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Everybody Loves TayTay
Chelsey Hamm (Christopher Newport University)
What makes Taylor Swift one of the most compelling songwriters of our time? Chelsey Hamm says it’s her relatability. With bright, upbeat pop anthems like “22” and “Anti-Hero” that are both fun and reflective, Swift’s music engages audiences across generations.
Mobilizing the BTS Movment
Baobao Song (Virginia Commonwealth University)
The K-Pop band BTS regularly mobilizes their fans, the BTS Army, to support causes for social good. Baobao Song says that nonprofits and corporations could learn from the way that BTS has mobilized their army to support efforts like UNESCO and even the United Nations.
A Saint’s Song
Michael Iyanaga (William & Mary)
Later in the show: One hundred years before colonization, Central African people were practicing Catholicism. And now African legacy is interwoven into a local Catholic ritual in northern Brazil. Michael Iyanaga says that for these believers, there is no either or. And their practices embody the intricacies of the Black Atlantic. His forthcoming book is called Genealogies of a Saint’s Song: Silenced Histories of Africa in Bahia, Brazil.
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