With stump speeches starting to sound like broken records, perhaps it's time to take a closer look at the music behind the campaigns.
In June of this year, Hillary Clinton held an online contest that let Internet users pick her campaign song. Celine Dion's "You and I" bested suggestions such as The Temptations' "Get Ready", Dixie Chicks' "Ready to Run", and Smash Mouth's cover of "I'm A Believer" (Dear VH1, what happened to Smash Mouth?).
After the Huffington Post declared "You and I" the "Worst Theme Song" and it failed to appear on Pitchfork's 100 best songs of the year, Clinton ditched the Canadian crooner's CD. These days, Clinton is now stepping up to the podium with Big Head Todd and the Monsters' "Blue Sky".
However, at a recent appearance at the Celebration Barn in Cumming, Iowa, Hillary had a three-piece ensemble to play harmonized renditions of "She's a Grand Ole Flag", "Hello Dolly" and other jams much to the delight of the tacky Christmas sweaters in the crowd.
Meanwhile, Barack Obama's been pumping up his audiences with a blend of Stevie Wonder, Curtis Mayfield, and some of his other favorite songs. Many of the younger folks in Obama's crowd recognize the soul songs from the hip-hop songs that sample them, such as Mayfield's "Move On Up" as it appears in Kanye West's "Touch the Sky", thus allowing Obama to bridge the generational gaps at his campaign appearances.
Obama takes the stage to Aretha Franklin's "Think" as the lyrics "freedom" cry out and the crowd claps rhythmically. And, at the end of Obama's stump speech, a young campaign staffer stands in the back of the room and presses play on a worn-down iPod (classic, not touch). When asked what the iPod is stocked with for events, the young staffer said, "mostly the Senator's favorites. He picked out most the stuff. I just press play."
As candidates reach out more to today's youth in an attempt to appeal to the growing young voter demographic, it begs the question-- what music would today's youth play if they were running for President?
Well, it depends.
At Urban Dreams, a program affiliated with the Iowa Brown & Black Presidential Forum, many of the Des Moines area "high-risk" youth felt that candidates could succeed if they dropped the traditional tunes and adopted "something from the street." Although many students at Urban Dreams felt that artists like T.I., Jay-Z, and Lil Wayne could help a candidate succeed, they acknowledged that some artists, such as female rapper Trina, have a "dirty mouth" and could "scare or turn-off potential voters."
Darrius Armstrong, age 16, thought that today's hip-hop music would be well suited for a presidential campaign. "We need a street candidate. Somebody we can all identify with." Armstrong added that if he were running for President, Lil Wayne's "Duffle Bag Boy" would be his song of choice. With lyrics like "now go and getcha money", Lil Wayne could signal a new era of American economic prosperity.
April Galler, another Des Moines area youth, felt that Soulja Boy's "Crank That" would be an ideal song for a presidential candidate. However, Galler was unsure if a candidate should do the accompanying dance to "Crank That" at a stump speech. Galler did not comment on whether playing Soulja Boy would suggest to voters that a candidate has a strong military background.
A few miles down I-235 from Urban Dreams, teenagers at the Jordan Creek Mall had some different suggestions for presidential campaign music including Dave Matthews Band's "American Baby" and Shania Twain's "Man, I Feel Like a Woman."
Brian Hill, age 18, said that if he were president, he would use the theme music from Star Wars "or something pretty cool like that" adding that the "Imperial Death March" might be a good choice. However, Hill added that candidates should "choose something that's hip with a generation and close to teenagers so they can get their votes too." For example, Hill suggested "a new JT song, like SexyBack."
One teen at the mall, Stevie Johnson, suggested a presidential campaign song of Afroman's "Because I Got High" because it would indicate that a candidate was serious about finding a sensible drug policy. Johnson's friends chimed in to say that all presidential candidates should come out and say "police can't bust parties anymore" in order to secure the high school vote.
Cazzy Hammonds, an anarchist and employee in the Spencers at Jordan Creek Mall, suggested the song "Anarchy in the UK" by the Sex Pistols as a U.S. presidential platform song. She added, "I really could care less. It's going to get screwed up anyway."
Don't be surprised if you hear candidates singing a different tune in upcoming elections.
What would you choose for your campaign music?