Latest news with #SouthernAccent
The Independent
05-06-2025
- General
- The Independent
The US accents Americans like to hear the most — and the least
Southern charm, it turns out, isn't a myth — Americans rate accents from Southern states as the friendliest in the US. In a study, over one in three (38 percent) Americans ranked the Southern accent — most commonly associated with Louisiana, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Texas and South Carolina — as the most welcoming, with the Hawaiian accent coming second (34 percent). In the Censuswide poll of 2,000 Americans, commissioned by Answering Service Care, the Texan twang was specifically voted third, with 31 percent of respondents finding it pleasant. At the other end of the table are the accents from New York City and Brooklyn, which are jointly the most hated American accents (15 percent). The New Jersey accent is marginally less liked (third from bottom, 16 percent), with the Chicago accent fourth from bottom (17 percent). The research also reveals America's top low-annoyance destinations accent-wise, with the way people speak in Alaska, Utah and the Mountain West rated least annoying by travelers. The Americans who sound the most soothing are Hawaiians, who come top with 20 percent of the vote. New Yorkers, meanwhile, sound the most confident (24 percent), followed by Texans (21 percent). Voice Coach Molly Parker explained that someone's accent can be just as impactful as what they're saying. She explained: 'Accents are everything when it comes to first impressions. 'Different consonants and vowels shape the way we feel about a speaker, even before we process their actual words.' She added: 'The way someone sounds can completely shift how they're perceived — whether they come across as confident, polite, impatient, or unsure.' The US accents Americans like to hear the most — and the least 1. Southern 9. Alaskan 17. Southern Californian 2. Hawaiian 10. St. Louis 18. Northeastern 3. Texan 11. Utah 19. Boston 4. Midwestern 12. West Coast 20. Chicago 5. Southwestern 13. Appalachian 21. New Jersey 6. Florida 14. Pacific Northwest 22. Brooklyn 7. Mountain West 15. Californian 23. New York City 8. General American 16. Mid-Atlantic Source: Answering Service Care
Telegraph
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Andie MacDowell on feeling beautiful at 67: ‘It's important not to look in the mirror too much'
The Hollywood actress Andie MacDowell is sitting across from me, virtually; she's at the Cannes Film Festival and I'm in London in the Telegraph offices. At 67 years old, it's strikingly obvious why MacDowell has been an ambassador for the beauty brand L'Oréal Paris since the 1980s; her skin is glowing (and, hurrah, not completely line-free). She has just a smudge of eyeliner around her eyes and a rosy blush on her cheeks that resembles the sort of colour you get on your cheeks after a brisk walk. (The only walk she's likely to do in Cannes, however, is on the red carpet this week. Her appearance on Wednesday in a tailored black tuxedo suit proves what a powerfully elegant figure she still strikes). And then there's the hair: MacDowell famously grew out her grey hair during the pandemic in 2021, telling Vogue at the time that it was a 'power move' to make her hair match the age on her face. Indeed, her tumble of tight, salt-and-pepper curls looks carefree and unfussy. 'I was pleasantly surprised by the reaction of me growing out my grey hair,' she tells me, in her charmingly pronounced, Southern accent (she grew up in South Carolina). 'I had so much love and support from everyone because it was something I wanted to do. Growing out my greys is how I feel I look good, and I feel comfortable.' Although she sometimes wears it down for 'special occasions' I put it back a lot, as I have a lot of hair so I also sweep it back into a low bun like what you have,' she says, smiling, referencing my hair across the screen from her. 'I pull it back because you see more of my face.' It's her face we're here to talk about, and the products she uses to keep her skin looking healthy. That includes the Age Perfect Serum Le Duo, and Revitalift Clinical SPF50+ Invisible UV Fluid, both by L'Oréal Paris, because 'I'm big into moisturising,' she explains. 'I live at the beach, so I wear a lot of sunblock because I go to the beach every morning and every evening, so I have to really cover my face.' A refreshingly simple beauty routine, I get the impression MacDowell is too busy to fuss over a complex regime. 'I stay fairly busy,' she nods. 'I take a lot of classes and have my dogs. If I'm not working, I'm always on the go so I keep it pretty easy.' She pauses, thoughtfully. 'I think it's important not to look in the mirror too much. Your substance and your beauty comes from the inside, so I do my skincare and a little make-up before I leave the house, and then I don't think about it. Just enjoy your life and let the beauty radiate from the inside.' L'Oreal Age Perfect Serum Le Duo, £38, Boots L'Oreal Revitalift Clinical SPF50+ Invisible UV Fluid, £20, Boots This mindset of beauty being enhancing but not all-consuming is what has given the actress such enduring appeal. Does she feel the impact of how, as a society, we're geared up to chase the idea of youth? 