kelly clarkson is a hero to many. she's that singing goddess that graces the walls and plays on the ipods. she is the american idol.
for 12 year old girls.
nascar is a homegrown sport. it's trying to evade its past of chicken and beer, rednecks and racing. it hates its roots. instead of main street it wants to be broadway. it's an american confusion.
i hope you've drawn the conclusion to this point. yes, kelly clarkson and nascar have signed an agreement for clarkson to promote nascar in a number of ways. she's carried out two of those assignments already by doing a commercial for nascar and singing before the daytona 500. she is also in line to promote "nascar day", a charity fundraiser for the nascar foundation. yes, the american idol is now synonymous with nascar.
or at least that's the idea.
this isn't the first time nascar or its related tracks and partners have seemingly gone outside its social makeup to bring in celebrities. jewel performed in kelly clarkson's role last year for nascar, fergie sang the national anthem at the 2006 daytona 500, kelly rowland sang at last year's brickyard 400, the american idol losers have sang at charlotte for two years in a row, ruben studdard has appeared, and the list goes on. you can understand the natural awkward moments in the stands when the person is announced and a collective "who?" is heard.
sure, nascar is trying to be more diverse. it's trying to get a larger audience to watch its races and spend its money. it wants to be a mainstream sport and have it's super bowl have an event at the half-time show stature. but nascar is missing a very integral part of what got it to the level of signing kelly clarkson -- its base fans. i'm talking about those fans that spend their only family vacation time of the year to go to daytona or (insert race here). these are the "loyal" nascar fans that sponsors crave because of their noted product support for nascar sponsors. these are the lifeblood of nascar. but instead of loving this financial support, nascar is aiming higher -- too high in fact. and evantually, this alienation is going to take a toll on its foundations.
hopefully, the broadway push won't ever leave because nascar might find main street as a ghost town.
4 comments:
geoffrey i agree with everything you said here. nascar is trying to go too mainstream and is leaving its true fans behind. for example the proposal of banning the confederate flag at races. as we all know nascar was created in the south by moonshine runners who wanted something else to do with their fast cars after the appeal of prohibition. banning the american flag from nascar would be like banning beads from mardi gras. its an integral part of its past and shouldnt be forgotten or stepped on. but trying to bring more attention to the sport is a great idea, but not if that means forgetting about the diehard fans that pay countless dollars for tickets and merchandise every year.
**he meant confederate flag where the post read "banning the american flag"
drew, i agree that nascar is alienating its roots, but i disagree with the fact that the confederate flag should still be an integral part of its image. without a doubt, diversity is a great thing for this sport because it will bring in more sponsors, money, and great fans. there truly is something special about attending races that are 100% sold out. however, i digress. the confederate flag can be viewed as extremely offensive to some people -- whereas i also understand that the heritage behind it is worth remembering to those families that lost loved ones and felt that their economic lifeblood would be killed by the type of country the union wanted to run. it's all legitimate in a museum and rememberence ceremony type setting, but nowadays, i'd say a good number of people who fly and support the flag do so for all the wrong reasons -- a chance to practice silent bigotry and hate. the confederate flag really shouldn't have a prominent place in nascar as the symbol of the american flag shows complete unity among the country -- which turned out the be the best situation following the war.
do i think nascar should enforce this rule? no. do i think race fans should police themselves? i do. and i think it can be legitmately handled.
thanks for posting man, appreciate any and all feedback you've got about anything i write about. makes the blog seem worth it.
geoffrey, i do agree that fans need to police themselves. but i dont agree where you said that a "good number" of the people flying the flag are doing it to support bigotry and hate. do i think that racism still exists, yes, it obviously does, but with a not majority of the people that raise the rebel flag. these days its a way of remembering our fore fathers. was slavery wrong? of course it was, but the south and the confederate flag dont stand for slavery and racism only. "heritage not hate", is what the flag represents to most. but, i do agree that sometimes the flag can be a symbol of hate to some, but they need to realize the true meaning and not the sterotypical meaning that most pin on it these days.
and i enjoy reading and posting on anything you write, i think its a great way for any and all veiwpoints to be heard, no matter how small and un-important they may seem to some.
i like kelly. shes easy on em eyes. money in da bank son.
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