Does the audience play an active role in the production of meaing in popular music?

The audience does play a large and important role in the production of meaning in popular music. Music means different things for different people and when listening to music we each come to our own conclusions and make our own meanings from the song. I guess you could say its like politics, a way of making yourself get heard and have a voice and a way to express yourself. For example, in rap music common themes are to do with racism and all the struggles one has been through, for fans of this style of music they will be able to relate to it and make some kind of meaning, but for someone who isn't interested it will not mean anything to them. It is there way of being heard and expressing themselves.
Songs such as world cup or theme tunes are there for novelty and people don't really pay any attention to the actual words, it is for fun and does not mean anything in particular to them.

Review of Hip Hop Magazine.

Everyone wants the latest in hip hop new and rap music news, thats why Hip hop edition is the hottest magazine around. Whether its the latest word on all the Beefs everyone seems to love so much, upcoming releases or random rap music news, this hip hop edition brings it to you. Unlike most magazines, Hip hop edition does not contain any major advertising, except for the odd page advertising alcoholic drinks and hip hip fasion. It is no doubt a male dominated sub-culture as most of the features are directed towards males, with the random advertisement of a naked woman, which will always attract male readers. This magazine is quite devoted to the whole hip hop culture, with pages dedicated to grafitti and the fashion which goes along with it. From the latest releases and reviews, to calender events, this magazine is indeed for a very intended audience.

Can popular music be a genuine force for political change?

There is a long history of popular music and politics, especially in the political expression of music. Through history we have heard songs which contain a very strong political theme throughout, however when we talk about the politics of music we don't necessarily mean music which sets about going against political institutions but a song which talks about some sort of struggle. Censorship has been a big problem is the music industry. Just as theatre, film and art can be censored, so are songs. In western democracies songs have been banned from receiving radio airplay due to their lyrical content by the radio stations or the government. Artists like Eminem have regularly had their music censored due to political reasons, along with Bob Marley's 'Stand up for your rights'. It is quite a complex subject to understand. The politics in music usually works through the clash of words and sound, or when the noise in music is the message.

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

The concept of black and white music is a very complicated area of study within popular music and there is no definite answer. Is there such a thing as black music? is it a particular genre or style which categorizes it as being black? is it because the majority of those who listen to it are black? these are all questions which to think about when discussing such a vast topic as this. Black music was formally known as 'race' music and it constituted a large ethnic minority of the United States. When l think about black music l do think there are several common features such as a call and response, blue notes, rhythm, harmony etc. Hip Hop and R n B is predominantly seen as black music. Artists such as R Kelly and Mary J Bilge popularized this fusion known as hip hop soul. Rap is another example of what some would consider to be black music. The whole concept of the 'gangster rap' became a major part of American music. Although it is seen as a black mans song (them rapping about their struggles and so on) there are nowadays white men who have succeeded tremendously in this particular genre. When talking about white music, what l personally associate white music, is with Country, folk and classical music. Not so much as in the performers but in the composers, where the majority are white. This is a complicated topic in the study of popular music and l do think its useful and it helps us understand the origins of particular styles of music and who we associate this music with, whether they are white or black.

Are youth subcultures genuine signs of revolt or simply the manifestation of style?

Youth subcultures are youth-based subcultures with distinct styles, behaviors and interests. According to subculture theorists, members of a subculture often signal their membership by making distinctive and symbolic tangible choices in, for example, clothing styles, hairstyles and footwear. Gender, ethnicity and social class are important to youth subcultures as they can be defined in terms of modes of expression or lifestyles. When we talk about youth subcultures what we are doing are categorizing and labelling people such as punks, ravers, hippies etc. Cohen argues that there are two main components of the lifestyle of such youth subcultures, which he terms 'plastic' (dress and music) and 'infrastructural' (argot and ritual). What he is saying is that the musical preferences of these groups were intimately connected to the nature of their lives. As l mentioned before class is important, and we can see throughout the years how youth subcultures are defined in class position. In the 1950's the youth subculture known as Teds were labelled as unskilled working class. In the 1960's Rockers and Mods were labelled as middle class to unskilled. In 1967 Rude boys were black underclass and Rastas and punks were once again black underclass with dreadlocks and the punks working class who enjoyed listening to punk rock. To a certain extent yes, l believe that youth subcultures are a genuine sign against rebellion, but at the same time l also believe that it it simply a group of people who share the same interest in music which are brought together and wish to express themselves in terms of what they wear.

Is DRM the best way to save the music industry?

In the music industry the term piracy is certainly nothing new. It can be traced as far back to the 1960s with the invention of the compact cassette, which became the first recordable audio device which posed a threat to the profitability of the music industry. Throughout the years there have been many attempts to try and stop this 'file-sharing' which exists, which some may say are economically damaging the music industry. Digital rights management focuses on strengthening the property aspect of music, and making file-sharing less attractive. This includes teaching youngsters, either in the classroom or in the courtroom, that downloading is stealing.Many online music stores employ DRM to restrict the usage of music purchased and downloaded online. i-tunes and Napster employ DRM in order to control the amount of music downloaded, however this is not the best way to save the music industry. Although DRM does have its advantages and it makes illegal downloading harder, it does not put an end to the problem which is facing the music industry. There are many organisations and individuals who oppose DRM, stating that it has little to do with piracy; as most pirates are not individuals with a computer, but organizations with access to a media duplicating plant and employing skilled staff; DRM's "sole purpose is to maximize revenues by minimizing your rights so that they can sell them back to you. No matter how hard DRM tries to restrict the amount of illegal downloading, it is not going to be able to save the music industry. Although it is an economic problem, it is also a cultural problem. Cd's are too expensive, marketing is deceptive, musicians make enough money already and downloaded music is free promotion for record companies; these are all some of the reasons why downloading illegally takes place. By teaching youngsters in classrooms or in courtrooms that downloading is stealing is not going to make a great difference to the music industry as they would ask themselves, if it is stealing then why is it available to us and so easy to carry out?

Can popular music ever really be unplugged?

This very much depends what people consider to be popular music. It is a matter of personal choice. What l might consider to be popular music might not be for someone else, and vice-versa. When attempting to come up with an answer there is certainly no right or wrong conclusion. However we must also ask ourselves when answering a question like this; whether or not popular music can ever really be unplugged?; what it technology? In general, "technology" is the relationship that society has with its tools and crafts, and to what extent society can control its environment; "The practical application of knowledge especially in a particular area" and "a capability given by the practical application of knowledge".
The accessibility of art and artistic expression in modern society are now widely available to all segments of society due to technological advances. In addition, technology creates a new aspect of art in popular culture, pop music, and pop art. When talking about popular music we need technology to create sound. Amplifiers, microphones etc are an integral part of music. Without these technologies alot of the music we hear today would not be the same. eg. in rock music the electric guitar is needed, without it it wouldn't be rock music, so in this case no popular music cant be unplugged. If an artist is putting on a show in Wembly for example, all these technologies are needed in order to produce the best possible performance. Some people would say that you don't need amplifieres or a microphone for the artist to be heard, but then people who are standing at the very back wont get the same experience as those at the front. I personally think its impossible for popular music to be unplugged, although l do realise that in different cultures and in different places in the world there is music which is considered popular to them which is just acoustic eg. in tribal music they use drums and other instruments usually man made by them and yes, in this case it would be totally unplugged.