Popular Music, Youth and Education - Essay Example

Popular Music, Youth and Education Order no. 340706 No. of pages: 10 Introduction Music has always been part and parcel of our everyday lives which enables us to give meaning and expressions to our thoughts, ideas, feelings and emotions. Different kinds of music appeal to different people depending on their tastes which are very much based on the culture and background from which they come. However, it is not very difficult for the present generations to identify themselves with the existing trend of popular music because of the existing trend, its mass appeal and flexibility. In this essay we are going to discuss how popular music appeals to the present generation and how it can be used in the field of education. How Culture and Society Impacts our Lives Ben Highmore, author of his book titled ‘A Passion for Cultural Studies’ gives us an insightful background of his research on how culture influences us by infiltrating into our daily lives. He uses the aspect of culture in trying to convey key ideas based on various theories that are vital to cultural studies. He disseminates the complex problems that arise due to the pattern of migration, the change of taste among people, the attraction towards different commodities. According to Highmore ‘culture can move you, get under your skin and stir up your emotions.’ (Ben Highmore, 2009) In his book he speaks of ‘passions’ that were most prominent during the 18th century (Ben Highmore, 2009) and stated that it referred to different phenomena such as fear, pride, sympathy, jealousy and many other specific feelings that helped to describe the more experiential world around us and it is these ‘passions’ that has helped us analyze different theories against a cultural backdrop. Karl Marx refers to ‘alienation’ as the systematic result of capitalism. According to his theory of ‘alienation’ people lose control over their lives if they are deprived of having control over their actions that contribute to shaping their destinies. (Karl Marx, 2002) Chris Rojek, Professor of Sociology and Culture at London’s Brunel University has been researching a lot on cultural studies and has published a very insightful book titled “Cultural Studies.” He has enlightened us on how culture has impacted many areas of our lives based on authentic case studies he had come across in his research. Rojek fills us in on how culture has morphed into a different image by giving us concrete examples for us to understand his authoritative and critical guide. Rojek brings out the essence and meaning of what culture is all about and theorizes how culture contributes to various changes in our lifestyle and tastes in many areas of our lives. Some of his research interests are popular music and celebrity culture and how culture has gone a long way in shaping and directing our lives. Rojek speaks of cultural styling’ (Rojek, pg. 29) stating that if our identities and behavior were measured according to our cultural styling then where is the space for individuality or personal identity. Rojek gives us a fitting example of culture styling through ‘Hebdige’s application of bricolage (Rojek, pg. 53) telling us how it evolved through various subcultures. Rojek talks about China (Rojek, pgs. 19 & 20) and how it has evolved from its traditional and conservative background to one of the most striking cultures, through culture styling. Therefore, he theorizes that culture is responsible for influencing our tastes for different kinds of music. Eithne Quinn, makes an investigation of the ideologies, the intricacies and the culture of the Black working class in relation to our existing contemporary culture and she has come out with some enlightening facts about the influence of culture on our music. For example she takes a close look at the genre of ‘Gangsta Rap’ ‘Nuthin’ but a “G” Thang’ (Eithne Quinn, 1986) and concludes that this genre was not just a popular culture fad but instead embodies profound shifts in American culture and everyday life." (S. Craig Watkins, author of Representing: Hip Hop Culture and the Production of Black Cinema) Quinn looks at popular music from a social, political and cultural point of view and draws up two opinions – one negative and one positive. She remarks in the negative stating that this culture of Pop Music is detrimental to society as it serves as a potent ground for social ills that plague our cities. On the other hand, from a positive stand she says that Blacks have got financial freedom through their music which has helped them lead a better lifestyle in addition to music companies becoming millionaires overnight. According to Watkins’ opinion Pop music did leave its impact on modern day society especially the youth’s life-style, language and attitudes, yet the emergence and fascination they had towards Rap surpassed everything. Watkins defines hip-hop ‘as a cultural movement committed to defying the cultural and political mainstream, but whose biggest battle is the one it is having with itself.’ (Craig Watkins, “Hip – Hop Matters”) Bennett A., (2000) in his book on ‘Popular Music and Youth Culture’ examines the music scene today and evaluates the impact it has on the youth today. Bennett tells us how the youth are influenced by certain genres and styles such as Hip- hop, Rap, R&B and Pop and ‘identify’ themselves with it, making it a ‘part of their daily life.’ (Bennett, A. 2000) In his article called ‘Do you speak American’ ethnomusicologist (Keys, 1991) emphasizes how the Hip – hop culture has caught on like wild fire among the youth today. Keys also points towards the urban black street tradition of ‘Gangsta Rappers’ who are another source of identification for the youth who try to ape them by exhibiting acts of violence and the use of drugs. (Keys, 1991) De Nora, author of her enlightening book on “Music in Everyday Life” (DeNora, 2000) describes how people have made use of music to create an identity for themselves, in addition to changing moods and structuring their interactions with people they are associated with. She enumerates the different areas where music is used to enhance lifestyle such as the use of different kinds of music according to different aerobic exercises, the use of music in huge shopping complexes used to create a peaceful ambience and also the use of music in neonatal care used to bring stability to the infants. (DeNora, 2000) Michael Bull in his interesting book titled “The Auditory Culture Reader” (Michael Bull, (2004) speaks of Sight and Sound and how they have a great influence on our everyday lives. He says that we react to all the sights and sounds in our environment such as horns, bells, jarring or noisy sounds, music both harsh and sweet etc. The Auditory Culture (Michael Bull, (2004) fills up the gaps in our lives adding more meaning such as sermons, chants, cheering and the like which according to M. Bull influence our lives and makes us change the way we think, react and emote with. Popular Music, Youth, and the place/role of Educational Institutions Importance of Music in the Curriculum The youth today are both consumers and producers of music and as such music plays a very important part in our day to day lives. Popular culture involving music, dance and drama demands that it is incorporated within the school curriculum from the onset to ensure its success. Educationists and policy makers understand the significance and are going all out to promote these concepts since society demands it. The educational significance of exposure to cultural exchange brings about the concepts of socialization and acculturation by sharing cultural concepts within a diverse group such as in the classroom. Schools, Colleges and Youth centers are potent grounds to enable rich cultural exchange and thereby enhance the creativity of the youth. Youth are looked upon as a “future generation” who are responsible in bringing about a positive social change. Looking back at the music culture of the sixties and the seventies and the eighties when the ‘Gangsta style (McWhorter John, H. 2003) celebrated violence, drugs, life in the ghetto, promiscuity and street warfare, what we recall to mind are hardcore rappers, hippies, rockers, drug peddlers, unemployed youth and punks. The contemporary music scene has changed a great deal because people’s tastes differ due to the changing society. In this globalized world people have become more aware of the music scene today and parents are going all out to get the best training for their child. Music today has become more of a business and schools realize the necessity of catering to the society because of the heavy competition. Right from the Primary stages children are given training in music in school by their music teacher. They are taught to sing to scales. They are trained to tap to rhythm such as in rap Poetry. Workshops are conducted where children get exposed to different kinds of music such as African or Arabian music besides music that they are familiar with. Music classes are contained within the school curriculum to encourage children and provide a platform for developing their talents and skills. Music is a part of our everyday life and hence children are automatically attracted to it. It forms part of their culture and so they show a lot of interest to learn something new about it. Music workshops and clubs help children who have the same taste and talents to get together and build a good rapport with each other by sharing their thoughts, ideas and feelings with the others. Learning music serves as a potent platform for building many other skills which are very important for life. First of all, learning music in a multi-cultural atmosphere goes a long way in exposing children to a rich variety of music, thereby open out other avenues of creativity. Secondly, music helps to create a bonding between all those having the same interests. It also builds good team spirit especially during competitions, concerts and other stimulating programs. Learning music in a group serves to strengthen other virtues such as cooperation, tolerance, a helping tendency, calmness, forgiveness and a sharing and caring attitude. Music is also responsible for nurturing a good aesthetic ability for both listening as well as performing. Learning music in the school encourages children to understand where they stand by way of performance and understanding the areas they need to improve. School serves as a platform for building identities of their own by reflecting on what they have to do to improve themselves. Popular music has revolutionized the music and entertainment industry in more ways than one. In fact, it is a phenomenon that has now attained a global appeal. It has influenced our way of thinking, behavior, dressing and socializing in a major way. Passing her comments on the culture of Hip – hop, Richardson Elaine (2006) describes it to be “global ambassador of the English language and American culture” (Richardson Elaine (2006) because of its global appeal and wide reach across nations whose language is not English. Popular Music and personal Biography/history development Music has always been a major part of my life and something which is very close to my heart. I could therefore say that music for me was always ‘omnipresent.’ From my childhood and through my teenage years, the music that appealed to me then was totally different to the idea of music I have at present. I come from a small countryside town of Italy where I had spent most of my childhood and later went to university in Italy. My family belonged to a working class group and life was not too smooth. I gradually became an anti - conformist rebel to fit into a certain political and social climate that I was exposed to while sharing the values and beliefs of those who whom I came in contact with. During that period when I went to university, I had experienced a kind of subculture through music like Punk and Rave music. After my graduation I came to London and experienced a mild culture shock because of the great disparity I found. My whole perspective and outlook on life changed drastically as I came to understand the real meaning of culture and how it could be manipulated to suit our styles and tastes. I was now associating with a multi- cultural group in a huge metropolis so my outlook on life took a totally different turn. I slowly began to understand the importance of a good formal education when I went to work in a Primary school. I enjoyed the different sensorial experience of the sounds of the city such as ambulance sounds, the traffic and the bustle of city life. I was exposed to myriads of styles of music like African, Arabic and Indian. In school we did not have access to Youtube, ipods or mobiles but at home they have access to everything. Popular Music as an aspect of informal everyday learning Popular music is one genre of music that has had a great impact on our way of thinking, style of dressing, our behavior and the manner of our lifestyles. Popular music could be defined as the kind of music that is most successful on the music charts at any given period. Times keep changing and so do people’s taste for music. Hence a style which was popular at one time does not necessarily have to be popular in these modern or contemporary times. Popular music from the period of the 1950’s is considered to be the musical styles that are accepted and enjoyed by the largest audiences around the world. A good example of this would be the 1955 hit number by Bill Haley titled “Rock Around the Clock.” (Song Facts, 2009) This Rock and Roll number became such a major hit that it brought about a new trend in music which automatically wooed its audiences away from their regular taste of soft or Classical music. Popular music is very interesting and attractive but nevertheless is open to change and moves with the changing trends in order to cater to a contemporary audience and attract the masses. To maintain its melting pot, it borrows and assimilates styles and ideas from other genres such as Punk, Rock, Country and R&B. Today even Latin music has impacted upon the Pop scene by incorporating nuances of its music. Conclusion Popular music has left its indelible mark on all cultures, and is in no way concerned with how far this is acceptable to the other members in our society or neither how rational or feasible it appears. According to me, I feel that it has had adverse and a negative influence of society and the freedom that goes with it has to have a stop somewhere other wise the society as a whole is moving into a more dangerous phase where rationality and respect would be things of the past leading us into a society which is less safe and very much less respectable. Even in today’s present day music culture that has gone a long way in influencing most of the youth in a bad way there are some good rap and Hip – hop artists who are good and clean in their music. Schools and colleges can take these artists as good examples and give the students the right picture thereby dissuading them from following anything bad. Music groups like Hip – Hop 4 Peace’ and artists like ‘The Roots’, Mos Def and De La Soul do not encourage violence at all. Many of the Hip- hop artists like Queen Latifah, Cool J, Y- Clef and Puff Daddy engage themselves in charity and other community activities. The language they use is clean and is used to create peace, harmony and justice and bring about a social change for the better. Awareness workshops for the youth in schools and colleges could serve as a proper guide by touching upon topics that would help them reflect on what is good or bad and what to choose or not choose. For example, lectures could be given on the background of different styles of music and how they evolved over time and how popular music such as Hip- hop and Rap were initially used to create social awareness among the general public about the social and political problems that existed in the society which encouraged people to come forward and remove these problems by finding good solutions to them. References Ben Highmore, (2009) ‘A Passion for Cultural Studies’, Palgrave Macmillan. Pgs. 176 Bennett, A. (2000) ‘Popular Music and Youth Culture’ Music Identity and Place. Palgrave Macmillan, Pgs. 246, Chris Rojek (Book) Cultural studies www.polity.co.uk/book.asp?ref=9780745636832 Craig Watkins S. “Hip – Hop Matters” http://www.hiphoplinguistics.com/reviews/books/2006/08/s-craig-watkins-hip-hop-matters-pol DeNora (2000) Music in Everyday Life, Cambridge University Press, 1st Edn. pgs. 196. Eithne Quinn, (1986) Nuthin’ but a “G” Thang/ The Culture and Commerce of Gangsta Rap. Popular Cultures, Everyday life. Karl Marx’s theory of Alienation (2002) Sociology 250 www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marxs_theory_of_alienation Keyes, (1991) ‘Do You Speak American?’ www.pbs.org/speak/words/sezwho/hiphop/reprint McWhorter John, H. (2003) How Hip – Hop Holds Black Back http://www.city-journal.org/html/13_3_how_hip_hop.html Michael Bull, (2004) The Auditory Culture Reader, Berg Publishers, Oxford, UK, pgs. 510 Nuthin’ but a “G” Thang/ The Culture and Commerce of Gangsta Rap. www.columbia.edu/cu/cup/catalog/data/023112/0231124082.HTM Richardson Elaine (2006) Hip – hop Literacies, Routledge, New York, London. Rock Around the Clock (1955) by Bill Haley – Song facts http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=1794 Read More