EconGoneCountry

Supply and demand with a twang

Title: Hippies and Cowboys

​Artist: Cody Jinks

Economic Concepts: Demand; Tastes and Preferences; Profit maximization  

Details: There are certain situations where one can learn the correct way to do things by observing incorrect actions.  In "Hippies and Cowboys", the music artist is not mainstream, which allows  students to understand how profit maximization and optimal efficiency are not being achieved:

​        "I never ask for anyone to say they like my sound  
        I’ve never been part of any musical scene...  
        They don’t write about me in their magazines, 
        and I don’t ask for no reviews on the songs that I sing…
        Raising hell with the hippies and the cowboys.  
        They don’t care about no trends,
        they don’t care about songs that sell.”

It is clear that the artist could be more profitable if he produced songs that had a wider audience, but money is not his motivating force.  This can then segue into a discussion on the determinants of demand, specifically tastes and preferences.    

​     

Lyrics: 
Well I started on the whiskey pretty early this morning

That's alright, I was up all night
But I passed out before the sun came up

I really wanted to see one of those

I know that's no way for a man to behave
With a mortgage due and a baby on the way
But somehow I made it to where I'm at

It's been a living as a matter of fact
I get a bad attitude from being tired and running 'round
I never ask for anyone to say they like my sound
I've never been a part of any musical scene

I ain't just talking Nashville, if you know what I mean
They don't write about me in their magazines
And I don't ask for no reviews on the songs that I sing
I never had a lot of friends and I'm alright by that

But people keep on coming back
Raising hell with the hippies and the cowboys
They don't care about no trends

They don't care about songs that sell

Yeah, tomorrow I'll be gone

So tonight everybody just sing along
Raising hell with the hippies and the cowboys
I've been standing on the outside for all of my life
But I like the view, I'm not gonna lie
Yeah, the yuppies and the hipsters and the wannabe scenes
That ain't down-home to me
I like two dollar beers, I like three dollar wells

At some old honkytonk bar that I know by the smell
Some old drunk on a barstool on a Merle Haggard tune
That's my kind of room
Raising hell with the hippies and the cowboys
They don't care about no trends
They don't care about songs that sell
Yeah, tomorrow I'll be gone
So tonight everybody just sing along
Raising hell with the hippies and the cowboys
Raising hell with the hippies and the cowboys
They don't care about no trends

They don't care about songs that sell

Yeah, tomorrow I'll be gone

So tonight everybody just sing along
Raising hell with the hippies and the cowboys
And I'll be raising hell with the hippies and the cowboys   ​​​​