Final Blog Post

Our final blog post is located on Christopher Taylor's Blog.

Critical Review, Wald

Wald explains the history and importance of corrido or Mexican ballads. Wald describes the importance of coriddos because of their ability to tell stories about the working class. Corridos acted with a dual purpose of entertaining and speaking to the Mexican people. Corridos also serve the purpose of being able to tell history because it was so similar to literature just put to music. Wald also discusses how corridos died out but eventually came back in to 70's with narcorridos. These narcorridos weren't neccesarily all truthful but still did the purpose of talking about events relevant to the working class. The newer narcarridos were also much better to dance to.

Discussion Question: What do you think has caused corridos to last for as long as they have?

Critical Review, Duany

Duany's describes the roots of salsa music. He starts of describing the historical background of salsa by looking at the origins of Puerto Rican music coming from Spain and West Africa. He then says that Puerto Rican music has many different influences besides those making it a mixture of many different types of music. Duany goes on to describe the signifcance of salsa in New York City and its move there. He then describes salsa through analyzing three specific examples of this genre. He concludes by talking about how the best salsa songs express the struggles experienced by the lower class.

Discussion Question: Why is it that the best songs for most genres seem to express a message of some sort (i.e. salsa and the struggle of the lower class)?

Second Field Notes

For our second set of field notes I decided to continue looking at the most common places people go to for music on the internet. Last set I looked at a video from youtube, this time I took a look at itunes. More specifically I looked at the responses on itunes to the new single by Lil Wayne, Prom Queen. I always find that looking at the itunes users comments, helps me find a wide array of opinions on the same music. For Prom Queen there was no exception, the opinions varied greatly.

Either the comment was completely for the integration of rock or completely against this new type of music. For the most part they were completely against. One comment tilted "People Let it Rock!" said "Foget the weezy...The man is not 17 anymore. Gangsta Rap has turned into commercial pop music. Wayne is trying new things instead of doing the same song over and over. Do it wayne! Let it Rock!". Another comment tilted "OMG!" said " OMG... this is the worst I've heard from him. I used to love this guy. Oh well...all good things come to an end. So sad..." There were over 161 pages of reviews and many of them were very similar to this. The people commenting were either completely disgusted with the new song or highly approving of it. It was interesting to see that there was rarely anybody taking a middle ground on the song.

The other thing I found hard to understand was that Wayne fans prior to this release were denoucing him as an artist and saying they would no longer ever be fans of his music. I'm guessing their dissapointment with his new music overshadowed their favorite music made by him earlier.

The whole debate between Lil Wayne's new album Rebirth fascinated me so I searched the web for more publications around it and landed upon a website that interviewed the co-ceo of Cash Money Records, Baby, about the new album. Through out the interview it seemed like Baby was trying to defend Lil Wayne's new direction of music and how he couldnt understand why it wasn't be well recieved by the public. He also pointed out in the interview how the record was just not rock it was fusion of hip-hop and rock. At the bottom of this article, much like the comments on itunes, there was an endless number of comments on how Lil Wayne had fallen off and how he's terrible now. One person went so far as to say the he took his Carter III CD and threw it out the window after hearing Prom Queen.

Looking at the comments on both itunes and on the article on hiphopdx.com it seems that the general hip-hop community(if such a thing exists) is extremely dissappointed with the direction that Lil Wayne is going with his album Rebirth. I looked at about 8 websites that had message boards pertaining to the new album and 80% of the feedback was very negative. Only very few people approved of what he was doing.

Critical Review, Dudrah

Dudrah's article on British bhangra explains that it is a fuse of traditional bhangra with newer urban black pop music. Dundrah's article also describes how other authors writing on this British bhangra genre stereotype it and make it a lot more simple than it actually is. After explaining other authors' views Dundrah goes on to explain the genre within his own views and it is much more complex than others see it. Dundrah talks about how it is a great way to get together a bunch of different minorties and not just British asians.

