is that
feeling of being young, wild, and capable of falling in love, which pertains to almost all of their
audience since the majority of the listeners for the newly popular band is the younger generation
of southern Americans.
My selections medium best achieves its purpose by singing/telling about a realistic
situation that gets its point across by being in the format of a song. If this song was put into the
format of an article or short story, you would have more details, and though that may be
interesting to know a little more about whats going on, my selection in the format of a song
makes it short, sweet, and to the point while still being fun to sing along with.
Audience:
The audience that country music is ordinarily pointed to are those who live and act like
the artists writing the song. A majority of the population back in my hometown love listening to
country music because they can relate to a lot of the songs and they feel that the genre pertains to
their way of life more than other types of musical genres could. The language that the audience
expects my particular selection to speak is a realistic situation. They expect a cute country boy in
his jeans, boots, and ball cap to be driving around and singing to a pretty country girl who is

Matthews 5
probably way out of his league. The type of conversation that this genre brings up is mainly
about parties and what artists from the genre people like to play or listen to.
Social and Cultural Context:
The social context that surrounds a particular genre is based upon how youve lived
throughout your life, who is involved in your life and how they live, our own personal biases,
political views, and education and religion. Country musics social context is usually surrounded
by hard-working families, who take pride in their country, religion, education, and value
friendship and family. They generally like to live whats considered to be the simpler life,
where they can raise or hunt what theyre going to eat the next day and stick to traditions in the
household.
The cultural context of country music is the increasing interest in the genre. Since the day
that country music first showed up, the appeal of it has just skyrocketed. This genre of music has
easily become one of the most listened to of our time and has had an effect on our generation.
Country Music to Rap:
Lets say were changing my Country music selection of Cruise into a rap song. What
would we need to change? The purpose of rap music and country music differ quite a bit.
Country music generally likes to sing more about their feelings, while rap likes to sing about
sexual relations or fights. Rap music is also generally associated with what old folks like to call
devil music. First you would probably make the beat of the song go a little faster, and make the
words rhyme more to create a good rhyme scheme. You wouldnt sing about your dog dying or
your lady leaving you either. Youd sing about the hardships of trying to be a big star, fighting,
and your feelings towards a particular someone. Your audience would be more towards those

Commented [WC6]: Maybe add something about the

conversation after this last sentence here.

Matthews 5
who live in northern regions and more populated areas, young artists learning and needing
motivation to achieve their dream, or even those who tend to run towards the bad end of
neighborhoods. The social context surrounding rap would be parties and clubs, the use of vinyl
records and turn tables, possibly drug and alcohol usage, and even criminal activity. The cultural
context of rap is the popularity among younger generations. Along with country music, rap is
another popular genre of music thats listened to today and it influences a lot of young adults in
either good ways or bad ways.

I like your essay. We both come from the same town where country music is well
liked so I believe this is a great genre. Just a few easy things to fix and add some
more detail and your essay will be even better.

Commented [WC7]: Add somewhere in here how the new

purpose of the rap genre would be different compared to the
country music genre.

Matthews 7

Formatted: Tab stops: 4.36", Left

Matthews 8
Formatted: Tab stops: Not at 4.36"

Synopsis
Lyrics to Cruise by Florida Georgia Line
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/floridageorgialine/cruise.html

Baby you a song

You make me wanna roll my windows down and
cruise
Hey baby
Yeah, when I first saw that bikini top on her
Shes poppin right out of the South Georgia water
Thought, "Oh, good lord, she had them long tanned
legs!"
Couldnt help myself so I walked up and said
Baby you a song
You make me wanna roll my windows down and
cruise
Down a back road blowin stop signs through the
middle
Every little farm town with you
In this brand new Chevy with a lift kit
Would look a hell of a lot better with you up in it
So baby you a song
You make me wanna roll my windows down and
cruise
She was sippin on Southern and singin Marshall
Tucker
We were falling in love in the sweet heart of summer
She hopped right up into the cab of my truck and
said,
"Fire it up, lets go get this thing stuck."
Baby you a song
You make me wanna roll my windows down and
cruise
Down a back road blowin stop signs through the
middle
Every little farm town with you
In this brand new Chevy with a lift kit
Would look a hell of a lot better with you up in it
So baby you a song
You make me wanna roll my windows down and
cruise
When that summer sun fell to its knees
I looked at her and she looked at me

And I turned on those KC lights and drove all night

'Cause it felt so right, her and I, man we felt so right
I put it in park and
Grabbed my guitar
And strummed a couple chords
And sang from the heart
Girl you sure got the beat in my chest bumpin
Hell, I cant get you out of my head
Baby you a song
You make me wanna roll my windows down and
cruise
Down a back road blowin stop signs through the
middle
Every little farm town with you
Baby you a song
You make me wanna roll my windows down and
cruise
Down a back road blowin stop signs through the
middle
Every little farm town with you
In this brand new Chevy with a lift kit
Would look a hell of a lot better with you up in it
Come on
Baby you a song
You make me wanna roll my windows down and
cruise
Come on, girl
Get those windows down and cruise
Aww, yeah.