Over the years music has had an
effect on people which eventually makes them crave for more. The definition of
music differs for each in this population of billions across the earth, but the
purpose of music, for centuries and even now is to create an art.
Through the years, music has taken various forms to entertain its
listeners. With each having his/her own predilections, music is bound to be
touched by the creative brain of humans.
Wander around the world and you'll get
to know how people have categorized music- while some may prefer Hip-Hop,
others would say that they are more into Gospel, and some would be inclined to
Electro-Pop or EDM.
Different people, different preferences!
The questions thus
arise, how did these forms come into being?
Who started the trend? How can one
identify with a particular style, so on and so forth.
To know more about the
background of music, it is important to learn about some of its popular genres
which created or are continuing to create a wave of wide appeal amongst the
laypeople.
Music today comprises of multiple types like: Hip-Hop, Jazz, Rock,
Folk, R&B, Electronic Dance, Pop, Reggae and lately, Rap.
Jazz
Jazz was one
of the very first genres to find a huge and vast fan base of millions around
the world. It originated in African-American regions of New Orleans, United
States, around the late 19th - 20th centuries.
The foundation of Jazz is deeply
rooted within the West- African communities and the black history of the US.
Media and scholars of that time hardly gave any attention to this form of music
and focused on white jazz musicians instead.
However, technology played a
great role in popularizing Jazz. Through sources like radio shows etc., the
racial barriers were broken and the genre was given the appreciation it
deserved. John Coltrane (1926-1967) was the pioneer of this genre.
He played
instruments like Soprano and Alto Saxophone, and added a touch of spirituality
with his soothing Blues. Holder of prestigious awards like the Pulitzer Prize
in 2007, his famous albums includes Coltrane's sound (1964), and Coltrane plays
the Blues (1962), and my Favourite Things (1960).
Soprano Saxophone Alto
Saxophone Mary Lou Williams (1910-1981), who was also an African-American, was
a successor of Coltrane.
Being a musician of extreme talent and creativity, she
helped in developing the genre by covering nearly all the subgenres of Jazz,
like- Classical, Hard Bop, Gospel, Swing, Free Jazz, etc.
She started her
career at the young age of 12, and by 19, had joined Andy Kirk's band in
Oklahoma, providing the audience with some of her greatest hits like 'Walkin
and Singin', 'TwinKlin', 'Cloudy' etc.
Her career flourished throughout the
1970s, getting her numerous awards which include Grammy in 1971. One more
influential personality in Jazz was Louis Daniel Armstrong (1901-1971).
He rose
to prominence in 1920s and continued till 1960s. He was one of the first
musicians to 'crass-over' in America, which was racially divided. Armstrong had
19 'top 10' records, including Stardust, What a wonderful world, Dream a little
dream of me, You rascal you, etc.
In 1964, Armstrong beat The Beatles for the
top position of in Billboard Hot 100 chart with his single Hello Dolly!, giving
him the US record of being the oldest artist to have a number one song at the
age of 63‘.
Hip-Hop
Although Hip-Hop is closely associated with R&B and
Rap, there is a big difference between them. Hip-Hop takes its roots from
Jamaican Reggae and Dance hall music, which was popular in the late 1960s. This
music has stylistic elements of rapping, break dancing and dj-ing or beat
boxing.
Hip Hop as a musical genre gained recognition during the 90s. Sugar
Hill Gang's 1979 song Rapper's Delight, is regarded to be the first Hip-Hop
record to gain widespread popularity in the mainstream market.
It was after
1980s that Hip-Hop developed more complex styles, spreading beyond the
boundaries of the US. The period between the mid-1980s and early 1990s was
known as Golden Age Hip-Hop.
Noted artists in this age were Juice Crew, Beastie
Boys, Kool G Rap, Slick Brick, etc. Gangsta rap was a sub-genre of Hip Hop
which focused on violent lifestyles and faint conditions of African-American
youth during the mid-20s.
Tupac Amaru Shakur (1971- 1996) had one of the most
legendary careers in the Hip Hop music, selling more than 75 million records
worldwide, making him one of the bestselling music artist of all time.
In
2005, Rolling Stones magazine named him at No.86 of the '100 immortal artist
of all time‘ behind Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, and John Lennon. Hip-Hop
has become a culture for the youth today, becoming a medium for voicing
messages which need to reach out to a large audience.
