Here is my discussion question up front: Pick a music genre--something that you like or know a little bit about--Think about the situation in which the music was made (historical, social, etc.) What do you think the message is that the artists were trying to get across. You don't have to do research. Just take a stab at it.Recap of Hip-Hop
I ask this question because I'm fasinated by the development of hip-hop. Hip-hop has always been a music genre that's just been on the radio. I haven't noticed its evolution from hip-hop to light rap to grungy rap to R&B. It's just always been there in the background. I was especially suprised to learn that it was a movement in the 70s rather than the late 80s and early 90s like I previously thought. (If you want a good laugh at hip-hop and disco in the same room, check this out: "Rapper's Delight" by Sugarhill Gang http://www.mtvmusic.com/sugarhill_gang/videos/19415/rapper_s_delight.jhtml. "Rapper's Delight" was one of the first popular rap songs. The music is good, but the dancer's outfits are ridiculous. It simply fascinates me.)
As we learned, hip-hop came out of South Bronx as a reaction to gang wars, poverty, racial tension, a heroine influx, and a need for an alternative. Partying became the new thing, and leaders like Afrika Bambaataa and DJ Kool Herc brought charisma and organization to the table. Dancing, DJing, MCing, graffitti, etc. became a new mode of expression and means to release pent-up energy--as opposed to fighting. Hip-hop spread and became popular throughout the world. It has since evolved, but still exists and has influenced other forms of music.Grunge: Heavy Metal's Ugly Cousin
I want to jump to grunge for another example of a musical movement that evolved from a specific culture...and being from Seattle, I couldn't resist.
Grunge music began in Seattle in the late 80s and was made popular throughout the 90s. It evolved from hard core rock, heavy metal, and indie rock. According to..well, wikipedia, the sound of grunge evolved from these styles in an isolated and ignored music scene. Because of its isolation (I guess Seattle wasn't on the maps at the time...?), music in Seattle developed original and unique styles, uncommon in the popular music world. After the release of Nirvana's album "Nevermind" and Pearl Jam's "Ten," the genre gained rapid success in part by the nation's curiosity in the unique and original sound that seemed to match Seattle's perceived culture. (When it's raining outside, don't you kind of feel a little grungy?....in fact, most websites I read tagged the music specifically to people gathering indoors and being inside all the time because of the rain) Common themes included disillusionment with society, fear of the future, and angst. My guess is that as the tail end of the Cold War, a bad economy, dramatically increasing divorce rates, unstable family structures, and a noticeable decline in social morals all contributed. For me, the sound of grunge is a tired, warn out feel about societies wrongs. It seems like the message is "things have been so wrong for so long and I'm depressed and angry," rather than "improve yourself then improve the world." Check out this link to see what I mean (Nirvana "Smells like Teen Spirit" http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=nirvana&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wv#q=nirvana%2C+smells+like+teen+spirit&hl=en&emb=1&start=20. ) Popular bands included Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, etc.
Okay..that's some history...Now what do you think? You can discuss any genre or musical movement.
37 comments:
The history of specific music a genera is interesting. Yet, the most interesting concept for me is how a musical concept or style evolves by incorporating details from other styles. One genera that I notice it the most in is crossover music such as classical pop and country pop. With country pop, the lyrics and tone and usually still country motivated but if you let someone else sing the song it can gain a different genera edge.
I think it's cool how many songs today are being made in so many different genres. For example, I don't like country. My friends are always listening to Taylor Swifts, "Love Story," and I get pretty annoyed cuz i just don't like it. Interestingly enough, I just heard the pop version of the song and I'm absolutely in love with it. Because the genre changed, I started liking the song. Seriously brilliant way to reach tons of different audineces.
if you click on the Nirvana pict you see Curt Cobain's t-shirt which reads: "Corporate Magazines Still Suck". If I remember correctly, this picture was for Rolling Stone or possibly Time Magazine.
If you look at the history of U2's music you see the issues of Northern Ireland and other political conflicts of the world heavily influence their music. In music it raises an interesting question about "art" or "entertainment". I feel there are a lot of bands/artists that have tried to create some form of art in their music accompanied by some type of social message- Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Joan Baez, Woody Guthrie. What's interesting about the artists and their music is the time period in which they are set-pretty problematic times. We're in pretty problematic times now though-why isn't there more music/art created in relation to these issues?
In response to Professor Cutri's question, the last time I remember a band taking a political stance was when the Dixie Chicks criticized President Bush. The impression I got was that they got more attention than they anticipated. Some musicians probably don't want to deal with the repercussions that come along with being loud about controversial topics. I also think some musicians don't really care about or are apathetic when it comes to taking a stand politically and socially.