'Yes and no,' she sighs. 'I do think in a situation like this, at Cannes, you do start thinking about it. I think I start to feel it when I'm in this atmosphere, or when I think about films.' But, she laughs, 'not when I'm at home. We don't sit around thinking about trying to be a young person; that's ridiculous. Plus, it's impossible! I like dressing well, feeling good, doing my hair, putting on my make-up, but then just getting on with my day.' MacDowell tells me she lives in a community along the coast of South Carolina, where she grew up, amongst other women her age. 'We're way too busy, all of us. Where I live, a lot of people are semi-retired, so they're playing games and doing sports and hanging out with each other, and I think everybody feels pretty good.' Exercise comes into it, which is an important part of MacDowell's perspective. 'Most of us exercise, we take care of ourselves and we're supportive of each other,' she continues. 'The things that you think about when you age are getting your bone density test and taking good care of yourself. It's not frivolous, and it seems silly to set a standard for yourself that is unrealistic. I just want to be the best version I can be at my age.' In the early '80s MacDowell was a sought-after model, appearing on the cover of Vogue magazine and featuring in big fashion campaigns for Calvin Klein and Yves Saint Laurent. Her first film in 1984, Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes led to a string of hit films, and in 1994, aged 36, she starred alongside Hugh Grant in the hit British romcom Four Weddings and a Funeral. Looking back, would she do anything differently? 'I would tell my younger self not to worry about what people think. To trust myself and feel good about my body. Oh my God,' she sighs. 'My legs were so great and I didn't like them because they were athletic. Also, everyone talks about ageing arms and I can be hard on myself about my arms because they're not perfect any more, but they're actually not that bad.' What would she say to herself now? 'When you age, your skin changes, and the way your skin looks changes. I tell myself, 'in 10 years time you're going to say those arms were fabulous. Remember what you thought about your legs and all that time that you wasted?' So, for me now, I show my arms because I do work out a lot, and they look pretty good. I love to exercise, I go to yoga and I walk a lot. I try to go without sleeves and not cover up too much. They're not bad!' This is the advice she offers to her daughters, Rainey and Margaret Qualley (she co-starred opposite Margaret in the Netflix miniseries Maid in 2021, for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe; Margaret appeared alongside Demi Moore in last year's Oscar-nominated film The Substance). 'I tell my daughters to wear short dresses now, because they've got gorgeous legs. Even though my legs are no longer perfect, I now wear short shorts – because I know better. I wouldn't wear them in my 30s. What a waste of time,' she shakes her head. 'Truly, such a waste of time.' She's embracing having fun with make-up, too, and will now often wear a purple eyeshadow 'to make my green eyes pop,' she smiles. ' If I'm doing make-up myself, I like a light clean eye with a dark lip or I like a rock and roll eye and a natural-looking lip.' As for the glowing skin, MacDowell holds up a tube of Lumi Glotion by L'Oréal Paris, a highlighting liquid that enhances the skin without looking like foundation. 'Have you tried this?' she asks me, widening her eyes. (I have, and can attest to its brilliance.) 'I use it on my cheeks and off I go to the beach. I'm using it in Cannes, too. I love being here and having full make-up applied because I don't usually take the time to do that.' Lumi Glotion by L'Oréal Paris, £12, Boots As one of the most recognisable faces in Hollywood, MacDowell tells me about an important initiative she's in Cannes to talk about. The Lights on Women's Worth Award is in its fifth year and is designed to elevate women's role in the film industry. 'Us women have been so repressed and diminished over the years, both intellectually and creatively,' says MacDowell. 'We've got a different perspective and so much to offer in the world of film. We deserve to be equal partners. We need more women directing films because we need their perspectives.' MacDowell's own perspective is uplifting, and particularly rare in a world where the pressure to look younger and hit pause on ageing is increasingly present. I ask her, as our time comes to a close and before she's ushered into the next interview: what makes her feel beautiful? 'I like healthy, glowy skin. I do my eyebrows, apply a little lipstick, wear a fun dress and some cute shoes. I love to go out for dinner, have a glass of Prosecco and some good, intelligent, loving conversation. That's what makes me feel beautiful.'
