Under the (music) influence

Posted on April 5, 2019April 25, 2019 by Ellenchamblee in Music

By: Ellen Chamblee

Do you ever have a bad day, and listen to your favorite song to make you feel better? Sometimes when I’m feeling down, I listen to One Direction’s Up All Night album from 2012. It’s my guilty pleasure and always puts me into a good mood.

Music and Emotions

Music has a way of sparking emotions. Plato thought that Music could “move the soul towards goodness, or the contrary.” Similarly, Aristotle thought that “music imitates emotion and can affect character”

Music is often associated with emotion which can add a layer of depth to the message being received. It is a form of artistic expression that can gently touch on a subject and relay messages in an impactful way to its listeners.

Image result for plato and music moves the soul towards goodness — Nostalgia Diaries

Music and Beliefs

Musicians throughout history have used music to promote their beliefs or customs. Folk music often touches on issues of social justice and human rights. For example, folk Singer Bob Dylan won the Nobel Peace Prize. In his song, “Blowin’ in the Wind,” he poses controversial questions about war, the environment, and human rights.
Dylan is an example of an influencer. He is someone who can promote change through media. His music can, like Aristotle said, affect character. Many old and new philosophers and psychologists agree that music can create powerful emotions.

We often hear songs like these on the radio. The First Amendment and Section 326 of the Communications Act, actively prevent radio (and television) broadcasting censorship. The Federal Communications Commission believes “the public interest is best served by permitting free expression of views.”

The FCC

Music and Agenda

People desire to express their views and distribute them through music. Music can promote one’s agenda. Music is even more influential as Globalization increases. “Relatable” content is shared with others. Music videos will be shared on Facebook or Twitter, playlists on Spotify or Apple music will be shared with friends. Turning the Tables lists Lady Gaga as #2 for the 21st Century’s Most Influential Female Musicians. Lady Gaga’s song “Born This Way” is another example of a song supportive of LGBTQ rights. This song has 244 Million views. It is shared around the world with the click of a button. It is played on the radio in coffee shops or malls around the US.

Image result for lady gaga born this way — Lady Gaga

Why is music so impactful?

NPR describes that music makes us feel seen and that it sets “terms for how we’ll move into the future.” With the advancement of technology, you can not only share these videos, but you can also become a part of the conversation. Comments on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and other Social Media provide instant feedback. This feedback allows one to advertise their opinion. Free speech promotes this and technology allows it, and assists in the globalization of opinions.

Become a part of this conversation and comment your feedback below!

Sources:

Laval théologique et philosophique

Psychology Today

The FCC

The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy

National Geographic

The Washington Post

Vivian

NPR Turning the Tables

Globalization: Negative effects caused by dominating Western culture

Posted on March 28, 2019April 24, 2019 by Ellenchamblee in Music

By: Ellen Chamblee

If you read my last post, you’ll recall I talked about hearing popular American songs when in Italy. It is not uncommon for American songs to circulate virally. Many feel that Western culture is dominating.

But Why?

Four big recording companies, referred to as “The Big Four” of course, dominated 75% of the global market. The Big Four has been reduced to The Big Three– now only Sony, Universal, and Warner. The International Musicology Society refers to the music industry as an oligopoly These three recording companies produce a HUGE percentage of the music recorded and played around the world. “Globalization enables foreign companies to distribute American cultural products, including music.”

So what does this mean?

This means that branded culture is distributed in the masses around the globe via music (and through other entertainment and media forms). Third-world countries are often without the means to produce media reflective of their own culture. They are heavily influenced by the constant consumption of Western culture. Smaller countries are having harder times keeping their “cultural identity.” We can see Western music become integrated into local musical cultures, creating hybrid styles.

What’s an example of opposing cultural values through music?

Japan Times explains a scenario: Beyoncé is on TV. She is singing “Single Ladies.” But, often, Westerner’s do not realize that “Cultural contradictions eventually morph into conflicts and clashes, in figurative and real senses.

Music can be representative of cultural values. Rock music has loud dynamics, strong and percussive rhythms and promotes specific types of dancing. This is reflective of “self-expression, spontaneity, released sexuality, and perhaps most importantly, defiance of the alleged stodginess of tradition.”

Push media is defined as what is provided to the consumer by large companies like the Big Three). The ones who control push media? Those with the giant economies.

But Ellen, you just told us in your last post that we had more pull media to choose from than ever before?

Yes. In my opinion, I believe that we have more pull media than ever. But, ironically I believe we have concentrated push media. We can choose from so much media to consume via Youtube or Soundcloud, but the media produced in the masses by the Big Three is dominating, specific and limited.