I am a huge Rage Against the Machine fan, which if you didn't know is a very politically drive band. I find it kind of funny that they resurfaced as a band once things started to get a little dicey in the Bush administration. I wonder if they would even be a band if they had nothing to complain about. I wonder what is going to happen with them now that Obama is President... they are seen as a Socialist band and Obama has been labeled a "Socialist" President from time to time by some right wing media. Maybe I wont get to hear Rage Against the Machine live for another 4 to 8 years.
I don't know if this relates, but I am completely entertained by listening to the words of country songs. It seems like the story is the same in every song: a dead dog, broken down truck, or a cheating girl. In all reality, I'm not sure what these songs are in response to. I guess it's not that important; the songs are interesting.
I'm pretty open to all music, but everyone says that country music (which I love btw - country pop only!) is cleaner than pop/hip-hop. Now I can see why they would say that, but really a lot of the songs have the same message. Country just tames it down - love, making love, falling in love, etc. So really any "love" song in any genre may be different in it's portrayal, but it all talks about the same thing.
In response to Andy's post, I don't think that the Obama presidency will really affect Rage Against the Machine producing new music. I mean, yeah they did just get back together and have been touring a bit recently, but although they still haven't 100% confirmed a new album, I don't think that's because of a new president. To begin with, while their music makes MANY political statements about the US, the band (especially de la Roche) are Zapatistas and make many political statements about problems in Chiapas, Mexico, problems which are ongoing. So while I too am eagerly awaiting a new Rage album, and have to satisfy myself by listening to de la Rocha's less-impressive One Day as a Lion album, I don't think the new US president will stop them from writing new music.
i find that country music often tells more of a story than other forms of music. don't get me wrong...."girl on the verge of a nervous breakdown" and "lick it like a lollypop" tell a story of their own, but i find that country music often tells more in depth special stories. I think that the genre was made more popular through it's story telling abilities. Yes there are the "dog ran away, wife left me, my wife is my sister" type of country, but there's also a world of awesome stories such as "three wooden crosses" by randy travis and "then what" by clay walker
I went to U2 in 3D although I thought is was pretty cool it also felt like Bono was attempting to brain wash us. His message was world peace, anti bush, america is evil.
All through middle and high school I listened to punk rock and honestly I never thought about its origins or how it was started. I did notice a lot of the lyrics and gained glimpses into the ideologies of the band members such as bad religion and no use for a name and their sometimes very political and social stances.
Origins of music? Here are some generalizations.
Rap: made by people who can usually speak better than sing
Country: made by people who can't seem to tell a story without all the unimportant details
Pop: made by people who still live in high school or the glory days
Hard Rock: made by people who work for Tylenol or Advil to increase headache medicine sales
Alternative: made by people who want to make it appear that they're different simply by the genre name
R&B: made by people who tend to have serious drama in their lives
Bob Dylan (Folk music) - chronicler of a revolution
ha. I think Zach's post is funny. I would just add Pop Music: the people who enjoy dancing in their music videos more than singing.
How interesting is the hippie movement. Half a million people got together in 1969 in up state New York to celebrate Woodstock and the belief that flowers and peace were better than guns and war. It was considered a success given the amount of people that were there for three days with such potential of disaster, rioting or fights. The movement through the sixties and seventies created an incredible amount of great music that continues to be popular today.
To be honest, there is not one particluar genre that I am whole-heartedly devoted to. I know this sounds cliche, but I have a wide variety of music taste. I like country songs for their storytelling capabilities. And I like running to rap songs with a good beat. However, if I had to pick a favorite, I wound choose acoustic. I'm not sure if that would even classify as a genre, but when I listen to acoustic music I feel as if the artist is exposing some rare, unique side of themselves that I don't get from other types of music.
The common threads leading to the development of new music is what interests me the most. During high school I was fascinated by Jazz music and it's beginnings. Though its details differ from other music, the circumstances are rather similar to most genres we've mentioned. It seems that hardship and struggle, either with society as a whole or within one's self, produces great music. The execution may sound different depending on the era, but the feeling seems to be the same.
I also think the whole crossover idea is a great way to reach various audiences. I'm reminded of Shania Twain's album UP! which had two separate releases: once as a country album, and once as a pop album. Or how about Metallica's S&M where they teamed up with an orchestra to play some of their most famous songs? That genre I think might have a history in letting more of a diverse audience listen to your music. How many people loved the songs on these and other albums that really spoke to them, but never would have listened if it didn't come out differently.
