I want to know...
...why music has always had an impact on society.
Simple. Music is a form of art, just like painting, writing or architecture. Art is one of the ways people express
themselves, and transmit their ideas in a much more efficient way than fucking-hard-to-understand philosophical theses.
Muralismo, for example, was an artistic movement started by Mexican painters like Jose Clemente Orozco whose goal was to
depict a portrait of the Mexican society at that time, while criticizing the politics of that time. The Hidalgo mural in
the main stairwell on Guadalajara's government palace, for example, depicts on its right side an allegory of the
fight between Nazism, Communism and Capitalism, government forms he claimed to be all different expresions of
dictatorship. In fact, this is why a friend of mine wanted to be an architect, it's because it allows you to
express yourself, whereas in engineering you just can't do that, because all your program will run wrong, for
example, if you don't put these fucking printf's and scanf's where they're supposed to be.
...why different styles of music are associated with different groups of
people.
Like said before, art (including music) is one of the ways people express themselves. And of course, different groups of
people have different mentalities, cultures and values. Europeans, for example, are more thinkful, careful and
hard-working, while Latinos are more friendly, carefree and relaxed. That's why art differs from place A to place
B, from ages X to ages Y, from year P to year Q, and from people F to people G.
...why music unifies or divides groups of people.
Music unifies people because it transmits ideals and values. When a song transmits values that correspond to more than
one group of people, these 2 groups are united.
...why people who like the same genre tend to bicker over which artist is the
best.
That's just a simple matter of personal preference of one artist over another.
...why some genres of music do not generate the "cult" that others
do.
Probably it has to do the size of the group attracted or catered by a certain genre. Rock 'n roll, for example, was
probably the first cult genre because it catered to a group no genre has ever catered before: youngsters. Rock 'n
roll gave teenagers, for the first time in their lives, a sense of self-determination and allowed them to become a whole
different community, when they traditionally were just smaller adults.
1. What styles of music are associated with suicide, murder, sex, drugs, etc.?
Why?
WARNING! CONSERVATIVE TEACHER ALERT!
(just kidding XD)
Pretty much 99% of modern popular music. Not because they have a bad taste; it's because these are problems that
affect the modern society and all the people. And remember art is a way to express yourself, and to express your point
of view or your opinion about these subjects.
2. What social groups are associated with certain genres of music? Why? What are the
social/racial repercussions that result from this association?
It has to do with the origin of a certain kind of music. Latinos, for example, are often associated with cumbia and
reggaeton, because both genres were born in mostly Latino environments: the former originated in Colombia, the latter in
Miami and Puerto Rico. Norwegians and Germans are often associated with black metal, because that's the place where
it was born. Blacks are associated with rap, because it originated in the AA (short for african american, remember)
neighborhoods of America.
3. What do people think of rock and rap? Why do people feel this way?
That's a matter of personal preference. Some people hate metal because they feel it's stressful and too
fucking angry. Some people hate rap and reggaeton because of their sexual, violent and sexist themes, or because it
lacks the musical complexity other genres have. Some people hate pop music because it's way too mainstream,
commercial and uninspired. Likewise, I, for example, like metal mostly because I have a strange taste for everything
that's dark, angsty, gloomy and strange, and also because it's aggresive, angry and powerful.
4. Why is music so popular? Why are rock and rap more popular than other genres? Why
does the popularity of a genre -- or artist -- lead to a "cult" of followers?
Music is popular because of the audience it caters. Rock was popular because, in its earliest form, it catered to all
the youngsters who were largely unnoticed by the early 20th century society, giving it an enormous jumpstart. Rap is
popular because at first it catered another largely unnoticed group: the youngsters who lived in the poor neighborhoods
of America.
5. When was rock blamed for anything? Why was it blamed? (same question applies to rap)
*ties into question 1*
Actually, many, many genres were blamed for everything. Black metal and goth rock, for example, were blamed by many for
the Columbine shootings. Late rock and roll and early psychedelic rock, for example, was blamed for causing the hippie
movement in the 1960s, which wasn't seen with good eyes at all by that time's conservatives.
6. Who in music has has a lasting impact on society? Why have they had this impact? Have
they used their social standing to help a person (politician, peacemaker, etc.) or a cause? Give examples.
John Lennon and Yoko Ono were perhaps the most activist musicians I can think of. They often addressed politicians in
their attemps to put an end to the Cold War, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the Vietnam crisis.
7. Who outside of the music world has realized the impact music has on people? How did
he/she use music to their advantage/disadvantage?
This has to do with movies, but has also something to do with music, because it's art just like movies. In the book
"El cine de Goebbels" by Rafael de Espania, it says that Josef Goebbels, Hitler's minister of propaganda,
was conscious that cinema had an impact on society, and therefore, gave a set of rules for the Nazi cinema: theater and
cinema are completely different things, cinema should be educational and at the same time entertaining, cinema should be
a popular art representing the true experiences of the people, the government is forced by law to subsidize the
production of cinema and the construction of public spaces to watch it, cinema must be made to fit the current times,
cinema is the expression of a people's culture, movies must be kept simple and natural without being lame.