Despite avid criticism,
Hip-Hop being subjected to avid criticism, Hip Hop has emerged to be the most
widely admired genre of music by youth all over.
Rhythm & Blues (R&B)
R&B, also known as Rhythm and Blues, is another celebrated music genre
which includes elements of Hip-Hop, Pop, and Funk etc. This form originated in
late 1940s as a part of African-American music culture.
Jump blues was the
actual name of this genre which later changed to R&B, an umbrella term.
This music genre is often associated with hip/hop, but the former includes
singing and soul, which is mostly missing in Hip-Hop since it has hard beats.
R&B contributed to the development of another form of music, Rock
&Roll, and in many of its subgenres, like- Contemporary R&B, Smooth
Jazz and Neo Soul. Earlier known as Race Record, Billboard magazine named it as rhythm and blues in 1949.
Music journalist Jerry Wexler found that the record
companies issuing black popular music considered the term 'race music' to be
demeaning and was deemed to be offensive in the post war world.
R&B was
strongly influenced by Jazz and Black Gospel music. The mainstream sound of
R&B relied more upon rhythm than hardcore feel, unlike Hip-Hop. At the end
of 20th Century, R&B brought its attention to the solo artists rather than
groups.
Mariah Carey (1969) became one of
the most prominent artists of R&B. The songstress proved her potential with
songs like Vision of love (1990) from her self-titled debut album, which began
a chain of successful albums for her.
She has also been an avid lyricist who
included themes like racism, spirituality, love and elevation. She has been
recipient of several honors including a Grammy in 1991 for Best New Artist, World Music Awards, Bestselling Female Artist of the Millennium, etc.
Marvin
Gaye (1939-1984) was another R&B singer who got wide fame due to his
soulful singing. His string of hit songs included ain't that peculiar, How
sweet it is, and I Heard it through the Grapevine, etc.
He was majorly known
for producing his own albums and addressing certain crucial themes. His vocal
range varies in a single song due to his powerful chords. He had the ability to
take up any genre and make it his own, which made him the most versatile singer
of his time.
He has been posthumously bestowed with awards like Grammy Lifetime
Achievement Award, Rock and roll‘s Hall of Fame etc.
Pop
The current favorite
genre of music today is undoubtedly Pop music. Originating from both the US as
well as UK in mid-1950s, Pop music is often characterized by music which is
'catchy' or 'loved by the mainstream audience'.
It has several subgenres like
Art Pop, Bubblegum Pop, Dance Pop, Teen Pop, etc. Pop music mostly focuses on
appealing to its audience.
The availability of Internet has revolutionized the
pop music culture allowing pop music lovers to discover pop songs from
Non-Western countries, such as Japan and South Korea which have a Pop music
industry devoted to western style pop.
With groups like BTS, EXO, BIGBANG,
TWICE, BLACKPINK which have recently started garnering attention from all over
the world.
One reason behind this
genre‘s tremendous popularity is its combination of rhythms which are dance-oriented and melodic. Today, one may find many Pop solo artists or
groups, but there are some who have set a benchmark with their music.
One of
such group was The Beatles- a British boy-band formed in Liverpool in 1960,
consisting of 4 members- John Lennon, George Harrison, Ringo Starr and Paul
McCartney.
They were the most widely known and influential band of that era.
Apart from embracing pop, they also encompassed 1950s rock& roll and
expanded their style to a broad variety of pop music.
Some of their hit albums
include Rubber Soul (1965), Revolver (1966), St. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club
Band (1967), Abbey Road (1969), etc. They have received seven Grammy awards and
were included into Rock & Roll’s Hall of Fame in 1988.
They are the Bestselling Band in History, selling more than 800 million copies as of 2013.
Some of the top pop artists are Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, Madonna, Pink
Floyd, Whitney Houston, Lionel Richie, Celine Dion, Bruno Mars, Rihanna, Taylor
Swift, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, Britney Spears, Demi Lovato, etc.
Pop music is a
field where there's a lot of young and attractive talent. These people have to
showcase the best of their capabilities in order to appeal to the mainstream
audience.
Artists strive for excellence in this heavy competition, thus,
producing phenomenal work. With the forever increasing popularity of different
genres, music has always remained the biggest domain of entertainment.
Being
the most impressive expression of cultures around the world, music also instils
a bigger frame of traditionalism.
Written By - Chavi Goel
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