Discussion Question: Bhangra seems to be growing in popularity in America little by little with Jay Z's Beware of the Boys and numerous techno mixes containing bhangra. Do you think that bhangra could ever reach a level of popularity in America where it becomes popular on its own, or just something mixed with "American" genres that have similar elements?

Critical Review, Back

Chapter 8 of Back's writing discusses the development of black leisure-spaces in post-war Britain. Back talks about how these clubs and dance-halls became to exist by black ownership because they were not welcome elsewhere. The article also talks about the effect of these leisure-spaces on the social structure for Blacks during the post-war time period. Back then goes on to to talk about the type of music that came about from the development of these gatherings of Blacks.

Discussion Question: Why do you think that music is such an integral and effective tool in bringing large social groups together?

Interview Excerpt

For the interviews Chris Taylor and I decided to interview a self proclaimed rock fan and self proclaimed rap fan in order to get differing views on the new rap/rock combination music. Chris Taylor interviewed the rock fan and I interviewed a rap fan. Here's an excerpt from the my interview with Marques Coleman. He is a Freshman at Brown and considers himself almost an exclusive fan of rap and hip-hop.

Question: Who are your top five favorite rap artists?

My top five rap artists as of now would probably be, in no particular order, Nas, Ludacris, Chamillionaire, Kanye West, and The game.

Question: Are you a fan or do you listen to any rock music of any type? Anything on your itunes?

Yeah I have a little bit of rock on my itunes, basically Linkin Park is the extent of the rock.

Question: How would you describe your clothing style in relation to the music genre that you mostly closely associate yourself with?

Most recently I have been getting away a little from dressing up as a hip-hop follower since I entered college at Brown, but I still think I dress with a little hip-hop, like for instance I wear Air Force Ones and stick to baggy jeans and I also have a Marc Ecko watch. I guess you could describe my clothing style as definitely more urban than anything. It definitely reflects a lot of what some rap artists may wear.

Question: Listening to the two new songs Prom Queen and Hot Revolver by Lil’ Wayne do you like the direction that Lil Wayne is going in?

I do like rap/rock mash ups, but the Lil’ Wayne ones…I wasn’t really feeling at all because it has been so far from what Lil’ Wayne has been. It kind of seemed to me like it was not Lil’ Wayne I wasn’t listening to.

Question: Do songs like these tarnish your image of Lil Wayne?

It doesn’t tarnish his image in my eyes. But since I am a little iffy of what he’s doing I think that next time I hear a Lil’ Wayne song I wont be as obliged to like it right off the bat.

Question: Say if Lil’ Wayne comes out with this all rock/rap combination cd and then after comes out with an all rap album after, will you be a fan again?

Yeah definitely, if Lil’ Wayne returns to what he was doing before he started this type of music I’ll definitely like it.

Question: What about Kanye West, he is obviously gotten away a little from his straight up rap with songs like Heartless and Love Lockdown, what do you think about this?

At first I really didn’t like it all to be honest, but after hearing a lot of them I started to catch on and ended up liking that album. They’re catchy songs.

Question: Based on Prom Queen and Hot Revolver would ever think about purchasing new Lil’ Wayne album?

Not at all.

Question: We listened to a little bit of DJ Danger Mouse’s The Grey Album, what do you think about it?

I don’t have anything against The Grey Album, I liked a few of the songs but its not that appealing to me as a whole.

Question: So you like the original Black Alum by Jay Z better than The Grey Album?

I definitely like the Black Album better.

Question: Like you said the new Lil’ Wayne songs are sort of messing with your opinions of him as an artist ever so slightly, is it the same for the Jay Z songs?

No I think because it was a remix by somebody else and Jay Z wasn’t trying to do it himself it doesn’t change my opinion

Question: Alright say a rap artist has the intention to go over to rock music, no matter how much you like them, would your opinion change of them?

Yeah definitely that move signifies a change in their musical make up to me and definitely would make me rethink my opinion of them.

Question: Alright an all encompassing question, do you think that rap/rock combination music has a place in popular music and is a legitimate genre?

Yeah of course, although it is not all for me I approve of where the genre is going and think it is coming up pretty fast especially with the efforts of Lil’ Wayne and Girl Talk.

