Hello once again everyone and welcome back!
I am your hostess Nattie and this is Nat Reviews,
it's the series where I take a look at a random
piece of media and give my thoughts on it!
This week around is a song that's been blowing
up lately by Lil Nas X, Old Town Road!
It's quite an interesting song and has been
one I have been thinking of taking a look
at for a few weeks, so let's take a ride.
Alright, so what is Old Town Road?
It's a track released by Atlanta-born artist
Lil Nas X and can feature no one at all or
it can feature Billy Ray Cyrus or Young Thug.
Our focus will be on the solo version, but
Billy will still get his light later on.
(Young Thug's feature hadn't been released
by the time I recorded this)
It is a interesting fusion of rap and country
(and I mean real country and rap mixing together,
not this watered down kind we've been getting
for a while on modern country radio) and even
some elements of rock as well.
It all comes together for a song that I find
very interesting and thus why I had already
chosen to review it before it gained it's
current status of Number One in America.
The song began as a song by Nine Inch Nails
called "34 Ghosts IV" which was then left
intact but was sampled by Dutch record producer
YoungKio which was then purchased by Lil Nas
X from Kio's site.
Kio didn't know Lil Nas X had purchased it
(due to the anonymous nature of his site)
until he heard it in a meme on Instagram that
included OTR.
The story from here is rather inspiring.
Lil Nas X was an independent artist when he
made the song, he dropped out of college and
pursued his music career.
He is actually the first artist I have covered
on here that is in fact younger than I, him
being born in 1999.
(I being born in late 1998) He was discouraged
by those around him, including his parents.
He moved in with his sister, spending most
of his time promoting his work almost nonstop
online.
He felt he had run out of options and that
is when he wrote OTR, the chorus reflecting
the frustration of his parents and sister.
The Old Town Road he refers to is a symbol
of his success and it's a inspiring story
there.
The song lyrically romanticizes the life of
a cowboy unfulfilled by a life of hedonistic
consumerism, substance abuse, and adultery.
He is certainly not satisfied by his peers'
indolence, he feels no need to heed their
advice, a callback to the disapproving parents
and sister of his and likely many others.
He feels he has no where left to go but the
open road, and thus takes off, trying to find
his own success.
It is much more country in that nature, telling
a life story, than 90 percent of modern country
music is these days.
I applaud it for that, it also holds to the
rap nature in a similar vein, telling the
stories and hardships of life among much more.
The song claims to be less serious, but at
the same time it is very serious.
It starts off more as a joke but the further
it goes, the deeper it gets.
I applaud it for having the balls to mix both
country and rap and also take it as seriously
as it does.
I really do enjoy the vocal delivery, it matches
the slow and dark nature of the song very
well.
The song is just under two minutes long and
is incredibly short for what it presents us.
It gives an entire life story and feels like
there is many years of experience told within
just under two mere minutes.
The vocal delivery goes with the country feel
very much, same within the remix featuring
Billy Ray.
Billy's voice as well has clear years of experience
in it and you can hear it very clearly.
Even in the original, though Lil Nas X is
young, the song's story shows experience beyond
his years.
Usually we go and talk about the music video
next, but this song is more known for it's
useage in memes and the major controversy
which is at the center of a major debate online.
First we will talk about the memes.
The song gained significant popularity from
it being the center of a meme on TikTok and
the general internet of people transforming
into a cowboy called the "Yeehaw Challenge".
You may note, but I am not exactly a meme
aficionado like others are, but that's the
most that I know about the meme surrounding
the song.
Songs in the past gained popularity through
memes, even on Vine or TikTok's predecessor
Musical.ly, so that part doesn't hold my attention
so much.
What does hold my attention though other than
the song being a great hybrid and bringing
together of various genre's that in the past
have been known to clash is it's controversy.
It's a controversy that just shouldn't happen
in 2019.
The song was yanked off the country charts,
even though it is very clearly more country
than most of the so-called "country" music
on the radio today, for being "not country
enough".
Which, might I say, is very clearly false,
the song has many of true country's major
callpoints and the song is much more country
(as told) than most of modern "country" on
the radio.
