Annotated
Bibliography
Berry, Venise, and Tricia Rose. “Black noise: Rap music and black culture in contemporary america.” American Music, vol. 14, no. 2, 1996, p. 231, https://doi.org/10.2307/3052359.
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Tricia Rose's Black Noise is a significant work that explores the origins, evolution, and cultural relevance of rap music and hip-hop culture. The book investigates how rap music developed from the socioeconomic constraints of African American neighborhoods in the late twentieth century to become a major cultural force in the 1990s. Rose investigates the lyrical content, musical structure, and sociopolitical messages buried in rap music, emphasizing its function as a means of resistance and empowerment for those in need.
Black Noise is crucial for comprehending the historical and cultural background of hip-hop music. As one of the first broad academic studies on the subject, Rose's study provides insight into the complexity of rap music and its impact on American culture. The book has received numerous citations in scholarly research on music, culture, and racial relations, making it an essential text for everyone studying the evolution of hip-hop. The book provides a detailed explanation of how hip-hop's dynamic and rhythmic music rose to prominence in the 1990s, which is critical for understanding the trends seen in our data visualizations. Rose's description of the cultural and emotional expression inherent in rap music, in particular, contributes to an increase in average energy levels in popular music throughout this time period.
Furthermore, Rose's focus on the commercial components of hip-hop, including the barriers and opportunities that artists face, provides useful context for evaluating the economic and cultural forces that fueled the genre's development. Black Noise strengthens our analysis of the data by placing hip-hop into the larger context of American cultural history, emphasizing the interdependence of music, culture, and social transformation in the 1990s.
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Carroll, David. “Songs to Save Your Life: The Queer Messaging of 1980s Pop Music.” DORAS, 1 Feb. 2023, https://doras.dcu.ie/27918/.
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The author uses the queer theory to analyze the influence of the queer on pop music over the decade. The author argues that the ten years of the 1980s are viewed as a dark ear for the queer community since the political systems' limitation and also the appearance of HIV led to the significant marginalization of sexual minority people. The authors use five parts in his paper to discuss the situation during the 1980s and also the queer's effect on pop music. The contents of these parts include the discussion of the transnational contexts, the principles of queer theory, the Hi-Nrg, which is a genre with intrinsically queer form, and the 'gender bender' in popular culture. The article is a great reference for us based on our data analysis and visualization results to explore and analyze the effect of queer on the music trend during the 1980s using the queer theory. Furthermore, the author gave a detailed description of the background of the music at that time, which can also help us understand the historical changes in music before and during the 1980s.
Coddington, Amy. “A ‘fresh new music mix’ for the 1980s: Broadcasting multiculturalism on crossover radio.” Journal of the Society for American Music, vol. 15, no. 1, Feb. 2021, pp. 30–59, https://doi.org/10.1017/s1752196320000462
The articles discuss the development of a new radio format in the 1980s that challenged the existing radio industry, which shows a segregated structure. The new radio format, Crossover, is welcomed by the young multicultural audience, including black, white, and Latinx listeners. The new radio format always plays fast-paced dance, R&B, and pop music to attract audiences. The new radio format and its programming bring multiculturalism into the mainstream of popular music in the United States and affect the programming of other top radio stations. By the end of the 1980s, some of the top 40 radio stations even considered playing the Crossover playlists in their programming or trying to make similar music playlists. as Crossover to play. The racial politics in the field of radio are discussed, and the author uses critical thought to view the new radio format in the 1980s in the article. One important thing that Crossover has for the whole radio industry is that it recognizes the presence and distinctive tastes of Latinx listeners and brings the culture to the view of the whole radio industry. However, the author also points out the shortage of crossovers. The Crossover station office did not show the same diversity as its playlist, and the Crossover station also did not fully represent the minority listeners.
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Echols, Alice. Hot Stuff: Disco and the Remaking of American Culture. W. W. Norton & Company, 2010. https://wwnorton.com/books/9780393338911.
This comprehensive book is a thought-provoking examination of how disco transformed American popular culture and influenced subsequent musical genres and social movements. The author examines the disco era of the 1970s with a nuanced and scholarly perspective, challenging the common perceptions and often negative stereotypes surrounding disco music. Moreover, the book dives deeper into the cultural and social landscape that allowed disco to be popular, exploring its intersections with various social movements, including those related to race, gender, and sexuality. The book discusses the roots of disco in African American, Latin, and gay communities, and assumes disco as a vehicle for the expression of marginalized communities and its role in the sexual revolution, feminism, and gay liberation.
