Shuttin' Detroit Down

Album: Son of a Preacher Man (2009)
Charted: 75
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • In this song the Big and Rich singer addresses the American government bail outs of automobile companies during the 2008-09 recession. He explained to the Detroit Radio station WYCD that the inspiration for this song was the news reports of those who've lost their jobs in the credit crunch. Rich said: "I've been watching the news like everybody else. I'm sitting there, getting madder and madder, watching New York and Washington D.C. sling billions of dollars back and forth to each other while the hard-working people in America are just going, 'What in the world is going on up there?'"
  • Rich explained to Billboard magazine: "It was written as an outraged American, outraged at the government for giving massive sums of our money to people that misused it. I think when you say, 'His pension plan's been cut in half and he can't afford to die,' that's about as hard-core truth as it gets. People are feeling that way all over. As a tax-paying American I take offense to it. As a country songwriter, I wrote a song about it... and I used Detroit as the emblem for all hard-working Americans."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Adele

AdeleFact or Fiction

Despite her reticent personality, Adele's life and music are filled with intrigue. See if you can spot the true tales.

Dean Pitchford

Dean PitchfordSongwriter Interviews

Dean wrote the screenplay and lyrics to all the songs in Footloose. His other hits include "Fame" and "All The Man That I Need."

Jules Shear - "All Through The Night"

Jules Shear - "All Through The Night"They're Playing My Song

Shears does very little promotion, which has kept him secluded from the spotlight. What changed when Cyndi Lauper had a hit with his song? Not much, really.

Jello Biafra

Jello BiafraSongwriter Interviews

The former Dead Kennedys frontman on the past, present and future of the band, what music makes us "pliant and stupid," and what he learned from Alice Cooper.

Frankie Valli

Frankie ValliSong Writing

An interview with Frankie Valli, who talks about why his songs - both solo and with The Four Seasons - have endured, and reflects on his time as Rusty Millio on The Sopranos.

Martin Page

Martin PageSongwriter Interviews

With Bernie Taupin, Martin co-wrote the #1 hits "We Built This City" and "These Dreams." After writing the Pretty Woman song for Go West, he had his own hit with "In the House of Stone and Light."