I make a distinction between Rhythm & Blues, as we discussed it earlier this semester, and R&B (or “Contemporary Rhythm & Blues”). R&B, in my opinion, is basically Rhythm & Blues Pop Music. It therefore contains much of the common characteristics of Commercial Music, focussing primarily on revenue. This new style of R&B became popular in the 1980s, and inherited the synthetic dance rhythm from Disco music, and sometimes even use Hip-Hop style beats.
An interesting characteristic in R&B is the use of “melisma” or “melismatic singing.” Usually when people sing, one syllable is sung on one musical note. In melismatic singing, one syllable is sung over several musical notes. The success of melisma singing in R&B may also be a contributor to the popularity of the “Auto-Tune”-phenomena over the past decade and a half. Some popular melisma singers include Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey.
Following is a short selection of representative R&B songs:
We already listened to one of the first Rap / Hip-Hop songs, when we discussed Disco music. Do you remember the Sugarhill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight”; rhyming rapped over looped vamp sampled from Chic’s “Good Times”?
But what is Hip-Hop? It is important to note that “Hip-Hop” firstly refers to a subculture; particularly an African American subculture that developed in the Bronx in New York City in the 70s. Part of Hip Hop is a creative expression through art (graffiti writing), dancing (B-boying), as well as music in the form of DJing and MCing. DJing refers to the use of synthetic instruments like a turn table, drum machines, and music editing controllers to “sample,” “loop,” “scratch,” and so on. MCeeing refers to “rapping,” in which the rapper / MC perform rhythmical rhymes, or poetry put to beat. The MC may also “beatbox,” which is the act of mimicking percussion instruments, i.e. drums, using one’s mouth and voice.
In the 1970s, particularly in the Bronx area, youth had parties (e.g. “block parties” and “tennis court discos”) in which DJs created dance music. The music were often a combination of sampled snippets from the popular songs of the day, for instance Chic’s “Good Times.” Over these sampled rhythms people would perform their rhymes.
One of the first DJ’s during this time was Clive Campbell (aka DJ Kool Herc), known as the “Father of Hip Hop.” DJ Kool Herc sampled beats from different songs and mixed them together, or one after the other, to create syncopation and polyrhythm. DJ Kool Herc’s prodigy was Joseph Saddler (aka Grandmaster Flash).
Watch a part of an episode called “The Perfect Beat,” from a series called “Rock & Roll,” below. While listening to it, try to answer this question: How is Hip-Hop music different from all the other established genres of music?
Below is a list of some representative Hip-Hop music:
Traditionally Hip-Hop music made social commentary, expressed political concerns, and contemplated personal issues; however, the themes in Hip-Hop have evolved to less noble topics.
Thematically Eminem’s song “Lose Yourself” (2002) is quite positive. How would you summarize this song? In other words, what are the topic, idea, and theme of this song?
Unfortunately few contemporary Hip-Hop songs are so inspirational. Instead, Hip-Hop music have has become a medium for promoting a warped idea of masculinity and gender violence (misogyny). Learn more about these issues at the Independent Lens’ Hip-Hop page.
Following is a trailer for the great documentary Beyond Beats & Rhymes, which is well worth seeing.
You can learn more about this documentary at the Independent Lens website. The website also includes a timeline of Hip-Hop’s development and a glossary of common terms when discussing Hip-Hop music.
Pop music is music enjoyed by a wide audience. Pop music is usually not very complex, with melodies that are easy to follow, and often with strong hooks. The song structure in pop music is also quite standard -- verse 1 / chorus / verse 2 / chorus / bridge / chorus – with occasional variation. The songs tend to be relatively short. The themes in pop music are usually (but not exclusively) about romantic love.
Often the main purpose in pop music is to make money. It is therefore also sometimes referred to as Commercial Music. Crossroads in Music (p. 64) explains: “Music created for the primary purpose of generating revenue for the writers and performers can be considered commercial.” To make the most amount of money the music needs to appeal to the greatest number of people (biggest audience).
Pop Icons
Some pop artists become so successful and famous, that they become known as Pop Icons. A “Pop Icon” is a person that is well known in popular culture. In this course we have listened to the music of quite a number of Pop Icons like Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Cher, Jimi Hendrix, Kurt Cobain(Nirvana), Freddie Mercury (Queen), The Rolling Stones, and so on.
On the list above, Elvis Presley is probably the most prominent Pop Icon. We have already spend a couple of posts looking at the music of Elvis Presley.
Let’s look at two other Pop Icons, Madonna and Michael Jackson.
Madonna
Madonna is called the “Queen of Pop” and in 2006, according to Mail Online, she is the “highest earning female singer on earth.” Bloomberg Press reported that Madonna’s “Sticky & Sweet” word tour is the highest-grossing solo tour and sold over $280 million in tickets.
Probably Madonna’s greatest asset is her ability to continuously re-invent herself, changing not only her appearance, but also her “sound.” Let’s listen to a couple of her songs – note how her look and sound has changed through the time.
"Like a Virgin" (1984)
"Express Yourself" (1984)
“Secret” (1994)
“Frozen” (1997)
“Die Another Day” (2002)
“Give it 2 me” (2008)
Michael Jackson
The title for “King of Pop” goes to the late Michael Jackson. Michael Jackson’s singing, dancing, and music style have influenced innumerable artists in many different genres, for instance Beyonce, Mariah Carey, Justin Timberlake, Usher, Britney Spears, and numerous more. Although a good number of Jackson’s songs are “love songs,” many of them contained other themes in which he attempted to make people aware of social issues like war, abuse, AIDS, environmental issues, and the like.
Apart from his influence on music, Michael Jackson was also an extraordinary philanthropist, and it is estimated that he donated over 300 million dollars to charities. However, as a pop icon he was also involved in many negative media hype.
It is extremely difficult to assess how great Michael Jackson’s legacy to pop music, pop culture, and the world is. You can read more about this in the article "The Battle Over Michael Jackson's Legacy" on Time.Com.
Following are some famous singles by the King of Pop:
Are there commonalities that most of Madonna and Michael Jackson's music share? If yes, what are they? Do you think that this has contributed to their respective world wide success?
This blog provides some class notes for EL4234 ("Poetry in Music") at SYU, running from August 31st to December 18th, 2009.
Class Description:
The purpose of this course is to facilitate you in the listening, reading and discussion of contemporary English songs. Poetry theory, music theory and rhetorical theory will be incorporated while listening to and contemplating a number of different music genres, ranging from Hymns to Hip-Hop music.
In this class we will basically enjoy a cursory overview of contemporary music and in the process develop your skills to converse about music in general, but in particular to read, interpret, and discuss song lyrics (which are the poetry in music).
Our main textbook is:
Larsen, M. A. (Ed.), Borg, P. W., Poultney, D., Unsworth, A., and Washburn, R. 2003. Crossroads in Music: Traditions & Connections. Schirmer-Cengage Learning.
We will also supplement the course with other sources, including online links, and music that more accurately match our goals.
