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Emily Smith |
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| Public knowledge concedes that aspects of the Vietnam War and Iraq War can be interpreted as homologous and each war has attracted similar indignant attitudes by the masses in society. I believe it is a great concern that these opposing attitudes to the Iraq War are comparably seldom distributed to the masses in the form of political music, and my findings reveal this worry is not wasted energy. Although consensus reveals the attitudes which shape each generation are ideologically different, and naturally this is reflected in the popular music, it does not account for such an extreme downfall of Generation Y musicians protesting against the Iraq War compared to Baby Boomers protesting against the Vietnam War. The cross cultural perspectives of those interviewed and the results of a questionnaire of one hundred and two people have supported the conclusion the change is not a result of a disinterest in political music among Generation Y. The technologically driven Generation Y has evidently contributed to the dearth of political music, as mass media has caused popular music to lose its collectivising qualities. However, published anthologies indicated that this is only a minor ingredient in this significant social issue. Statistical trends, on the American Billboard Hot 100, exemplify that the consolidation and concentration of record companies and commercial radio is parallel to the demise in political music identified in the decreasing number of political songs of the Iraq War compared to the Vietnam War. This proves ‘the perils of consolidation can be seen clearly in the music world’1 and is likely to be at the root of the disparity in the production and consumption of protest music between Generation Y and Baby Boomers. Varying commercial interests and the return of payola indicate that these music institutions in the Generation Y era value the generation of mass profit without rocking the boat, whereas in the Baby Boomer era these institutions valued artistic integrity to an extent. Resultantly, Generation Y are subject to nearly uniform corporate ideologies, and the seemingly conservative nature of the companies in power is evidence that they are greatly responsible for driving antiestablishment themes underground, contributing to the impression that Generation Y popular music is devoid of political ideas. Ian Peddie, author of The resiting the Muse: Popular Music and Social Protest, supports the idea that the dearth of protest songs can be attributed to mainstream media and corporations: ‘Protest songs against the Bush administration are abound in the underground... all this underground activity is below the radar of the vast majority of rock fans, let alone the general public’.2 So, next time you wonder why the Vietnam War ‘inspired some of the greatest protest songs ever written’ while the Iraq War has not provoked this music, browse through HMV or tune into your commercial radio station and think: who determines the tunes that you listen to and what are the motives behind producing this popular culture which is continually influencing your sense of self? ENDNOTES: 1. The Trouble with Corporate Radio:
The Day Protest Music Died – by Brent Staples: | ||
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