Chappell Roan’s new single has an interesting concept – a country song about, of all things, lesbian sex – which makes its lacklustre execution all the more fascinating.
Anyone else feel like the simplicity is the point? From the way she’s spoken about this release it seems she truly did just wanna write a gay country bop— she’s a performance artist constantly bucking peoples’ expectations. I kind of feel like the fact that this wasn’t in line with what you expected is exactly what she wanted. She made her intentions really clear— to paraphrase, it’s okay if this doesn’t meet your expectations, I made it for fun and for me. In that regard I struggle with your claim that there’s any kind of failure in terms of production. I completely support subjective approaches to art and I’m not here to sway your personal opinion on the song, but from a craft standpoint I feel comfortable arguing that the simplicity, both sonically and lyrically, is intentional, tongue in cheek, and the entire point of the song. That said, I really enjoyed this read, and hope I’m not being contentious— I just love analyzing art and comparing notes lol
Honestly I can't really argue with your take, you worded it really well. I think the mileage of a 'good' country song really varies with me personally, since the genre has become so saturated it's easy to make something that just sounds like something else, so the fact that sonically it's mostly what we've heard before is what sort of makes me tune out; I can easily see why listeners who don't have as short a mileage with country as me would've enjoyed this a lot more. If The Giver doesn't progress Chappell's career in an interesting direction it's a fun detour - which, as you said, I think it was meant to be all along. Maybe it's just a timing thing, too; I recently talked with a friend that maybe it was just the almost year-long gap between Good Luck, Babe and her next release that led to me feeling disappointed. Essentially, unless she topped Good Luck, Babe (a difficult feat) I would've inevitably felt let down, and that's about as subjective as it gets. Again, though, you made such a fantastic point that ultimately my dislike for this song is really a matter of personal opinion. (And, as a fan of Chappell myself, I'm jealous of everyone that likes this song - hopefully once I switch my miserable music critic brain off it'll grow on me!) Thanks so much for reading, and your insight.
I completely get where you’re coming from, especially re the Good Luck, Babe trajectory + subsequent stretch of time with no releases. I can’t say I disagree that GLB is kind of a double edged sword- it is absurdly brilliant as you so perfectly conveyed in your original piece, and also a huge bullet in the foot in terms of the pressure to match or top it (pun intended). She’s my favorite artist to discuss in terms of strategy and craft, I really did enjoy reading your thoughts. Thanks for the discourse dude!!
I agree with your read on it here. I think she’s absolutely crafted this new song intentionally, and I think it’s very much part of the bit that this very traditional-sounding country song is about her topping as a lesbian. You can imagine country devotees nodding along to this, and I think she did that purposefully. After the last year she had, good for her for releasing a fun bop. Im not even a huge country fan but I love the song, and I love that she doesn’t necessarily do what you expect. Chappell is a performer to her very marrow.
Loved this analysis.. I’m a bit concerned that she will lose a little edge as she gets more mainstream. There’s a lot of straight ppl controlling the narrative about her rn, and I worry she will internalise it (comparisons to Lady Gaga etc). Looking forward to seeing if she releases the subway
An issue I'm seeing is not so much that the artist becomes more mainstream, but that the style she's known for becomes mainstream around her. Chappel Roan may continue to be a groundbreaking artist, yet the industry will match these changes (given her success). The music industry is quick to move on to what sells. Chappell Roan can fundmentally continue to be herself, but it would appear to the rest of us that's she's stagnant. Not from her own complicity. It would be because we've been exposed to a large amount of others emulating her style.
I totally understand the appeal of this song, particularly if you're a country or Chappell fan. But as a casual fan of both of those, I was disappointed by how safe she played this whole thing. Chappell's made her name on doing things differently, so to have such a conventionally arranged country song with (mostly) unimaginative lyrics seemed like a misstep to me. ('Take it like a taker, 'cause baby I'm a giver'? Let's pick up the pen!) I don't mind that it's different from her other stuff - her way of subverting the norm was what made me fall in love with her material in the first place - so the prospect of her releasing a country song is an intriguing one. But, as I mention in my article, this prospect is far more interesting than the song itself, which underdelivers. Again, though, I completely get if you love this song, and good for you if you do! As a Chappell fan, I wanted to like this song too. Music is subjective, and from what I've seen online it seems like I'm in the minority anyway.