A Steady Stream of Smoke, An Ethnography Essay

As I walked to Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel to see the Wailers perform the famous album Exodus, all I could think about how damn cold it was outside. The walk was frigid and long but when I saw the Lupo’s sign I forgot about the temperature and sped up my walk. I walked in through will call, the woman scratched my name off the list and I walked past. Next, I was lazily frisked by a large man for any weapons or paraphernalia of any sorts, once he let me by I took a left towards the bathroom.

I walked in to find two adults conversing with each other about the sale of some sort of drug. The two men were open about their conversation and had no problem with anybody else hearing what they were talking about. After I was done washing my hands I walked out in to the concert hall.

The sounds of Tomorrows Bad Seeds filled the room. They were in the middle of their set list. At the back of the room there were the more older and relaxed fans sipping on alcoholic drinks and sitting in booths taking to each other. The bars were surrounded with a much older crowd waiting on the bartender to serve them drinks. As I moved forward towards the stage, the crowd got younger and denser, and the aroma of weed grew stronger. I stood to the left of the stage and slightly elevated so I could see the majority of the crowd.

The crowd was filled with teenagers and young adults. The crowd in front of the stage swayed and danced to the music. People slowly moved back and forth to the beat of Tomorrows Bad Seeds. The band was energetic and this was reflected in the crowd. When the lead singer yelled “get your hands up and clap,” the crowd obeyed and got into it. The band played its reggae/alt-rock sounds and the mellow crowd nodded along. There were multiple people with dreads and knit hats on, but many different styles were represented. The crowd was also very racially diverse, and every different race was represented. There were preps, reggae fans, hip-hop fans, and various people sporting Jamaican colors.

As Tomorrows Bad Seeds continued to play a fight broke out in the middle of the crowd. Two large security guards ran by me and broke up the fight. As the song ended the lead singer called out to the crowd for no fighting and said that we were here together to enjoy the music. The crowd responded with a loud yell in agreement and applauded the band. The guitarist proceeded to dedicate the next song, which was a faster hard rock song, to the people who fought and got kicked out, in a way of mocking their actions. The energy of the crowd picked up even more as they played their last two songs and more people continued to file in for the Wailers.

Tomorrows Bad Seeds finished their set to a huge applause and made their exit. The wait for the Wailers to come on began. The stage was empty for what seemed like an eternity. Repeated chants of “WAILERS! WAILERS! WAILERS!” erupted over the hiatus of music. Everyone chatted in the crowd happily expecting the Wailers. I ran to the bathroom again and got an idea of how the crowd had changed since I had first came in. The back of the crowd had grown substantially with even more adults sitting in booths and standing waiting to be served at the bars.

While standing at a urnal a black man in his 50’s stared at me while he stood at the urnal adjacent to mine. He was wearing a Jamaican flag shirt and some baggy jeans. He started laughing and said “Whats up.” I responded “nothing, how are you doing.” He smiled and yelled “Great!” I Washed my hands and winded my way through the now massive crowd. Once I returned to my spot from before, the lead guitarist of the Wailers came out and introduced a Jamaican singer.

Then there was a pause and from my position I could see the singer take two huge hits from a joint. He exhaled a huge puff of smoke and made his way to the stage. The crowd greeted the singer/guitar player with huge applause and the blunts lit up. Everywhere I looked people were lighting up and smoking. Repeatedly passing it back and forth as the Jamaican singer performed. Security guards could clearly see people smoking and did nothing about it. The crowd had a steady stream of smoke coming from it now.

The singer started his third song and as he sang the Wailers came on the stage and started playing. The smoking intensified, and the Wailers performance officially started. The next song began and the backup singers and a man wearing a red, yellow, and green zip up sweatshirt came onto the stage. The man sounded exactly like Bob Marley and sang his lyrics. A few people started raising Jamaican flags in the air and waving them. I turned around and a Jamaican man waved a flag in one hand and had a lighter in the other and he swayed back and forth to the song Exodus.

