Why Jimmy Buffett Fans Are Called Parrot Heads

April 2024 ยท 2 minute read

It wasn't all margaritas and sunshine for Jimmy Buffett. In 2018, Taffy Brodesser-Akner penned a New York Times piece called "Jimmy Buffett Does Not Live the Jimmy Buffett Lifestyle." The article argued that Jimmy Buffett's persona, while at one time real, was eventually replaced with someone far more business savvy. "Because that, in a coconut shell, was the problem," she wrote, describing a December 2017 show in which he told old stories between songs. "Jimmy Buffett is not really Jimmy Buffett anymore. ... [He] has been replaced with a well-preserved businessman who is leveraging the Jimmy Buffett of yore in order to keep the Jimmy Buffett of now in the manner to which the old Jimmy Buffett never dreamed he could become accustomed. ... The more successful you become at selling the Jimmy Buffett lifestyle, the less you are seen as believably living the Jimmy Buffett lifestyle."

Indeed, Buffett's empire grew through the years, and he became involved with products like boat shoes, tequila, and Landshark Lager, and the name of his most popular song โ€” Margaritaville โ€” made its way into everything from restaurant chains to clothing lines. Of course, the business acumen was always there to some degree โ€” over the course of his career, Buffett started a record label, created his own tour buses, and oversaw all of his merchandise.

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