This resource is significant for my thesis work as it explores how disco radically changed the music industry and the way people experienced music. Additionally, the book explores the backlash against disco symbolized by events like the Disco Demolition Night and how this shaped the genre’s history and perception. The author also discusses the musical and social legacy of disco, extending into genres such as dance music and hip hop. Moreover, this resource provides an in-depth perspective on how disco, far from just being a fad, played a crucial role in reshaping the U.S. cultural and social landscape. Therefore, this resource is significant because it provides insights into patterns in music trends over the years.
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Gengaro, Christine Lee. “Requiems for a city: Popular Music’s response to 9/11.” Popular Music and Society, vol. 32, no. 1, 21 Feb. 2009, pp. 25–36, https://doi.org/10.1080/03007760802191508.
This article examines how Bruce Springsteen's album "The Rising" and the Beastie Boys' album "To the Five Boroughs" serve as musical responses to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Gengaro delves into how these albums facilitated public mourning and collective healing, providing space for emotional expression and community solidarity. This paper argues that popular music has played a crucial role in reflecting and shaping the post-9/11 national psyche.
From a Marxist perspective, Gengaro's discussion of Springsteen's The Rising highlights the representation of working-class heroes, such as firefighters and rescue workers, who are often portrayed as the backbone of American society.Gengaro notes that the World Trade Center, the target of the attack, symbolized capitalist power and economic dominance, and as such, the its destruction became a focal point for critiquing the structure of capitalism. Music becomes a medium for listeners to engage with these underlying socioeconomic tensions, reflecting on the broader implications of the attacks on American capitalism.
Gengaro’s structuralist analysis uncovers the deeper layers of meaning within the lyrics and compositions of the albums. She demonstrates how Springsteen and the Beastie Boys use narrative and metaphor to construct a shared sense of identity and purpose. For instance, Springsteen's repeated motifs of "rising" serve as both a literal and figurative symbol of resilience and hope, contrasting the collapse of the Twin Towers with a call for spiritual and communal ascension.
Authored by Christine Lee Gengaro, this article was published in the journal Popular Music and Society in 2009. She offers a nuanced understanding of the multifaceted responses to the tragedy, discussing how music reflects social attitudes. At the same time, she contributes to wider cultural studies by demonstrating the interplay between art, society and politics.
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Green, Tristin K., 'Feminism and #MeTooThe Power of the Collective', in Deborah Brake, Martha Chamallas, and Verna L. Williams (eds), The Oxford Handbook of Feminism and Law in the United States (2023; online edn, Oxford Academic, 9 June 2021), https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780197519998.013.16.
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This article looks at the #MeToo movement's collective power and how it has helped advance gender equality problems. It presents a thorough examination of how the movement has raised individual voices via solidarity and collaborative action. The article examines the origins, growth, and global impact of #MeToo, highlighting the transformational power of collective feminist activism in tackling structural gender inequality.
The material is critical for understanding the significance of collective action in modern feminist movements, particularly in light of the #MeToo movement. The article's emphasis on solidarity and collaborative action in elevating disadvantaged voices is critical for understanding the movement's overall impact on society views toward gender equality. Its thorough analysis makes it an invaluable resource for researching the effects of current feminist movements on social justice.
This article is especially important to our project, which also focuses on the rise of female and non-binary artists in the music industry. It adds an important background to understanding the higher representation of these artists in our dataset. The article emphasizes how the #The MeToo movement has encouraged people to question gender norms and demand fair chances, which is closely related to the patterns shown in our visualizations. The emphasis on collective strength and solidarity contributes to the cultural developments that have resulted in increasing visibility and recognition for female and non-binary musicians.
Our study involved analyzing music dataset, with a focus on long-term trends, gender representation, and genre-specific disparities. The display of average popularity by gender representation reveals discrepancies across male, female, and non-binary artists. This article states that movements such as #MeToo have played an important part in eliminating these disparities by pushing for gender equality and highlighting the voices of excluded artists.
"Harmony and Disruption: How 1960s Music Shaped the Societal Landscape." Brilliantio, https://brilliantio.com/harmony-and-disruption-how-1960s-music-shaped-the-societal-landscape. Accessed 19 June 2024.
The counterculture movement of the 1960s is discussed by Brilliantio in his article. The music scene was core to the rising countercultural movement, as rightly underscored. It shows how the festivals, above all Woodstock, were an epitome of the ideals the decade upheld, such as peace, love, and unity. Through psychedelic rock, it explains how individualism was encouraged and conventional norms of society questioned so that a state of freedom and rebellion was reached.