Everyone in the crowd knew the lyrics and sang along. I found myself singing along with them as I remembered every word from the album. I was impressed with how even the youngest of fans knew the words to the songs the Wailers performed. Young teenagers danced along and sang next to adults in their 40’s and 50’s. As I looked over the crowd I saw a large number of young teenage couples dancing together. The middle of the crowd was a mix of younger kids. Many of them wearing Jamaican sweatbands or Jamaican colored shirts. As the Wailers continued to play the front of the concert hall got more and more crowded and repeatedly people tried to politely get by me to the front despite there being a railing in front of me. The majority of them apologized and smiled at me except for one girl who appeared to be way too drunk.

It was the first concert I attended where I didn’t have to struggle to get where I wanted to stand and didn’t have territory disputes with anyone. I left the concert and walked back to campus in the freezing cold.

Word Count: 1076

Field Notes Part One

For our first set of field notes I decided to take a look into the internet based information and culture that surrounds "crossover" music. I started off by looking for fan sites of artists that had produced mash ups of rock and rap. I was unsuccessful in finding any concrete culture relating to the artists mash ups because they had done so much other work that was one genre or another. My search took me through many different sites and I became frustrated. I couldn't just find a Myspace page or something similar that was a bunch of fans talking about their favorite crossover artists.
After a while my mind trailed off and I turned to YouTube to subside my frustration. I decided to listen to a little of DJ Danger Mouse's The Grey Album. I liked his music and it fit in to what I was looking for field notes on. On YouTube I found a music video called "The Grey Video". It was a music video done to DJ Danger Mouse's mix on Jay-Z's song "encore".
The video starts off as if its the 1960's and the Beatles are performing live in front of thousands of screaming girls. It's the stereotypical Beatles live show in a concert hall full of Caucasian girls and a few guys yelling as loud as possible. Everyone is dressed properly and in typical 60's fashion. The Beatles begin to perform and everything seems in order until Jay-Z's voice starts rapping over the Beatles' music. Right as Jay-Z starts his first verse it shows a few of the typical 60's Caucasian girls yelling and screaming for the Beatles. Then the screen flashes to an African American girl dancing to hip-hop with a more modern and scandalous outfit. The video continues for a while flashing between the Beatles performing in the concert hall and Jay-Z performing the song on stage. After a while the beat changes and the stage changes dramatically. The lead guitarists strips away his guitar and blazer and starts dancing as if he were in a hip hop video. The other guitarist and basists disappear in a trap door and two African American women appear in their place and start dancing in a hip-hop fashion. The video concludes with this scene and the one Beatle left on stage break dancing and then making his exit by backflipping off camera. "The Grey Video" illuminated some of the vast differences in culture of the two genres, and yet the video seemed to flow extremely well, just as the song does.
After I was done watching the video, I gravitated toward the comments at the bottom of the page. The comments used a lot of foul words directed at others comments on the video. It seemed that this crossover between a modern day rapper and music legends from the 60's had a erupted a debate for the ages. Most people were in approval of the mashup and admitted to being both Jay-Z and Beatles fans. Some of the fans of the song were either a fan of one or the other. All together, it appeared that the song had brought together fans of both classic rock and modern rap. As for the other people who disliked the song they were pretty consistent with their comments. They repeatedly pointed out that the song was disgracing the Beatles' music by mixing it with rap. The supporters were quick to point out that they were stupid and knew nothing about music. No matter their arguments around the music, it seems like there is an interesting culture surrounding this type of crossover music and I'm looking forward to doing more field notes on the subject.
Here's a link to the video: The Grey Video

Delay on Fieldnotes

Sorry for the delay on our first set of fieldnotes but we are interviewing one of our main sources of information tomorrow, so in order to put together a good post we need to delay a day. Check back in a day to see the post.