Of course, that leaves the possibility of
the song being removed for racial reasons.
I won't be going into that factor as the internet
doesn't need yet another head butting in on
that fight.
You can go and listen for yourself and study
up some of the history of the genre if you
wish to gain a better understanding of both
sides, but I do think it's fairly clear there
is a divide in most of the music community.
I direct you to the Rap Critic for his thoughts
on the song from his podcast, you can find
the link below, I think he has quite the point
to be given here.
Since it is related, I will also say, Billy
Ray Cyrus saw the controversy surrounding
the song and it's removal off the country
charts, which is why he featured on the remix
of the song.
He felt Lil Nas X was doing something new
and good and was being treated as an outlaw,
which Billy experienced well himself 27 years
ago with his song Achy Breaky Heart.
So to give the song some solidarity, he bravely
stood with Lil Nas X and contributed to the
song.
His verses add to the same story Lil Nas X
gave on his original track but this time delivered
by Billy Ray and you can hear in his voice
how much he finds it truthful to his own life.
It's a very unique song.
But with that all out of the way, it's time
to boil this all down to our conclusions.
Conclusion
What are my overall thoughts on the song?
Alright, so now that we have spoken about
this short song with a big history attached,
let's boil it all down to a conclusion.
My thoughts of the song are that is most certainly
counts as both rap and country.
It's a rare gem of the combination of the
two genre's and it's an excellent one in the
two genre's.
It is an excellent hybrid of the various genre's
and brings them together very well.
It's a message in of itself that in today's
society, is very much needed.
Though the two genre's don't often get along
and have often clashed over history, it's
important to see the similarities and come
together for the greater good, which is quite
a clear metaphor there to today's world.
Not only is it a song that tells of a life
spent in struggle, it also mixes in just in
it's genre's a very important message about
today's society.
I think that deserves much applause.
The track itself is absolutely wonderful.
It is short and doesn't overstay it's welcome,
it's musically and lyrically great, and the
vocal delivery is perfect for it.
It most certainly gets a A+ from me, hands
down.
It has my certified approval.
Do check it out for yourself if you so desire.
It is a gem in modern music and I am glad
it is in it's rightful place at number one
not only in America but throughout the world.
Do I look forward to more from the artist?
Well, Lil Nas X, I do wonder how they will
be able to follow up this success but I most
certainly do look forward to where ever their
career will take them.
Wishing them well on their path.
They made a masterpiece of a song, one with
lots of history and quite a story behind it
all wrapped into such a short song.
I believe they deserve some applause for that.
They even got to number one in many places
in the world as I record this and I once more
congratulate them on that.
They got to number one on their own even.
Sure, in America they went to number one the
next week with Billy Ray's addition (which,
by technicality means Billy is no longer a
one-hit wonder, this song being a even bigger
hit than his previous even), but I still congratulate
them for their feat.
They dared to do something not many others
have tried before and succeeded, I give them
my applause.
As for Billy, congrats on no longer being
a one-hit wonder, only took 27 years.
You also now have your own number-one to go
with your daughter's, congrats.
I may not be a active fan of Billy's work,
but he does make some interesting choices
every now and then, this being one of them.
We'll see how he deals with this new-found
popularity.
But for now, you both get to be apart of music
history now Billy and Lil Nas X, due to this
record breaking song.
Wishing you well with your careers going forward.
Alright, so we went over everything I felt
to go over about this track.
There is likely more I could have talked of
but it didn't cross my mind at the time.
I do believe the song is a gem and definitely
one I feel others should check out if they
haven't already.
It's a song with quite the message and backstory
that I do find impressive for a song clocking
in just under two minutes in the solo version.
Check it out if you wish and I hope you enjoyed
your little stay, wishing ya well on your
travels pardner.
Do let me know your own thoughts on the whole
controversy and the song in general down below.
But for now, this is where we part, I'm afraid.
I have been Nattie and we shall see eachother
again, but for now, it's time we ride off,
ya!
Yeah, I'm gonna take my horse to the old town
road
I'm gonna ride 'til I can't no more
I'm gonna take my horse to the old town road
I'm gonna ride 'til I can't no more