Remember the show on Vh1 "Behind the music?" I love that show. I love the idea behind that show. I become way more excited about my favorite bands when I know the how's and why's they sing what they sing and are what they are.
So in those cases, yeah- I think I know what messages they are trying to get a across.
I think lots of people have fallen into r&b and rap and then realized what limits it has, then stumbled upon pop country. anything with pop seems to make you happy, and country, well, honestly it's somewhat a downer genre. But put in a beat that you can dance to, goodbye rap, hello new pop country!
enigma- doorway to sensuality.
I like all kinds of music genres, but I think the country music movement is somewhat fascinating. Most country heard on the radio is known as "pop country". It is country, but it has a pop twist. I think it is interesting to see how these two separate genres have meshed. Maybe it is because people like such a wide variety of music these days.
The music genre I listen to the most is pop. Pop music focuses on rhythm and harmony. Having studied classical singing and piano, I appreciate the rhythm and harmony pop offers. I also enjoy energy in music and feel that pop has that energy without the intensity of some other genres of music.
i love all types of music genres. recently, i started to listening to alot of ingrid michaelson. i guess she is an indie singer/song writer. i really like it when artists write their own songs. ingrid writes about a variety of things. heartbreak, love, young love, staying sane, etc...she's talented. that's why i like her. i don't listen to songs for a message. i listen to songs to that match the feelings/mood that i'm in
i think folk music originated as the music of the "common folk" or working class people that either simply wanted to have a form of artistic expression or wanted to express a political message, or both. i think its pretty much the same for folk artists today.
I listen to lots of different music but I always seem to come back to country. I love the story it tells. I don't know about the origin but I think it stems from that. Somebody wanted to tell a story and did it in song. Who knows....maybe thats completely off.
Yeah, country started from cowboy poetry and storytelling and I think that is an easy way to classify that genre.
Did classical music have much of a message or a statement to make? Can you have a message with your music without any words? I'd think you can...
I think it's interesting to see how the genres began, but I really think it's cool how some of them have combined or people have 'crossed over' and been big in multiple genres.
Every artist has a message, hidden or just bluntly out there... Will I Am loves Obama!
I am huge fan of U2, and as long as I am aware they've had a message to share. Since I am giving my shot here and I didn't do any research, I'll just say what I always see coming from there. For me, the band U2 is about making people realize of the changes we need to make in the world. I think they try to open our eyes to realities that our not ours, and that sometime we forget. And most importantly they try to show that we can personally make a difference, that one person can do something to change the world.
I think one of my favorite stories is probably Nirvana. I don't know why I find it so interesting but at the time just before Nirvana came out all of the music was really poppy and all sounded like it had been produced on a keyboard. When Nirvana came out though it gave birth to that grunge sound that really blew all of the other music at the time out of the water. It started a new genera and trend of head banging that quickly swept the nation which was born out of a disgust for the type of pop music that was around at the time. I don't know if that is completely accurate but from what I understand that is how grunge was born.
These posts have been super interesting. Here's my contribution: Boy Bands-- stemmed from overly bored female teeny-bopper population. Bring on *N'Sync, BSB, 98 Degrees, LFO, et al.
I also think that the evolution of hip hop and rap is very interesting. I've always liked rock. I think it's cool to think that it came from Black music and that although we look back on early rock and think it is very soft, for it's time it was very edgy.I think we always want to push the envelope as we express ourselves.
This question got me really interested to see how my favorite genre, indie rock, came about. I came to find that indie rock was a branch of alternative rock. Indie rock started like most bands, underground, and if they are signed to a record company it is a small one. They grow popular from word of mouth or college radio. It really is interesting to see how each genre of music got their start. Each genre seemed to be inspired by different things going on in the world. I wonder what new genre will pop up in the future that will be inspired from what we are going through today.
I think the whole jack johnson movie is a really interesting thing. He kind of evolved as the embodiment of surf culture that I don't think was represented as strongly in music before. His music represents his lifestyle--the 'do what you want' attitude is apparent in the way he developed his own record label. I just think he is an interesting example of the creation of a new genre of music.
Anything with good drumming and guitars I am interested in as long as the singer doesn't have an annoying voice and doesn't swear. I'm a drummer and so I rarely pay attention to what the lyrics are.
Richard Wagner, pronounced vahg-ner, built an opera house to his specific specifications to showcase his operas such as "Der Ring des Nibelungen." Today many elements of opera houses such as sunk in orchestra pits (completely hidden from the audience) can be attributed to his desires for a dramatic performance.
His politics aside, much can be said for his music.
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