Is the audience for popular music created by the music industry?

I don’t think that the audience for popular music is solely created by the music industry. I think that categorises the artist as a money making machine and the audience as a completely willing consumer, which, the majority of the time, isn’t true. 

The audience is the largest part of the music industry, but that doesn’t mean they are clueless in the process and will buy what ever is put in front of them. People will buy the music they like, whether it is an obscure band with a fan base of a 100 or an artist who’s at number one in the charts. The music industry can promote artists on TV, radio and the internet but not every person receiving this information will act on it. 

Shuker says that ‘even artists who have reached a certain status still rely on the structure put in place by the industry to reach their audience’. I think it’s true that the industry have a big part to do with the audience, as they are in charge of the distribution and promotion but I don’t agree that the audience is created by the industry, perhaps it’s the other way around.

Review of Mixmag magazine

The magazine is laid out in a way in which the reader can pick it up, and read a small feature quickly, and can devote more time later to the in depth features. It’s a colourful magazine and is image heavy which reflects on the clothes featured in the magazine and the sense of style the reader has. 

Mixmag is mainly aimed at guys, the median age being 24, it is for the type of guy who works hard in the week and lets loose at the weekend, spending his pay cheque on night outs, clothes, songs and the latest technology. Mixmag say that 80% of their readers don’t read any other magazines which makes the £4.20 price tag not seem so steep if it’s the only magazine they buy a month. 


Mixmag gives away free downloads and CD’s, it features up and coming artists and has reviews and features. The magazine has adverts for dance festivals, holidays and DJ equipment, and given the price range, it isn’t for rookies.

It's the best selling dance magazine in the world and if you like that scene, it's the ideal magazine for you.

Are blackness and whiteness useful concepts in the study of popular music?

David Hatch says the ‘pop music has always depended on interactions towards white and black traditions’. It is hard to say what black and white music is, as there will always be a mix of traditions. An example being rap music, it may be predominantly black, but there are and will always be white artists who are successful in that genre such as Eminem, Asher Roth and the Beastie Boys. Longhurst says that ‘rap creates a form of interracial dialogue’ it’s about the love of the music not the colour of your skin, therefore blackness and whiteness isn’t necessarily a valid concept when looking at music, compared to the upbringing or general lifestyle of an artist, which doesn’t always come down to race. When defining music solely by whiteness and blackness, this excludes a number of other races and cultures, who aren’t black and white. If we categorise music that simply, where does Asian, Latin or Bhangra fit in?

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

Lessig suggests that file sharing can be broken down into a ‘substitute for buying the actual content’, ‘access to music that is no longer available’, ‘access to non copyrighted music’ and ‘to sample music before buying it’. There is more to downloading music to just stealing. I don’t think it is damaging the music industry if people are downloading a couple of songs off an album to ‘sample’ before purchasing the album.  

Kid A by Radiohead was leaked online months before the album’s release and was subsequently downloaded by millions of people, but the album still managed to get to number one in America. In 2007 when Radiohead released In Rainbows, they let their fans decided how much they want to pay for it, most paid £5. This shows that even if something is available for free, if fans support the artist, they will most likely spend money on them.

Can popular music achieve genuine political change?

John Street says that ‘music has a symbolic force and has the power to create visions, articulate ideas and form bonds.’ I very much agree with this statement as musicians have the ability to articulate messages and beliefs onto a large number of people, which is a very powerful thing. Shuker describes ‘conscious rock’ which raises awareness of issues, such as Band Aid which raised £8 million and enlightened people of issues, such as poverty which they may not have been as knowledgeable in beforehand. If that then inspires someone to go out and make a change, the music is responsible for that.

Overall, whilst I don’t think popular music can necessarily achieve genuine political change on its own, the music and lyrics can spread awareness, change people’s mindsets and maybe make people believe that they themselves can change things, which is a step in the right direction towards political change.

What is world music? Why do we have such a category?