The Independent
10-05-2025
- General
- The Independent
America is saying goodbye to the Southern accent
Atlanta's distinct Southern drawl, a dialect instantly recognizable across the United States for its elongated vowels and softened "r" sounds, has faded across generations, even within the same family. Susan Levine, raised in Atlanta during the 1940s and 50s, recalls her New York relatives turning her accent into a novelty act, charging friends a quarter to hear her speak. Yet, her two sons, born over 25 years later and also raised in Atlanta, grew up without a trace of the same Southern cadence. "My accent is nonexistent," said Ira Levine, her eldest son. "People I work with, and even in school, people didn't believe I was from Atlanta." This generational shift highlights the evolving nature of regional dialects in an increasingly interconnected world. The Southern accent, which has many variations, is fading in some areas of the South as people migrate to the region from other parts of the U.S. and around the world. A series of research papers published in December documented the diminishment of the regional accent among Black residents of the Atlanta area, white working-class people in the New Orleans area and people who grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina. More than 5.8 million people have moved into the U.S. South so far in the 2020s, more than four times the combined total of the nation's three other regions. Linguists don't believe mass media has played a significant role in the language change, which tends to start in urban areas and radiate out to more rural places. The classical white Southern accent in the Atlanta area and other parts of the urban South peaked with baby boomers born between 1946 and 1964 and then dropped off with Gen Xers born between 1965 and 1980 and subsequent generations, in large part because of the tremendous in-migration of people in the second half of the 20th century. It has been replaced among the youngest speakers in the 21st century with a dialect that was first noticed in California in the late 1980s, according to recent research from linguists at the University of Georgia, Georgia Tech and Brigham Young University. That dialect, which also was detected in Canada, has become a pan-regional accent as it has spread to other parts of the U.S., including Boston, New York and Michigan, contributing to the diminishment of their regional accents. In Raleigh, North Carolina, the trigger point in the decline of the Southern accent was the opening in 1959 of the Research Triangle Park, a sprawling complex of research and technology firms that attracted tens of thousands of highly educated workers from outside the South. White residents born after 1979, a generation after the Research Triangle's establishment, typically don't talk with a Southern accent, linguist Sean Lundergan wrote in a paper published in December. Often, outsiders wrongly associate a Southern accent with a lack of education, and some younger people may be trying to distance themselves from that stereotype. 'Young people today, especially the educated young people, they don't want to sound too much like they are from a specific hometown," said Georgia Tech linguist Lelia Glass, who co-wrote the Atlanta study. 'They want to sound more kind of, nonlocal and geographically mobile.' The Southern dialect among Black people in Atlanta has dropped off in recent decades mainly because of an influx of African Americans from northern U.S. cities in what has been described as the "Reverse Great Migration.' During the Great Migration, from roughly 1910 to 1970, African Americans from the South moved to cities in the North like New York, Detroit and Chicago. Their grandchildren and great-grandchildren have moved back South in large numbers to places like Atlanta during the late 20th and early 21st centuries and are more likely to be college-educated. Researchers found Southern accents among African Americans dropped off with Gen Z, or those born between 1997 and 2012, according to a study published in December. The same researchers previously studied Southern accents among white people in Atlanta. Michelle and Richard Beck, Gen Xers living in the Atlanta area, have Southern accents, but it's missing in their two sons born in 1998 and 2001. 'I think they speak clearer than I do,' Richard Beck, a law enforcement officer, said of his sons. 