Gentlemen. Ladies. This. THIS. Is going to be so much fun!
Where to start…?
1) Is there a word for something that’s so bad it’s good? If not, the word for it should be this video. I’ve watched “It’s so much fun to be this good” (ISMF2BTG) enough times now to normalize the cheesy original composition and camera shots of all the must-visit Charlotte attractions (pause for awkward self-aware moment to realize that almost everything going on in this city can fit into a 3:08 clip) and I’m no longer throwing up in my mouth and I’m thinking…we’ve got an Appalachian is Hot Hot Hot video on our hands! Quick, someone scrape this ish and put it on youtube. Charlotte’s about to be featured on Tosh.0
2) Actually, this video is better than AIHHH. Does the App video apologize for it’s very existence the way ISMF2BTG does when they sing “It’s okay to pat our backs.” Seriously, that’s one of the lyrics. And it must be asked, at this point, is it? Is it really okay?
3) I don’t know what tickles me more, the fact that some Charlotte company, or, God forbid, taxpayer funded entity, commissioned not only this video but the song that goes with it and probably paid a butt-ton of money for it. Your money, that you don’t have much of but still have been respectfully and dutifully depositing into the local economy. It was spent on this video. To the tune of 10,000+ dollars it easily cost to produce (and that’s a low-ball guestimate). And this was the outcome. An expensive and meticulously produced statement of who we are, to ourselves and the world. The best image of Charlotte that money could buy. Or, OR the fact that one of those images includes, shit you not, Target and Home Depot signs. Come to Charlotte, ya’ll! We got Target and Home Depot now! Oh, actually, um, this is awkward, but that Home Depot went out of business.
4) So what we really have here is our very own version of the Cleveland Tourism Video, except decidedly unsnarky and actually, taking itself quite seriously. I’ve read recently in several vaunted Charlotte publications that the future of this city is in the creative job market. I must now, respectfully, disagree.
5) How long til we can get this song auto-tuned?
Glad to see you’ve stepped back into the blog and hope you can stick with it despite your graduate studies schedule. I do so enjoy your perspective on things.
With this particular post, I must come to the defense of my workplace, the Charlotte Chamber. This video was produced for our 2008 Annual Meeting for almost no money by chamber volunteers. Only the band received payment. It was used at the Annual Meeting as part of an hour-long program that highlighted our 2008 accomplishments and introduced our incoming leadership, so watching it out of context is … well … out of context. It isn’t meant at all to promote Charlotte to the world at large. I should also note that the Charlotte Chamber is funded by its member companies and does not receive any taxpayer dollars.
Melissa, thanks for your comment. When I wrote this post I didn’t know who comissioned the video as it was found in a company’s online portfolio. Since I was only familiar with this particular company, I made the monetary guess based on that. Also, I do see how it could be taken out of context — most notably with the target and home depot signs which I know are part of metropolitan shopping center, an achievement that someone outside of Charlotte would most likely not understand why it’s worth featuring.
With that in mind though, the song. The song. It brings me great joy. I don’t blame the musicians who were probably just trying to make an extra buck while working with a limited possibility of material. But I think we can all agree that songs dedicated to cities are either lame or so lame that you want to listen to them over and over until they get stuck in your head and you start singing them to your friends who either are also tickled by the lameness or stop being friends with you. DJ Complete’s “I Love Charlotte” comes to mind. Unless of course these city tributes are written by Jay-Z. And even then…
(I love Charlotte http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ya5i3CTNPM)
Oh Meck. Thank you, thank you so much for this.