Critical Review, Maira

Maira's look into the "Indian American Youth Subculture" is no doubt an ethnographic study. She starts off with an ethnographic moment in a heavily crowded club having its Bhangra Night. Her explanation of the night seems very similar to any other night at a club playing hip-hop. Maira explains that this youth subculture, created by second generation Indians, is heavily influenced by the cultures around it and takes things from american hip-hop, techno, and reggae. Another thing that Maira points out that is very interesting is the differing of cultures from different cities in the United States. While interviewing DJ Tony from Chicago Maira finds that New York Deejays perfer rap remixes to mix with and Chicago Deejays perfer hip-hop to mix with. Throughout Maira's writing it continually seems that there is a dilemma that comes along with invloving American culture aspects into their own Indian youth subculture.

Discussion Question: Do you think that by involving American Culture aspects into their own Indian youth subculture they are disrespecting their heritage?

Ethnography Project Introduction

For our project, Chris Taylor and I will be looking into the effects on culture that "combination" music has. Examples of this music are Run DMC and Aerosmith's "Walk This Way", Jay-Z and Linkin Park's album "Collision Course", and Dj Danger Mouse's "The Grey Album". We will try to examine the blurring of genre lines and look into the reactions of either culture to this type of music. We will focus mostly on the combination of the rap and rock genres in our study.

For our study of "combination" music we will interview people who identify solely with one genre or another. We will ask them questions in order to find out how they think and feel about the music, and what they think about the other genre after hearing a "combination" song. Through the study we will try to ask the question if the combination music starts its own genre or does it just join either one of the genres it came from. We will also try to ask the question is this type of combination music targeted at one of the genres rather than the both of them at the same time.

Critical Review, Hodkinson

Hodkinson's examination of the goth scene in England focuses on the translocal connections of the scene. Hodkinson talks significantly about the "open arms" type of culture the goth groups exhibit. Goths while visiting other areas in England and even out of the country will interact with and commune with the local goth group in that particular area. Hodkinson also talked about how goths seemed interested in meeting people like themselves from other areas. Later on in the chapter Hodkinson talked about how goths were related in many ways even though they were from different areas. Most notably, he talked about how they were brought together through commerce and media specifically the internet. Hodkinson concludes with the point that he wanted to make, that goths are not a bunch of individual local groups but one cohesive group in a bunch of different areas.

Discussion Question:
Hodkinson talks about how goths from different areas are accepting of eachother and quite interested in finding out about one another. Why do you think that goths are so welcoming of other goths from different areas?

Critical Review, Cohen

In her article Cohen starts off by defining and describing the pros and cons of ethnography in an anthropological sense. Shes points out that ethnography is surrounding yourself in the culture and people you are studying and getting an inside look at a group of people. But she is quick to address that it is possible to miss certain things about the culture being studied because the one writing is not a full part of the culture and may miss certain understandings that natives know by second nature. She moves on to applications of ethnography in the music world and some of her own studies. For instance, Cohen studied two rock bands out of Liverpool in attempt to grasp their way of life. Through her study she was able to focus in on the hardships of a band working together to make one finished project. I found it interesting that she pointed out the bands struggled between the musical side and the "commerce" side when making their music and not just the vision of what they thought would be great music. Cohen's article concludes describing the spread of ethnomusicology through increased documentation on the internet and also her hope that in the future the cultures surrounding music will be well documented and studied.

Discussion Question:
Is a study done by ehtnography legit, or is it a false representation of a culture because those being studied may react differently with a stranger around?

Critical #2

Thornton's examination of the underground rave scene in London is a striking look into a completely unique culture of clubbers. The peek into the truly different group of people shows the complex lifestyle that these people live. Thornton explains how this "underground" culture protects its identity by doing everything they can to keep the media out, so much to the point that even with an invitation to a rave at a church, Thornton has difficulty finding the location due to an extremely vague address given to him. Thornton's piece also attempts to dive into the relationship between the mainstream and the underground. It seems as though Thornton see's the mainstream as the enemy of the subcultures which are considered the underground, and these subcultures make an enemy of the general population to try to differentiate themselves as much as possible.


Discussion Question: With the term mainstream being thrown around so often in conversation about music cultures, is the "mainstream" its own culture or just a melting pot of the most popular media from all of the so called subcultures?