Note: This is my personal take on a popular culture situation. Some discretion advised.
Turn on the radio and tune into any top-50 hit music station in 2010, and you’ll discover a hip mix of rap, pop, and country. They’re the songs that make up the musical culture of today’s generation, with even kids listening to this music.
The mix of music is innocent – one shouldn’t comment on an individual’s musical preference. It’s when you listen to the lyrics and subliminal meanings these songs give that you realize what exactly music is putting into the heads of this generation. It’s my generation as well, so I am right to be worried:
A too-big portion of the top songs mention sex of some form as lyrics or subliminal meaning, whether it’s background music or just the lyrics, hidden in plain sight. Should we worry about these songs?
One of the reasons why music, or popular culture in general, has become like this relates to the way society moves forward. In today’s world, people become more and more open about issues previously not discussable – gay and lesbian rights, abortion rights, for example – and as this society moves forward, so does culture.
So what does this society movement mean for music and popular culture? It means that many music providers and artists think “why not?” But the problem with this natural thing is that as society moves forward, what is natural becomes less and less natural. So what was a natural body process becomes an area of entertainment, and entertainment means money.
Take a typical music video for a top-50 song by a popular pop female artist. Most likely you’ll discover the artist is wearing very little clothing (or very strange clothing). You might discover many other signs that are hinting towards sex.
So, if you’re a parent, is it right to be worried? I think so, but only to a certain degree. As a student, I can tell that music and popular culture makes a solid impact on students. But exactly how much impact it makes can’t be easily determined.
Another thing – it’s the real world. Parents can shield their students from the real world as much as they want, but eventually kids have to step out from behind the defenses. As long as kids realize that it’s important to have virtues and to uphold them regardless of society, I personally think it’s okay.
Now, whether culture and music should be like this in the first place is another story entirely. While the music of today’s world can be considered catchy by some (including me), sometimes music takes it too far. Music with a general theme of “love” isn’t bad – you have to sing about something sometimes – but when you take love too far and you offer it to younger generations who might not be mature or ready enough for this kind of exposure, it might not be a good thing.
The Current State of Music, and Popular Culture
Note: This is my personal take on a popular culture situation. Some discretion advised.
Turn on the radio and tune into any top-50 hit music station in 2010, and you’ll discover a hip mix of rap, pop, and country. They’re the songs that make up the musical culture of today’s generation, with even kids listening to this music.
The mix of music is innocent – one shouldn’t comment on an individual’s musical preference. It’s when you listen to the lyrics and subliminal meanings these songs give that you realize what exactly music is putting into the heads of this generation. It’s my generation as well, so I am right to be worried:
A too-big portion of the top songs mention sex of some form as lyrics or subliminal meaning, whether it’s background music or just the lyrics, hidden in plain sight. Should we worry about these songs?
One of the reasons why music, or popular culture in general, has become like this relates to the way society moves forward. In today’s world, people become more and more open about issues previously not discussable – gay and lesbian rights, abortion rights, for example – and as this society moves forward, so does culture.
So what does this society movement mean for music and popular culture? It means that many music providers and artists think “why not?” But the problem with this natural thing is that as society moves forward, what is natural becomes less and less natural. So what was a natural body process becomes an area of entertainment, and entertainment means money.
Take a typical music video for a top-50 song by a popular pop female artist. Most likely you’ll discover the artist is wearing very little clothing (or very strange clothing). You might discover many other signs that are hinting towards sex.
So, if you’re a parent, is it right to be worried? I think so, but only to a certain degree. As a student, I can tell that music and popular culture makes a solid impact on students. But exactly how much impact it makes can’t be easily determined.
Another thing – it’s the real world. Parents can shield their students from the real world as much as they want, but eventually kids have to step out from behind the defenses. As long as kids realize that it’s important to have virtues and to uphold them regardless of society, I personally think it’s okay.
Now, whether culture and music should be like this in the first place is another story entirely. While the music of today’s world can be considered catchy by some (including me), sometimes music takes it too far. Music with a general theme of “love” isn’t bad – you have to sing about something sometimes – but when you take love too far and you offer it to younger generations who might not be mature or ready enough for this kind of exposure, it might not be a good thing.