When news of Taylor Swift’s “The Life of a Showgirl” first hit the airwaves, it seemed to have all the makings of a classic Swiftian masterpiece. Literary allusions? Check. Fun aesthetics? Check. A few cringe song titles? Check. And there would be no influence from the long-suffering Jack Antonoff, who has faced criticism for his […]
Tag: music
Bob Dylan’s Model Political Art
“I have never written a political song. Songs can’t save the world.” – Bob Dylan In 1961, Bob Dylan arrived in New York City to meet his idol. Woody Guthrie, by then dying of Huntington’s, had been the prototypical hero of early 20th-century folk music, authoring celebrated pro-labor and anti-fascist classics. Dylan settled in New […]
“Stairway To Heaven” is Our Generation’s Political Anthem
We all know Led Zeppelin. 1970s British band. Founders of hard rock. Oh: and political commentators. Well, not exactly. Compared to their peers, Led Zeppelin generally avoided political themes in their songwriting. Pink Floyd decried all war with “Us and Them,” the Beatles critiqued Communist China in “Revolution,” and the Rolling Stones’ “Street Fighting Man” […]
The Storied History of Sudanese Jazz
Around the year 1955, in the city of Omdurman, Sudan, a cartoon illustrator for the Al-Subyan magazine struck up a friendship with several students whose residence was just across from his office. These students had recently moved to Omdurman from South Sudan after the suspension of Rumbek Secondary School, which occurred on account of rising […]
No Freedom of Expression: Russia’s Crackdown on Dissenting Musicians
On a crisp autumn evening in 2014, fans packed into Moscow’s International House of Music to see one of Russia’s most famous musicians, Andrei Makareivich, perform. However, just a few minutes into the concert, Russian nationalists would pepper spray the crowded venue. While attacking the attendees, they chanted that Makereivich was a traitor due to […]
Sensory Marketing – When Music Makes You Buy
Sight. Sight. Sound. Smell. Taste. Touch. Since the 1940s, major marketing corporations have studied ways to appeal to our five senses to convince us to buy. Today, manipulating the human psyche is done in such complex ways that it has become something of an art form. Which colors stimulate your appetite? Which “new car” smell is most likely […]
Are You Listening? Misogyny in Rap Music and What It Means for Women in Society
Rap music gained its hype in block parties in New York City in the 1970s and has become a staple part of culture in society today. Rap is literally defined as the recitation of lyrics over instrumental beats, but it has become a form of expression and art. Over the decades, this art has advanced […]
The Politics of The Yeehaw Agenda
Old Town Road was not born into a void. Lil Nas X’s genre-shattering fusion of trap and country influence was just one of the manifestations of the rising use of cowboy imagery and style on the internet and in popular culture outside of its traditional contexts. The name for this movement, coined by a pop […]
When the Music Turns Off, Matisyahu’s Actions Begin
UC Berkeley’s spacious areas like Memorial Glade and Lower Sproul Hall serve as a center stage for concerts with big name performers. Last April, reggae singer Matisyahu performed a free concert to a large and engaged crowd on Lower Sproul hosted by the Berkeley Hillel and UC Berkeley’s Jewish Student Union. The concert was a […]