Music

                                                        Music
                   It began with one note, no plan or confusion or conclusion an innocent

manifestation of ideas and emotion portrayed from the heart. But today has grown in to

a commercial enterprise dominated for popularity, the almighty hit radio songs and an

evil greed for money. If you ever attended college or gone to a school in your life music

is listed under art. What is the definition of art? The conscious production or

arrangement of sounds, colors, forms, movements, or other elements in a manner that

affects the sense of beauty, specifically the production of the beautiful in a graphic or

plastic medium. Calling them selfs “artists” they only copy what has been done before,

for so many years their coached by corporate producers on what to do, what to say

what to write and how to be. They define them selfs as artists but the true definition is:

A person whose work shows exceptional creative ability or skill,who is able by virtue of

imagination and talent or skill to create works of aesthetic value, especially in the fine

arts. Taking what has been done over and over, time and time again with every Brittany

Spears and Justin Timberlake that performs a Hillary Duff or Kelly Clarkson copies a

plagiarized sound that fits in with a crowd. Engineered to appeal to the masses, the

destruction of any art or imaginative or creativeness is traded in for acceptance within a

controlled medium. No subject matter that is unexpected is discussed within a

controlled medium, stuck on a path that is short and narrow with no room to grow. The

usual popular subjects that mainstream music appeals to is sex, drugs, violence, love

an almost hypnotic rut we have found ourselves only expecting that every song is

about. Although the underground music follows similar rules on using repeated subject

matter, the underground does not follow the rules of society but breaks them. The all

too popular love song appeals to every person and no matter the song.


                   Every Genre of music that exist in the mainstream media, tends to follow

the typical stereo types with its style and at most times will never break out of this

conforming shell. With every Pop song comes another cheesy love song, sexual

journey or about nothing at all. With every Country song comes another cheesy love

song and is at most times the ONLY topic but may surround country lifestyle or

American pride or religious beliefs most likely only pertaining to the Christian or

Catholic beliefs. With Rap the topic never strays from but may include life in the ghetto,

another cheesy love song and as always drugs, violence and the all too popular sex

and degrading of women on an every song basis. When venturing in to the Rock, Punk

and Alternative genre we find a more open book of topics but none never daring to

violate the format that has been set forth since rocks first foundation laid in the 50's and

so on. Such topics as love, politics, violence, drugs and religious beliefs have been

expressed but the song structure, vocal uses and time length on songs in the

mainstream rock/alternative all tend to sit in the same boat. At many times within any

mainstream genre songs are cut short on the radio and on tv to fit the tight schedule

American media has given its “Artists”. These requirements that have been set down

century after century limit any musician from creating art within music but only to

create copied, acceptable music

that will get play and will not be censored. And last but not least, the genre of heavy

metal, one of the most rebellious of all music category's still exists in the mainstream

and flourished with the rest of the offenders, especially during the 80s. In the

underground world Heavy Metal tends to be the most risky and experimental calling

back to the days of The Beatles and The Beach Boys. Underground music may never

get any radio play due to sporadic language, spontaneous  time structures,

experimental and dramatic vocals, and outrageous length of songs may invade up to

8-10mins long. The subject matter ranging from history, to myths and fairy tales,

poetry, love, religion and anything in between. At many times a genre is even broken in

the underground with critics unable to pin point a finger to point at what the music is or

should be. The American culture and community tends not to search for its music,

or the answers to life's questions but be handed to them by Television, Radio and

Newspapers that have been paid for by those above them who are as well delivering

their message in to your homes everyday.


                   For every Ad, for every song and for every book comes a price and a path

that is paved by super conglomerates to get the word out and make an artist a mega

star...as long as you do as they say of course. Many popular record labels will lay

down specific instructions that an artist must follow for it to be signed by its company.

The reason this agreement is constructed is to counter any negative or offensive things

an artist may write about and prevent pressure from activist or lobbying groups who

protest the albums. This has happened to such artists as Eminem, Beenyman and

Madonna ,who signed to the label run by the Pepsi corporation, (who is also on with

the unforgettable Brittany Spears) had written or acted on stage offensively and was

dropped from the label because of heat from groups. But as the world changed, and the

popularity strengthened by being out spoken on beliefs or overly dirty or corrupt labels

began a new agreement that encouraged artist to overstep the boundary on what the

world excepted and what it didn’t. In the end, either way, by following the trend of being

overly dirty or conformed and moral shows no control over ones career. We have seen

Mrs Brittany Spears or Christina Agulera become even more sexual and provocative for

a reason that it is what makes the money in today’s world. If at any point these artists

wanted to change direction their popularity would decrease causing them to make

decisions on what is “in”. Trends in the world have always been an influence on music

making what is  popular and what is not popular strictly based on the “needs” and

“wants” lyrically and beat wise. Within trends exist a medium or distributor of the

product or message in this case television and radio. Before television and radio

existed the only means of becoming known and mainstream with the world was a

simple and known method of touring. This method gave a fair and accurate process to

give the viewer a choice whether to accept or reject the musical act. But in the new

age, a new and unfair voice exists, the voice of television and radio. Hand picked artist,

strained for your pleasure, caught in a monotonous cycle of the same nonsense,

hypnotically broad casted in every home and in every ear. The radio giant Clear

Channel had once existed as a multi-network of many local stations run by local

managers  and many different and diverse play lists. In a request made to congress to

consolidate stations within the network and a new bill to cut down on ad time to 15

minutes an hour, many changes were being made without a second glance. Less ad

times sounds good right? Wrong. By consolidating local stations from hundreds to

double digits a new sound began playing at an almost mind numbing amount. The local

stations play list were thrown away and a homogenized and “supreme” list of artists

took over the time cut from ads. In such a big world as this, the smallest of voices, of

artists are no match for Clear Channel and a Neilson rating system that is ignorant to

the diversity of music. Starving an unheard artist that are given no room to become

popular on the new playing field that is a consuming market found a new place to call

home, a place looking for anyone willing to listen, the internet. Free of corporate

pressure or censorship of thoughts and ideas, the list of freedoms given was endless,

the choice became the viewers not the broadcasters. Imagine if you will that the only

way to listen to music was in a room of your house, no specific room in particular. As

you entered this room you noticed a chair in the middle labeled Television and Radio

and the three doors labeled Internet, satellite and free choice. Would you take your

seat as usual and see what television and radio had in store for you or get out of the

chair and exercise your freedom to search the unsearchable, to dream of music that

not only lives but breaths a fresh air of originality and difference from the typical cliche.

The choice is given to you, make it with caution.

(Quote from Eman Learton www.youhavebadtasteinmusic.com)
For their willingness to take an active role in created sound that perfectly fits the uncreative sound of today’s radio. For their ability to never progress thereby never challenging the audience, and giving the dumb downed masses pseudo art that they can easily grasp and digest. For being exactly what Mega-corporation clear channel needs, a cliche, homogenized hip sound that will receive acceptance in all markets of the country. Perfect music for today’s corporate dominated climate. Beloved by advertisers we have become the modern day version of Life Cereals “Mikey” you consume everything put in front of you its soul validity established by Television and Radio.