This source is most valuable in the sense that it quickly problematizes music's dual role in creating social cohesion and challenging traditional social standards of society. Showing how the countercultural movement was influenced by, and itself influenced, social changes of that period of time, this article examines the role of music in this process. The portrayals of events like Woodstock as sites of social protest and unification emphasize the power of music in bringing people together around an idea and moving them toward collective action.
This research will be of great use in my thesis with respect to the evolution of music and its cultural repercussions. It vividly describes how music festivals were great mediums for social rebellion and solidarity during the 1960s. Due to this historical backdrop, I shall draw on how many of these contemporary music manifestations or movements still exert an influence on social change. Interestingly, parallels can be drawn between the countercultural movements of the past and now; this sheds even more insight into the continued association that has been between music and social change. This article provides enrichment to my thesis by underscoring how music is dependable upon affecting social bonding and challenging norms in society.
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Lawrence, Tim. "Disco and the Queering of the Dance Floor." Cultural Studies, vol. 25, no. 2, 2011,
This article explores how disco music and dance culture in the 1970s became a pivotal space for queer expression and identity. The author tracks the origins of disco from the underground scene in New York City to its emergence as a global phenomenon. Moreover, this article examines how racial and sexual minorities found a voice in this genre. Additionally, the author discusses how disco culture paved the way for the future generations, underscoring the significance of cultural memory and heritage in shaping modern LGBTQ+ experiences. The article also addresses the backlash against disco, including the racist undercurrents of the "Disco Demolition Night" in 1979. Despite this, the author posits that disco's enduring legacy continues in contemporary electronic dance music and LGBTQ+ nightlife. The author examines how disco reflected broader cultural shifts. The author connects the dots between various social movements and music, framing disco not just as genre but a cultural movement driven by intersectionality.
This resource is significant for my thesis work as it provides a profound understanding of how music can serve as a powerful social force. Moreover, this resource's interdisciplinary blends cultural studies, history, and sociology, providing a comprehensive perspective. Thus, this resource offers insights into patterns of association in music trends over the years.
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Mayfield, Taj. “10 Songs That Captured America’s Feelings after 9/11.” GRAMMY.COM, 10 Sept. 2021, https://www.grammy.com/news/9-11-tribute-10-songs-that-captured-americas-feelings-bruce-springsteen-jay-z-imagine-dragons.
In this article, Taj Mayfield discusses the impact of the September 11th attacks on American music and highlights ten songs that encapsulate the range of emotions in the United States in the aftermath of the September 11th attacks. The article illustrates how artists from different genres have used music to express grief, anger, patriotism, and a call for peace. Mayfield also addresses the media censorship implemented by Clear Channel Communications, which urged its radio stations not to play certain songs after 9/11. The article selects a variety of perspectives, from Coldplay's reflective song "Politik" to Jay-Z's patriotic song "Empire State of Mind" and Heems' critique of post-9/11 nationalism in "Flag Shopping."
Mayfield's essay provides a multifaceted look at how the music industry responded to 9/11 and is an invaluable source for understanding American culture during this period. Each song discussed in the article is accompanied by a brief analysis of the lyrics and context, providing insight into the artist's intentions and public reception.
This article also indirectly touches on themes related to Critical Race Theory (CRT) through the inclusion of Sims' Flag Shopping, which highlights the racial backlash faced by South Asians and Middle Eastern Americans in the aftermath of 9/11. Critical Race Theory examines the ways in which race and racism intersect with other forms of social stratification. Sims' experiences reflect the heightened racial profiling and discrimination that many communities of color have suffered in the wake of 9/11. This inclusion highlights the role of music as a platform for marginalized voices to address and challenge systemic racism and xenophobia, thereby contributing to broader discussions about race and social justice in the United States.
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Strähle, Jochen, and Noemi Jahne-Warrior. “Case study: Grunge music and grunge style.” Fashion & Music, 11 Aug. 2017, pp. 51–69, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-5637-6_4.
This case study investigates the unique characteristics of grunge music and its associated fashion. It digs at how grunge, with its raw, unpolished sound and anti-establishment mindset, grew into a major cultural trend in the 1990s. The book provides a thorough review of grunge music's growth and cultural relevance by delving into its stylistic aspects and fashion trends.
The case study's emphasis on both the musical and fashion sides of grunge provides a comprehensive picture of the movement, making it an invaluable resource for evaluating the relationship between music and culture. Its thorough examination of significant artists and their effect emphasizes the significance of grunge in the evolution of current rock music.