I know what you’re thinking, we do have SO much push media being thrown at us, how could I possibly think this? But, we often get lost in the ocean of media and become desensitized to much of it. However, the things that go viral, are pushed at us, bigger and more specific than anything we have seen. Videos that go viral are then played on News Stations and can be found over and over again on various social networking sites. The radio stations play the few and famous top songs over and over again for months.

American music is pushed all around the globe, for everyone to hear. Because American Hollywood and Music Companies dominate the industries, American music and pop culture are pushed onto other cultures around the world. As I said before, only THREE companies dominate 75 % of the global market!! That is specific and small in hindsight!

Contrast

But in contrast, audiences can pull their own, more obscure media. This was the case for the rise of K-pop; K-pop was not being pushed out by big companies originally. Consumers chose to pull this media. However, another interesting idea arose– When indies, (lesser companies) go viral and become popular, big companies hop on it.

Agree? Disagree? Agree to Disagree? Comment below and let me hear what you think!

Sources:

Japan Times

Globalization and Music Culture

Music in Western Civilization

Vivian

Suny Levin Institute

Header Image Source

Technology: The History of Music Globalization

Posted on March 21, 2019April 24, 2019 by Ellenchamblee in Music

By: Ellen Chamblee

In many ways, music is making the world a smaller place. When traveling to Italy last semester, I found many of my favorite Justin Bieber songs including “Despacito” played in Italian restaurants and popular hangouts. It has American and Hispanic influences and is played all around this globe. This is an example of the globalization of music. Globalization– is the spread of products, technology, information, and jobs across national borders and cultures. But how did this come to be? Well first, we must grasp an understanding of music history and how music is globalized. Let’s dive in!

world-music_blog — Kent State University

Music History in a nutshell

Music has been around as long as humans. It began as an oral tradition for communication. Music was important to assist in memory of text and was influential in religious ceremonies. (Music of Western Civilization). While this might still be true today, the music industry has rapidly changed because of technological influences. With the development of Gutenberg’s printing press, music could be notated as well as widely distributed. Printing allowed for accessibility to sheet music; sheet music allowed for music to increase in complexity. There was no longer a reliance on memory to recreate musical works, and there was no longer a tedious hand-written process (forget a feather and ink!) to create and copy music scores. Music distribution rapidly increased. (Music of Western Civilization).

Advancement in music due to technology surely did not stop there. The invention of the radio and audio recording was a giant leap for the music industry. Tape recording allowed composers to have “total control over the musical outcome.” (Music in Western Civilization). The radio distributed music to a mass audience. People all over were engaging in the same, popular music.

Again, technology advanced and the music industry adapted with records, cassette tapes, and later CDs. Accessibility to music continued to grow, and grow rapidly. According to Vivian’s “The Media of Mass Communication,” mass media is constantly evolving and much of this is because of the expansion and complexity of the internet. (Vivian). iTunes came about in the early 2000s, as did other means to download music. Music could be stored and kept on mobile devices, allowing us to carry music with us. Streaming is now the hot new thing. Streaming allows one to access media without downloading it on to your device. We can stream thousands of songs with the click of a button. Much of streaming is free to consumers, fueled by ad sales.

Music Globalization Today

The Globalization of the internet and increased access to music websites means that people all over the globe are gaining access to music. Websites including YouTube and Sound Cloud allow users to search for music at their pleasure. With an increase of “pull” (media readily available to consumers) audiences have a surplus of options to explore. (Vivian). YouTube and SoundCloud also allow users to post their own music content. This accessibility has evolved the music industry. Production, consumption, and distribution of music are significantly cheaper than ever before, (Uncommon Culture).

There is no longer a gatekeeper to music. Record companies are not the sole way into musical fame and no longer own and manage most copyrights of music. (Research gate). YouTube sensation, Justin Bieber gained fame through YouTube. As his music went viral, he became recognized and is now world renown. (Research Gate). Countries all over the world are now streaming his music and watching his YouTube videos. Music is spread across borders, causing “geographical boundaries to dissolve” (Uncommon Culture).

Sources:

Vivian

Music in Western Civilization

Do, Re, Mi, Fa, So Global

Posted on March 14, 2019March 28, 2019 by Ellenchamblee in Music

Topics to cover

I hope to explore how Music in many ways is a universal language and can be appreciated by people of different backgrounds all over the world

Another concept I hope to explore is how the progression of technology, accessing music is easier than ever. I will dive into the effects of technology on music and explore its significance in globalization. Through this technology, we can download or stream millions of different musical compositions through our mobile devices. With access to an excess of music, we can choose from a variety of genres and artists. I will explore whether the increase in “pull” options leads to the demassification of audiences.

In addition, I will explore how music spreads culture and creates influences or trends across the globe.