loved the analysis. though i enjoy the song, i do agree that it simply "doesn't go there" as it could or when compared to others. and particularly i think it's great is not a hint for an album or anything, for me it shows she's also having fun along the journey, kinda "look at this fun song i made!!" vibes. can't wait for her next projects
Thanks so much for reading! And I'm glad you enjoyed the song; from the reactions I've been seeing most people seem to have loved it. While it wasn't to my taste, I agree with your take that it's more of a diversion - a goofy studio session with some friends and collaborators - that is more to tide her fans over than to tease anything new.
perfect take, ngl i’ve been feeling that her music doesn’t really live up to her image/stage presence/messages. i had big hopes for her being a new great (like kate bush or cyndi lauper) but i feel like her immediate fame may send her to tswizz jcpenney overproduced white pop world…
Not too much on my girl TSwizz! While I'll counter your argument by saying that songs like Femininonemon and Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl square up nicely with her outlandish stage persona, I do see where you're coming from with the immediate fame bit. Still, if we're comparing Chappell to Gaga, I'd point to the latter and say that even after she reached A-list status she put out consistently great work. Getting chart #1s and headlining festivals didn't let Gaga fall back into safer territories; instead she pushed herself and created some of last decade's most defining pop music - Born This Way and Artpop et al. If Chappell is the boundary-pushing artist she's marketed herself as being, I have faith that she'll pull through and change the game. And hopefully avoid the 'overproduced white pop world'!
Aight,u had me agreeing until you claimed t. Swift was a better writer/has better music etc. You wanna talk about bland, meaningless pop or songs without teeth? The Giver isn't Good Luck Babe but I don't expect every song an artist releases to be chart shaking, and gods knows Chappell's funky little country dying is still miles ahead of anything Swift did with the genre.
Hail to Lil Nas x ( who did the country shit before Beyonce and did it with a NIN sample) and Chappell for doing weird shit in a genre that is full of weird shit if only you'd bother to look past the top forty.
I hope she does a few murder ballads next. Let's go.
I would highly recommend the Switched on Pop podcast episode about “The Giver”! As you said, it is a formulaic country song, but it is formulaic on purpose. The lyrics and meaning are fairly blunt, especially when you take the SNL bridge into consideration, but that’s because she was riffing on a song called “Save A Horse (Ride a Cowboy)” (and the references are fun to catch if you ever want to listen!) that is… fairly blunt in its meaning.
I do agree with your conclusion that any song released after “Good Luck Babe” would be a disappointment because that moment in time was lightening in a bottle and could never be replicated on purpose. But, should we as fans want every new release to “top” the previous one? What does “topping” a previous release even mean? Should getting a “hit” single be the ultimate goal of musicians? Or should it be making music they want to make? So many artists now are expected to be better than they were, in shorter time frames than previously expected, and then lambasted when they inevitably fall short. To be clear, I’m not saying you re lambasting her, but rather fans as a whole, critics, detractors, etc. I can only imagine how incredibly difficult it would be to make art that you are proud of and sure of under those circumstances, especially if your rise to absurd levels of fame happened in less than 60 days.
I was nervous going into this review but honestly I completely understand where you’re coming from. Good Luck, Babe is such a phenomenal piece of music and feels very fresh while also having its references so well cited, but The Giver is just another country song. Maybe the blandness is the point? But it truly isn’t Chappell’s best work. Like Pink Pony Club and Guilty Pleasure are transcendent for me.
I had a similar reaction to this song and you articulated it well! This is the kind of music analysis I want to see more of, you've definitely gained another subscriber in me
that's so interesting that you said this about The Giver, because this is what i thought of a good chunk of her album (i liked three songs and just moved on), but Good Luck, Babe! is really where she struck gold for me with both the lyricism & production truly meshing well together and i think The Giver is a fun little bop, so she's definitely making me a bit more interested, but we'll see what the next album brings!