World music is music from across the globe, made by people of different cultures to our own. It can also be music from an artist who performs ‘local’ music which is then marketed worldwide by a major record company. Cultural Imperialism also has an impact on what we deem world music. Roy Shuker says that the ‘transmission of certain styles from dominant nation’s leads to the creation of particular patterns of demand and consumption which endorse the cultural values and ideas of their dominant origin’. He is saying that Anglo-American popular music becomes the accepted standard global template and I agree with him on that point. The reason we have the category is because there is no where else for it to go, it seems. The world music section has a variety of music genres but the only similarity between them is that they aren’t influenced by the Anglo-American style of music like so many other artists. 

Is popular music a mass produced commodity or a genuine art form?

Theodor Adorno says that popular music is ‘standardized’ and that the popular music industry ‘churns out mass produced, inferior commodities’. There certainly is an area in the music industry that creates music purely for the sales figures, but there is also popular music that was created in the same way people create art. Something that evokes emotions, something people can relate to which something that is a genuine piece of self expression. That type of music I feel can be defined as a genuine art form. This then raises questions as to who is the artist in this scenario. If somebody doesn’t write their own song are they the artist, or is it the songwriter. I think that both can be classified, as the songwriter creates the words and the performer expresses them and if the audience can take a genuine emotion or can connect with the song, both have succeeded in creating a genuine art form.

How useful is a production of culture perspective in understanding the birth of rock ‘n’ roll?

It is quite useful to have an understanding of what was happening in the world, culturally when looking at the birth of rock ‘n’ roll. Richard Peterson says that there are six cultural factors to look at which he believes contributed to the emergence of rock ‘n’ roll. They include law, technology, industry and organisation structures, occupational career and the market. Each factor on its own can’t be credited for the birth of rock ‘n’ roll, but together the list is a useful and concise way of explaining how rock ‘n’ roll could have come about. However there are factors that Peterson doesn’t address, such as the music itself, which is the most important thing. The six factors he names could be attached to any musical genre. His factors look more at the production behind the distribution of the music, rather than the audience who listened to the music, which is equally important.

Is it reasonable to consider that rock music is gendered male?

Looking at Rolling Stone’s top 50 guitarists it isn’t entirely surprising to see that there are no women on the list. On a whole it is reasonable to say that rock music is gendered male. Bayton says ‘women performers have predominantly been vocalists rather than instrumentalists’’. I agree with this statement and it is much easier to name a female vocalist than it is to name a female drummer. It’s hard to pinpoint a definite answer as to why this tends to be the case, but one theory is that if you grow up being a fan of rock music and aspire to play an instrument, the people you are looking up to are most likely men. But for women, there aren’t as many females in that position to look up too. If there were more Joan Jett’s out there to inspire women to play an instrument, maybe the genre would be more level. 

Can popular music ever really be unplugged?

Paul Theberge says ‘without electric technology, popular music in the 21^st century is unthinkable.’ And he is right, when it comes to recording, producing and performing popular music, it’s almost impossible to imagine any of that unaided by technology. When it comes to an acoustic guitar, which appears unplugged, but that can be plugged in to provide a better and louder listening experience. As a whole unless it is being performed in an intimate surrounding, you can’t perform unplugged. It’s difficult to imagine a band playing an arena gig with no electronic sound system. There’s also the aspect of recording music, whether that be on your own laptop or in a studio it wouldn’t be possible if popular music was ‘unplugged’. The way we listen to music would change without technology there would be no CD’s or MP3’s. To reach a wide audience, popular music has to be plugged in.

What is popular music?

Over the years the definition of the word ‘popular’ have evolved, from ‘belonging to the people’ , to the 16^th century when the word developed negative connotations such as ‘low, vulgar of the common people’. In the 18^th century it became positive and was known to be ‘widely favoured’. This has become the definition which I feel sums up popular music, as it has a wide appeal, and spans through a variety of genres and audiences. In recent years with the rise in popularity of music talent shows that year after year produce artists who are controlled and manufactured with their main aim being profit rather than artistic and creative values. At the same time there are artists who fall into what Anahid Kassabian calls ‘folk’ which is home-made, unpolished and the opposite of mass produced, consumer music. Both can be described as popular music as they are ‘widely favoured’.