Are Youth Subcultures genuine signs of revolt or simply the manifestation of style?

Parsons argues that the subculture of youths is the transition between childhood and adulthood. Is this formation of subcultures due to the opposition against the dominant power or is it just an expression of style?

Style and interests in music distinguish many subcultures. Willis suggested that musical preferences are connected to the nature of an individual’s life, e.g. Rock and Roll matched the nature of the life of the “motor bike boys”. Hebdige claims that styles expressed by different subcultures are a response to social conditions and experiences, subcultures incorporate both revolt and style into their way of living. Subcultures now are not so much about revolt against society but the way for an individual to express their style and different interests. For example, it is easy to notice a “rude-boy” wearing a cap and tracksuit and listening to rap music, this is not the result of expressing his oppression in society but as a symbol of his interests.

 

Does the emergence of the digital download signal the end of the music industry?

Digital audio has permanently changed how people find, buy and listen to music. In the US, digital downloads have brought $4.8 billion in revenue. This is not the end of the music industry, it has created a transformation for the recording industry, and it makes music more accessible to consumers but has piracy. File sharing for example is extremely controversial and has led to organizations such as Napster, which made it possible for high quality audio compression, but was shut down for copyright infringement, it was eventually relaunched.

Although, the evolution of digital audio has affected certain parts of the music industry such as record stores, as it is cheaper and easier for people to download music from the Internet.

The music industry has now switched to DRM-free MP3’s for music downloads, creating a new consumer friendly music environment. Apple for example has applied this to itunes. This is not the end of the music industry. 

What is World Music?

To over simplify, World Music is music from around the world. Generally people would interpret World Music as a style of music that is specific to a non-Western Culture, although this is not just the case. The term World Music includes traditional music of any culture that has been created and played by indigenous people (local to a certain group of people) These are sounds that reflect a particular culture or social reality. World music is a very broad concept. World Music can be as simple as pop music with lyrics in a language other than English.

It seems that the term World Music is being used as a marketing tool by the western world. Although by making World Music Westernised, indigenous music is being promoted to a wider audience. Music is universal and to discover music of a culture it is important to know and see the culture as a whole.

Is Popular Music a mass produced commodity or a genuine Art form?

First we must consider what is popular music and what is art. Popular music came to mean those songs associated with the mass market around the 1930’s and 1940’s. Whether art can be defined has been a matter of controversy, although I believe it is an expression and creation of works of beauty.

Due to technological advances in the early part of the twentieth century music was able to be mass-produced, due to this, the originality and high standards of music were sacrificed in favour of cheap merchandise and high profits, moving music from being an art form to a mass-produced commodity. Theodor Adorno said,  “The popular music industry is an all consuming production line that churns out mass produced, inferior commodities.” Pop music now, has not invented anything new, it has just borrowed rhythms from other forms of music, and this is for the benefit of mass production and profits, not for the love of making music.