Anyone else feel like the simplicity is the point? From the way she’s spoken about this release it seems she truly did just wanna write a gay country bop— she’s a performance artist constantly bucking peoples’ expectations. I kind of feel like the fact that this wasn’t in line with what you expected is exactly what she wanted. She made her intentions really clear— to paraphrase, it’s okay if this doesn’t meet your expectations, I made it for fun and for me. In that regard I struggle with your claim that there’s any kind of failure in terms of production. I completely support subjective approaches to art and I’m not here to sway your personal opinion on the song, but from a craft standpoint I feel comfortable arguing that the simplicity, both sonically and lyrically, is intentional, tongue in cheek, and the entire point of the song. That said, I really enjoyed this read, and hope I’m not being contentious— I just love analyzing art and comparing notes lol
Honestly I can't really argue with your take, you worded it really well. I think the mileage of a 'good' country song really varies with me personally, since the genre has become so saturated it's easy to make something that just sounds like something else, so the fact that sonically it's mostly what we've heard before is what sort of makes me tune out; I can easily see why listeners who don't have as short a mileage with country as me would've enjoyed this a lot more. If The Giver doesn't progress Chappell's career in an interesting direction it's a fun detour - which, as you said, I think it was meant to be all along. Maybe it's just a timing thing, too; I recently talked with a friend that maybe it was just the almost year-long gap between Good Luck, Babe and her next release that led to me feeling disappointed. Essentially, unless she topped Good Luck, Babe (a difficult feat) I would've inevitably felt let down, and that's about as subjective as it gets. Again, though, you made such a fantastic point that ultimately my dislike for this song is really a matter of personal opinion. (And, as a fan of Chappell myself, I'm jealous of everyone that likes this song - hopefully once I switch my miserable music critic brain off it'll grow on me!) Thanks so much for reading, and your insight.
I completely get where you’re coming from, especially re the Good Luck, Babe trajectory + subsequent stretch of time with no releases. I can’t say I disagree that GLB is kind of a double edged sword- it is absurdly brilliant as you so perfectly conveyed in your original piece, and also a huge bullet in the foot in terms of the pressure to match or top it (pun intended). She’s my favorite artist to discuss in terms of strategy and craft, I really did enjoy reading your thoughts. Thanks for the discourse dude!!
I agree with your read on it here. I think she’s absolutely crafted this new song intentionally, and I think it’s very much part of the bit that this very traditional-sounding country song is about her topping as a lesbian. You can imagine country devotees nodding along to this, and I think she did that purposefully. After the last year she had, good for her for releasing a fun bop. Im not even a huge country fan but I love the song, and I love that she doesn’t necessarily do what you expect. Chappell is a performer to her very marrow.
Loved this analysis.. I’m a bit concerned that she will lose a little edge as she gets more mainstream. There’s a lot of straight ppl controlling the narrative about her rn, and I worry she will internalise it (comparisons to Lady Gaga etc). Looking forward to seeing if she releases the subway
An issue I'm seeing is not so much that the artist becomes more mainstream, but that the style she's known for becomes mainstream around her. Chappel Roan may continue to be a groundbreaking artist, yet the industry will match these changes (given her success). The music industry is quick to move on to what sells. Chappell Roan can fundmentally continue to be herself, but it would appear to the rest of us that's she's stagnant. Not from her own complicity. It would be because we've been exposed to a large amount of others emulating her style.
I just hope she lets herself evolve and is true to her own voice for as long as possible
or maybe its just not your taste? it is very different from her other songs but that's kind of the point
I totally understand the appeal of this song, particularly if you're a country or Chappell fan. But as a casual fan of both of those, I was disappointed by how safe she played this whole thing. Chappell's made her name on doing things differently, so to have such a conventionally arranged country song with (mostly) unimaginative lyrics seemed like a misstep to me. ('Take it like a taker, 'cause baby I'm a giver'? Let's pick up the pen!) I don't mind that it's different from her other stuff - her way of subverting the norm was what made me fall in love with her material in the first place - so the prospect of her releasing a country song is an intriguing one. But, as I mention in my article, this prospect is far more interesting than the song itself, which underdelivers. Again, though, I completely get if you love this song, and good for you if you do! As a Chappell fan, I wanted to like this song too. Music is subjective, and from what I've seen online it seems like I'm in the minority anyway.
