Why is John Mellencamp pimping Chevys?
(John Mellencamp performing “Our Country” during the World Series.) The New York Times’ David Carr on Monday questioned John Mellencamp’s selling out to Chevy. “Our Country,” the latest single from the artist formerly known as Cougar, is the theme to the company’s latest ad, being played ubiquitously during commercial breaks of recent televised sporting events. It’s off JM’s forthcoming album, “Freedom’s Road,” due in February (it’s his first in five years). On the one hand, the ad is more than a little creepy, especially when it tries to connect the troubles of an SUV-dealing American automaker to the 1960s struggle for Civil Rights. On the other, if you can’t get airplay on the radio or “Veronica Mars,” what’s a middle-aged recording artist to do? The Times article follows the jump.
