Jane Denson, 11/19

        Last week's discussion of nostalgia, as mentioned by Jameson, got me thinking about the notion that we have nostalgia for not only the past, but also the present. In other words, we are missing something from our present, which would explain how pop culture texts from today draw upon the past. This sense of longing for what we used to have and attempting to recreate it in a way that fits into the mold of the present manifests almost everywhere. From my experience, I have seen this primarily through music and television. To add on to what talked about in class, I have observed this phenomenon in pop music the most, specifically from artists like Meghan Trainor and Lady Gaga. Trainor is often credited with a retro-futuristic style and sound, usually utilizing brassy horns (that are reminiscent of old jazz music) and fusing that sound with modern pop rhythms to produce what we know as "All About That Bass," for example. Lady Gaga, on the other hand, just released an album earlier this year called Chromatica, which appears to be nostalgic of the '80s with its electro-pop dance tracks, most notably "Stupid Love" and "Rain On Me." However, Jameson's ideas surrounding this topic are not limited to artists' music, since they even seep into their aesthetics too. Look at Ariana Grande for instance. I've noticed that some of her music videos, fragrance ads, social media posts, etc. appear to emulate or reflect the aesthetics of the 1940s-60s or late 1990s, which is so fascinating because I know she has nostalgia for pop culture during those eras and comes from a Broadway background where they were heavily appreciated. After observing all of the nods and homages to the past in practically every form of media, it becomes clear that we, as humans, tend to experience nostalgia rather naturally. Jameson's perspective on this matter certainly indicates that we indeed encounter present nostalgia, since it is so common to feel like a piece of the current moment is missing, which is never directly addressed by anyone.