As a high school economics teacher, I talk a lot about the topic. I try to keep it restricted to my personal blog, but in honor of our recent economist guest, I’ll post it here.
Katy Perry’s recent hit California Gurls was number one on the Billboards for 6 weeks. Sure it’s catchy (both musically and visually), but it’s also business savvy. If you were going to write a song about a state, why not pick the the largest economy in the country (and 9th largest in in the world). Similarly, Jay-Z’s recent New York hit Empire State of Mind is both popular and about a large economy. The same goes for North Carolina native James Taylor’s Carolina on My Mind (and he was able to get two states with one song).
So here’s the one thing I don’t get, why didn’t Wakko’s song ever hit number one?:
Note: It may also be possible that Katy and Jay-Z are just singing about their home states. But then how do you explain Lynyrd Skynyrd’s (from Florida) Sweet Home Alabama and Bruce Springsteen’s (from New Jersey) Nebraska (both states of course known for their wealth and bounty)?
Also, for those interested, here’s a song about every state.
[...] at Audio Visually 20 10 2010 Keeping with the the music theme, have you ever listened to a song and felt that it was just the same lyrics over and over? [...]