'They don't sound as country as I do when it comes to the Southern drawl.' Unlike other accents that have changed because of an influx of new residents, the distinctive, white working-class 'yat' accent of New Orleans has declined as many locals left following the devastating Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The accent is distinct from other regional accents in the South and often described as sounding as much like Brooklynese as Southern. The hurricane was a 'catastrophic' language change event for New Orleans since it displaced around a quarter million residents in the first year after the storm and brought in tens of thousands of outsiders in the following decade. The diminishment of the 'yat' accent is most noticeable in millennials, who were adolescents when Katrina hit, since they were exposed to other ways of speaking during a key time for linguistic development, Virginia Tech sociolinguist Katie Carmichael said in a paper published in December. Cheryl Wilson Lanier, a 64-year-old who grew up in Chalmette, Louisiana, one of the New Orleans suburbs where the accent was most prevalent, worries that part of the region's uniqueness will be lost if the accent disappears. 'It's kind of like we're losing our distinct personality,' she said. While it is diminishing in many urban areas, the Southern accent is unlikely to disappear completely because 'accents are an incredibly straightforward way of showing other people something about ourselves," said University of Georgia linguist Margaret Renwick, one of the authors of the Atlanta studies. It may instead reflect a change in how younger speakers view Southern identity, with a regional accent not as closely associated with what is considered Southern as in previous generations, and linguistic boundaries less important than other factors, she said. 'So young people in the Atlanta area or Raleigh area have a different vision of what life is in the South," Renwick said. "And it's not the same as the one that their parents or grandparents grew up with.'
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Is the Southern accent fixin' to disappear in parts of the US South?
Growing up in Atlanta in the 1940s and 1950s, Susan Levine's visits to New York City relatives included being the star of an impromptu novelty show: Her cousin invited over friends and charged 25 cents a pop for them to listen to Levine's Southern accent. Even though they too grew up in Atlanta, Levine's two sons, born more than a quarter century after her, never spoke with the accent that is perhaps the most famous regional dialect in the United States, with its elongated vowels and soft 'r' sounds. 'My accent is nonexistent,' said Ira Levine, her oldest son. 'People I work with, and even in school, people didn't believe I was from Atlanta.' The Southern accent, which has many variations, is fading in some areas of the South as people migrate to the region from other parts of the U.S. and around the world. A series of research papers published in December documented the diminishment of the regional accent among Black residents of the Atlanta area, white working-class people in the New Orleans area and people who grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina. More than 5.8 million people have moved into the U.S. South so far in the 2020s, more than four times the combined total of the nation's three other regions. Linguists don't believe mass media has played a significant role in the language change, which tends to start in urban areas and radiate out to more rural places. Late 20th century migration surge affects accents The classical white Southern accent in the Atlanta area and other parts of the urban South peaked with baby boomers born between 1946 and 1964 and then dropped off with Gen Xers born between 1965 and 1980 and subsequent generations, in large part because of the tremendous in-migration of people in the second half of the 20th century. It has been replaced among the youngest speakers in the 21st century with a dialect that was first noticed in California in the late 1980s, according to recent research from linguists at the University of Georgia, Georgia Tech and Brigham Young University. That dialect, which also was detected in Canada, has become a pan-regional accent as it has spread to other parts of the U.S., including Boston, New York and Michigan, contributing to the diminishment of their regional accents. In Raleigh, North Carolina, the trigger point in the decline of the Southern accent was the opening in 1959 of the Research Triangle Park, a sprawling complex of research and technology firms that attracted tens of thousands of highly educated workers from outside the South. White residents born after 1979, a generation after the Research Triangle's establishment, typically don't talk with a Southern accent, linguist Sean Lundergan wrote in a paper published in December. Often, outsiders wrongly associate a Southern accent with a lack of education, and some younger people may be trying to distance themselves from that stereotype. 