Date of Award

5-2025

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Communication

First Advisor

Dr. Adam Tyma

Second Advisor

Dr. Andrea Melhaff Wear

Third Advisor

Dr. Jody Neathery-Castro

Abstract

This thesis examines how popular music served as an ideological and hegemonic instrument during the 2024 United States presidential election. Drawing on the theoretical frameworks of Antonio Gramsci (cultural hegemony), Louis Althusser (ideology and interpellation), Lawrence Grossberg (the duality of music), Michel Foucault (discourse and power), and Theodor Adorno and Max Horkheimer (popular culture as mass deception), this study explores how political campaigns utilized music to construct, reinforce, and challenge dominant ideological narratives.

The analysis begins with Kamala Harris’s entry into the race following Charli XCX’s viral “Kamala is Brat” tweet, signaling a cultural repositioning. It traces the use of Beyoncé’s "Freedom" as Harris's campaign theme, Donald Trump’s continued embrace of "God Bless the USA," and the Democratic selection of Tim Walz as vice-presidential nominee, which introduced a populist tone. Chapter three investigates the 2024 Republican National Convention, highlighting performances by Lee Greenwood and Kid Rock that emphasized American exceptionalism, Christianity, and resistance to perceived liberal dominance. Chapter four turns to the 2024 Democratic National Convention, analyzing how the Harris campaign used music and messaging to define "freedom" and "patriotism" in ways aligned with progress, hope, diversity, and inclusivity. Finally, chapter five explores the final weeks of the campaign, when the Village People's "Y.M.C.A." became closely associated with the Republican campaign, symbolizing a populist reclaiming of public celebration and communal identity.

Ultimately, this thesis argues that the 2024 election cycle marked an unprecedented intensification of popular music as a hegemonic force, offering campaigns a unique cultural medium to interpellate voters, shape political discourse, and solidify ideological identities in an era of heightened cultural fragmentation. At a time when political identities have become increasingly performed through aesthetics rather than policy, the study of campaign music is more critical than ever.

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