While the world may know Amnesty International for their work on human rights activism, they also produced many interesting forays into the world of music. From global tours to compilation albums, the organization’s impact has been felt in both the worlds of activism and music.
Read MoreBetween 2002 and 2012, the Sahara Desert was host to one of the most unique music festival experiences. The Festival in the Desert combined Tuareg cultural traditions and the sound of desert blues genre in the vast sand dunes of the area, before regional instability and violence forced the music to go silent.
Read MoreSince the onset of the modern state, governments have sowed their ideological seeds into their citizenry with propaganda, often using music as a means to do so. But posters of pointing men line the streets no longer, and traveling jazz bands have faded into antiquity, leaving the question: Has musical propaganda stopped? Or has it just gotten sneakier?
Read MoreIn a rapidly growing digital world, live music events incorporate technology to improve access and presence for concerts, with digital tools serving as an enhancer rather than a replacement for live performances.
Read MorePortugal was one of the last countries in Western Europe to transition away from dictatorship. The country's unique history is directly tied to music, with Jose Afonso’s “Grandola, Vila Morena” playing an ubiquitous role in the nation's transition to democracy.
Read MoreRather than relics of history, China’s red songs, or songs with patriotic and political undertones, have continued to evolve and integrate themselves into Chinese society via classrooms, public spaces, and media platforms.
Read MoreThe London composer’s ambient soundscapes are politically inflected in her 2023 release, Polygons, an electroacoustic album exploring how music can echo environmental catastrophes in her homeland, Kazakhstan.
Read MoreAs they were dragged from the Scottish Highlands onto the global rock stage, the bagpipes found themselves caught in a frenzy of musical history. Rather than kilts and rolling grassland, the instrument would come to be surrounded by drum sets and guitars in the ‘70s and ‘80s, exemplifying the epochal desire to do the not-yet-done.
Read MoreStevie Ray Vaughan’s climb to the top of the blues genre was one deeply interwoven with the turbulent racial climate of the 1970s. As the titan scaled the charts alongside his Black analogs, critics wondered whether SRV’s disconnect with Blues’ historical origins made him worthy of his glory. As Charlie Parker argued, “if you don’t live it, it won’t come out of your horn.”
Read MoreThe proverbial badass is her wisest on Let England Shake, and her narration of the atrocities of English war is more pertinent for Americans than ever.
Read MoreXiu Xiu’s music abides by no genre. The avant-rock group’s core comes in iconoclasm, desperately and aggressively challenging the status quo. During Donald Trump’s first presidential term, the former duo hardly refrained from criticizing the populist and alt-right politics of the day. Their 2019 release, Girl With Basket of Fruit, teems with queer and anti-racist anger.
Read MoreSince its inception, punk has been the musical poster child for inaccessibility, gatekeeping, and pretentious finger-pointing. This phenomenon has posed a long-term problem for the political motivations within the genre and the music itself.
Read MoreMAGCON, otherwise known for its live thirst-trapping, was responsible for a number of extremely popular male internet personalities. As their audiences grew, many of the MAGCON boys turned to singing. However, as of 2024, only one is widely established within the music industry. Why did Shawn Mendes’ career take off where others’ failed?
Read MoreUMG’s removal of their songs on TikTok shows a shift in the relationship between social media sites and major labels.
Read MoreDuring its peak, the SoundCloud rap era was a force in Hip-hop, with gritty lo-fi production, multi-genre lyricism, and DIY bedroom productions. However, rappers often reinforced misogyny in their lyrics and downplayed the severity of accusations of sexual violence.
Read MoreSXSW 2024 was bustling with music and tech panels, and AI dominated nearly every conversation. At the precipice of immense industry innovation, music business professionals presented mixed arguments for how AI can help and hurt independent artistry.
Read More“Maestro” stuns with dazzling cinematography, but its rich, colorful shots may represent all the film has to offer. Bradley Cooper’s picture had the power to demystify classical music and introduce its deep history to a new generation, but instead it leaves viewers with a burning question: So what?
Read MoreThe music industry faces ongoing challenges from COVID-19. Here’s how innovations like virtual concerts and a resurgence of physical music formats are reshaping the industry while sparking conversations about safety and accessibility.
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