'Young people today, especially the educated young people, they don't want to sound too much like they are from a specific hometown," said Georgia Tech linguist Lelia Glass, who co-wrote the Atlanta study. 'They want to sound more kind of, nonlocal and geographically mobile.' Accents change for younger people The Southern dialect among Black people in Atlanta has dropped off in recent decades mainly because of an influx of African Americans from northern U.S. cities in what has been described as the "Reverse Great Migration.' During the Great Migration, from roughly 1910 to 1970, African Americans from the South moved to cities in the North like New York, Detroit and Chicago. Their grandchildren and great-grandchildren have moved back South in large numbers to places like Atlanta during the late 20th and early 21st centuries and are more likely to be college-educated. Researchers found Southern accents among African Americans dropped off with Gen Z, or those born between 1997 and 2012, according to a study published in December. The same researchers previously studied Southern accents among white people in Atlanta. Michelle and Richard Beck, Gen Xers living in the Atlanta area, have Southern accents, but it's missing in their two sons born in 1998 and 2001. 'I think they speak clearer than I do,' Richard Beck, a law enforcement officer, said of his sons. 'They don't sound as country as I do when it comes to the Southern drawl.' New Orleans 'yat' accent diminished Unlike other accents that have changed because of an influx of new residents, the distinctive, white working-class 'yat' accent of New Orleans has declined as many locals left following the devastating Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The accent is distinct from other regional accents in the South and often described as sounding as much like Brooklynese as Southern. The hurricane was a 'catastrophic' language change event for New Orleans since it displaced around a quarter million residents in the first year after the storm and brought in tens of thousands of outsiders in the following decade. The diminishment of the 'yat' accent is most noticeable in millennials, who were adolescents when Katrina hit, since they were exposed to other ways of speaking during a key time for linguistic development, Virginia Tech sociolinguist Katie Carmichael said in a paper published in December. Cheryl Wilson Lanier, a 64-year-old who grew up in Chalmette, Louisiana, one of the New Orleans suburbs where the accent was most prevalent, worries that part of the region's uniqueness will be lost if the accent disappears. 'It's kind of like we're losing our distinct personality,' she said. Southern identity changing While it is diminishing in many urban areas, the Southern accent is unlikely to disappear completely because 'accents are an incredibly straightforward way of showing other people something about ourselves," said University of Georgia linguist Margaret Renwick, one of the authors of the Atlanta studies. It may instead reflect a change in how younger speakers view Southern identity, with a regional accent not as closely associated with what is considered Southern as in previous generations, and linguistic boundaries less important than other factors, she said. 'So young people in the Atlanta area or Raleigh area have a different vision of what life is in the South," Renwick said. "And it's not the same as the one that their parents or grandparents grew up with.' ___ Follow Mike Schneider on the social platform Bluesky: @
Washington Post
10-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
Is the Southern accent fixin' to disappear in parts of the US South?
Growing up in Atlanta in the 1940s and 1950s, Susan Levine's visits to New York City relatives included being the star of an impromptu novelty show: Her cousin invited over friends and charged 25 cents a pop for them to listen to Levine's Southern accent. Even though they too grew up in Atlanta, Levine's two sons, born more than a quarter century after her, never spoke with the accent that is perhaps the most famous regional dialect in the United States, with its elongated vowels and soft 'r' sounds.