This case study is especially important to our project, which looks at the growth of different music genres and their impact on cultural trends. The examination of grunge music's raw sound and high energy levels contributes to the observed trends in our data visualizations, which show that the advent of grunge in the 1990s corresponded with an increase in the general energy of popular music. The study's in-depth examination of grunge's cultural influence gives context for understanding how the genre's anti-establishment attitude and distinct dress connected with a disenfranchised youth audience, contributing to its worldwide appeal. Overall, this case study contributes to our project by offering a more in-depth explanation of grunge music's role in the evolution of alternative rock and its long-term cultural impact.
“The Civil Rights Movement: The Post War United States, 1945-1968: U.S. History Primary Source Timeline: Classroom Materials at the Library of Congress: Library of Congress.” The Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/classroom-materials/united-states-history-primary-source-timeline/post-war-united-states-1945-1968/civil-rights-movement/#, accessed 20 June 2024.
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This website talks about how a nationwide movement emerged in the mid-20th century in the United States to advocate for African American equal rights and to end racial segregation and exclusion. This movement employed various strategies such as boycotts and protest marches. Despite facing significant opposition, including bombings, beatings, arrests, and assassinations, the civil rights movement succeeded in enacting substantial legal and societal changes by the late 1960s. These changes provided long-lasting legal protections for African American rights and freedoms, significantly influencing American society. It provides a description for some of the key moments, including the Little Rock school integration crisis, Birmingham campaign, and The March on Washington.
This website is useful because our group can use this information to better understand what happened in that era and analyze the related music trends for our topic. The timeline of the 1950s is very clear and detailed. I learned a lot more about the civil rights movement and will connect this historical event to the music trend. The website is different from other sources in the bibliography because this is the only one that focuses on the civil rights movement specifically. The information on this website is also very reliable because this is an official website from the government and the information is from the library of congress.
"The Evolution of Music: The Music Revolution of the 1960s." Reader's Digest, https://www.readersdigest.co.uk/culture/music/the-evolution-of-music-the-music-revolution-of-the-1960s., accessed 19 June 2024.
The Reader's Digest article is an exposition of the development that occurred within the music scene at that time—talking about how genres like folk, R&B, and funk are interwoven with the shifting political and social scene. Artiste contributions, especially Bob Dylan, whose protest songs became anthems during the civil rights movement, or James Brown, who pioneered funk, have also been focused on here. It further goes on to underline the acumen of the Beatles, and how the influence of Motown lent shape to soul.
This article thus becomes very important in the way that through music, it has shown an example of the way through which it not only reflected but also took the initiative to change the direction of society throughout the 1960s. In this way, Dylan sang songs that captured the civil rights movement; James Brown's funk created new dynamism; and The Beatles literally transformed the music business through their innovative outlook on popular culture. Also worth noting is the fact that Motown brought soul music right to the forefront of popular culture.
These historical interlinks are important to understand with respect to my thesis about the evolution of music and its cultural repercussions. Precisely, it gives a clear example of what the role of music is in respect to changing times within society, with an overall schema to analyze recent developments. Exactly, this historical background will help set my attempt to explain how modern genres have evolved and their effects on society by drawing parallels between the then and now of cultural dynamics.
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Timberg, Scott. “How Music Has Responded to a Decade of Economic Inequality.” Vox, 30 July 2018, https://www.vox.com/culture/2018/7/30/17561470/music-of-inequality.
In this article, Scott Timberg examines how popular music has reflected and responded to economic inequality in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. Timberg argues that while music has historically tended to provide social criticism during times of economic hardship, mainstream music in the post-2008 era has largely failed to address the economic struggles faced by many Americans. Instead, popular music of the period tended to focus on themes of escapism and celebration that were disconnected from the realities of widespread unemployment and financial instability.
Timberg emphasized that despite the initial delay in the cultural response to the economic crisis, some music eventually emerged that addressed these issues, albeit largely from the fringes of the mainstream genre. He mentions the work of artists such as Margo Price, whose work criticizes the structure of the economy, and the Drive-By Truckers, whose songs reflect on poverty and inequality in the United States. This article emphasizes the contrast between mainstream music's tendency to shy away from controversial topics and alternative and fringe genres that more sharply critique society. He also points out that during the same period, hip-hop's focus on wealth and materialism has increased, echoing the rise in economic inequality.
Timberg's analysis is particularly relevant in discussions of Critical Race Theory (CRT) because it emphasizes the intersection of race, class, and economic power. For example, conspicuous consumption in mainstream hip-hop can be viewed through the lens of CRT as a response to systemic economic deprivation and the pursuit of the American Dream in the midst of growing inequality. This perspective exemplifies how race and economic status continue to shape cultural expression and social criticism in contemporary America.
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