loved the analysis. though i enjoy the song, i do agree that it simply "doesn't go there" as it could or when compared to others. and particularly i think it's great is not a hint for an album or anything, for me it shows she's also having fun along the journey, kinda "look at this fun song i made!!" vibes. can't wait for her next projects
Thanks so much for reading! And I'm glad you enjoyed the song; from the reactions I've been seeing most people seem to have loved it. While it wasn't to my taste, I agree with your take that it's more of a diversion - a goofy studio session with some friends and collaborators - that is more to tide her fans over than to tease anything new.
perfect take, ngl i’ve been feeling that her music doesn’t really live up to her image/stage presence/messages. i had big hopes for her being a new great (like kate bush or cyndi lauper) but i feel like her immediate fame may send her to tswizz jcpenney overproduced white pop world…
Not too much on my girl TSwizz! While I'll counter your argument by saying that songs like Femininonemon and Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl square up nicely with her outlandish stage persona, I do see where you're coming from with the immediate fame bit. Still, if we're comparing Chappell to Gaga, I'd point to the latter and say that even after she reached A-list status she put out consistently great work. Getting chart #1s and headlining festivals didn't let Gaga fall back into safer territories; instead she pushed herself and created some of last decade's most defining pop music - Born This Way and Artpop et al. If Chappell is the boundary-pushing artist she's marketed herself as being, I have faith that she'll pull through and change the game. And hopefully avoid the 'overproduced white pop world'!
Aight,u had me agreeing until you claimed t. Swift was a better writer/has better music etc. You wanna talk about bland, meaningless pop or songs without teeth? The Giver isn't Good Luck Babe but I don't expect every song an artist releases to be chart shaking, and gods knows Chappell's funky little country dying is still miles ahead of anything Swift did with the genre.
Hail to Lil Nas x ( who did the country shit before Beyonce and did it with a NIN sample) and Chappell for doing weird shit in a genre that is full of weird shit if only you'd bother to look past the top forty.
I hope she does a few murder ballads next. Let's go.
It’s the camp for me. 💕
i feel like this song lyrically sounds like what right wingers think gay music sounds like.
I appreciated this analysis.. this song was a let down for me too
I would highly recommend the Switched on Pop podcast episode about “The Giver”! As you said, it is a formulaic country song, but it is formulaic on purpose. The lyrics and meaning are fairly blunt, especially when you take the SNL bridge into consideration, but that’s because she was riffing on a song called “Save A Horse (Ride a Cowboy)” (and the references are fun to catch if you ever want to listen!) that is… fairly blunt in its meaning.
I do agree with your conclusion that any song released after “Good Luck Babe” would be a disappointment because that moment in time was lightening in a bottle and could never be replicated on purpose. But, should we as fans want every new release to “top” the previous one? What does “topping” a previous release even mean? Should getting a “hit” single be the ultimate goal of musicians? Or should it be making music they want to make? So many artists now are expected to be better than they were, in shorter time frames than previously expected, and then lambasted when they inevitably fall short. To be clear, I’m not saying you re lambasting her, but rather fans as a whole, critics, detractors, etc. I can only imagine how incredibly difficult it would be to make art that you are proud of and sure of under those circumstances, especially if your rise to absurd levels of fame happened in less than 60 days.
I was nervous going into this review but honestly I completely understand where you’re coming from. Good Luck, Babe is such a phenomenal piece of music and feels very fresh while also having its references so well cited, but The Giver is just another country song. Maybe the blandness is the point? But it truly isn’t Chappell’s best work. Like Pink Pony Club and Guilty Pleasure are transcendent for me.
I had a similar reaction to this song and you articulated it well! This is the kind of music analysis I want to see more of, you've definitely gained another subscriber in me
Thanks so much for reading and for your kind words!!
thank you for perfectly articulating this 🔥
Justice for ‘California’ (this song makes me WEEP).
that's so interesting that you said this about The Giver, because this is what i thought of a good chunk of her album (i liked three songs and just moved on), but Good Luck, Babe! is really where she struck gold for me with both the lyricism & production truly meshing well together and i think The Giver is a fun little bop, so she's definitely making me a bit more interested, but we'll see what the next album brings!
I agree!! This song was so good in theory and I LOVE Chappell but the production just didn’t hit, I’m glad you talked abt this!
The whole vibe of the song is camp and I love it.
Appreciate this take, good write up.