--- Kate Bennett <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > it is so > heartening to me to > know that there seems to be a trend growing that > might lead kids into > pursuing a musical instrument rather than just being > a "pop star"
Well, like, all "trend" research, this is an oversimplification of both where we've been and where we're going. For the last 20 years and esp. over the last six or so, there has been a *huge* trend among "kids" to create their own music and write their own songs with two turntables and a microphone. Whether it's taken the form of hip-hop, house, techno, or many of the other assorted forms of dance music, this assemblage of instruments (along with samplers, keyboards, etc.) has been a vital and exciting center of very real creativity. And these sounds directly influence the package that is teen pop. Acclaimed electro-dance artist BT produced several tracks on the recent N'SYNC album. The Neptunes produced that Britney song I love so much. Some teen-pop-packages are more adventurous than others, but these two artists have exploited their huge commerical appeal to expand the sonic palette for boys and girls in ways that, as these kids become older teens, often inspire them to purchase their own turntables and microphones. The rise of the turntable has meant, for a while, that many would-be teen musicians have gone this route instead of picking up a guitar. The balance of great underground music has thus shifted, at least my ears, away from guitar rock for a while and into hip-hop, R&B, and dance--or rock that includes a lot of elements from those genres. This Sam Goody survey may portend a shift back to a larger guitar presence in the great music to come. I do not think, however, that this shift also means an increase in teenage agency and creativity or in musical authenticity. My CD collection is full of great work by those in the singer-songwriter genre. But Jewel, or Michelle Branch, or Creed, or Staind, are not among them--though they are the artists these Sam Goody kids are buying, and it is their over-played tropes that will pass for "introspection" and "integrity" in these kids' minds. I see no creativity sparking from that. My CD collection is also full of great singer-songwriters who are not called singer-songwriters because they work in the R&B genre: Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Maxwell, D'Angelo, Lauryn Hill, and the holder of the States' current #1 song, Mary J. Blige. None of these has yet played guitar on their records, though a couple are learning to. They all simply sing or rap and dance--with or without headphones--and WRITE. I don't think it was these artists Sam Goody asked about; I don't think it's these artists the youth thought of when answering. But these artists are selling like gangbusters already. The trend is already here, but it wears a black face. Could that be why it is invisible? --Michael NP: Mary J. Blige, _No More Drama_ ===== ____________________________________________________________ "Greetings cards routinely tell us everybody deserves love. No. Everybody deserves clean water. Not everybody deserves love all the time." --Zadie Smith, _White Teeth_ Find the one for you at Yahoo! Personals http://personals.yahoo.com
