The first time I remember a President having rock and roll theme music, it was Bill Clinton hopping onstage with Fleetwood Mac for Don't Stop Thinking About Tomorrow.
I don't think it's a reach to say that Bill Clinton was friends with some of the members of Fleetwood Mac. And I don't think there's anything wrong with that.
On the opposite side of the political spectrum, this week, Neil Young sued Donald Trump in court to prevent him from using the song Rockin' in the Free World at Trump's Political rallies. They are not friends.
Now, I vaguely remember Presidents getting cease and desist letters from certain artists after using their music. And I kind of remember Bruce Springsteen being "uneasy" with his song being associated with Ronald Reagan.
But I just saw a new, disconcerting angle on this subject. PewDiePie is one of the most well known YouTubers on the planet. According to Vice, artists are telling PewDiePie not to listen to their music. Artists like Fleetwood Mac or Neil Young? No, artists like Fraxiom and Gupi. (Gupi is Tony Hawk's kid.)
I think this PewDiePie v Gupi rivalry could really escalate the culture wars. How so? Let's take Beacon of Speech for example. Here's two songs I've been recommending lately.
Evil in Your Eye by the Church of Cosmic Skull
and
The Melancholy Spirit by Agalloch
I really like both songs. Let's say the members of the Church of the Cosmic Skull and the former members of Agalloch got together and said, "we hate Beacon of Speech's brand of Libertarianism. Please scrub all mentions of our bands from your website."
I think I would genuinely be hurt. But that is besides that point, I think it's a dangerous precedent for artists to choose who listens to their art. On a Presidential Scale, I kind of get it. You don't want people thinking that a politician using your music is a tacit endorsement of said politician.
But on a PewDiePie Scale?
To be continued.....
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