American Culture of Pop Music

I.Invasion of American Popular Music

After World War I, American popular music -- blues, jazz, and Tin Pan Alley songs -- swept Britain, much as British music invaded the United States in the 1960s. American songs such as "Chicago" and "Manhattan" were consistently among the most popular tunes in Britain in the 1920s.

As a result of the invasion of American popular music, Britain was influenced by such culture.

The Beatles and other British rock groups helped create in the 1960s a milieu that emphasized youth, exuberance, and innovation not only in music but in fashion. Young Americans found British fashions as appealing as the music crossing the ocean. American publications carried advertisements that promoted British products or American products that fit the cool image. The "London Look" was epitomized by the most famous British model of the era, "Twiggy" (Leslie Hornsby, b. 1949). Along with fashion, British television shows such as The Avengers and James Bond films furthered the "Swinging Britain" image.

Rock And Roll Music

In the 1950s American rock and roll music dominated the British popular music scene more completely than jazz and the blues had done in the 1920s. The first rock and roll tunes to make a major impact in Britain were Bill Haley's (1925-1981) "Shake, Rattle and Roll" and "Rock Around the Clock," both released in 1954. Other pop singers and groups who quickly obtained wide popularity and inspired numerous British imitators were Little Richard (b.1932), Chuck Berry (b. 1926), Jerry Lee Lewis (b. 1935), Buddy Holly (1936-1959) and the Crickets, the Everly Brother (Don, b.1937; Phil, b.1939), and Elvis Presley (1935-1977). The influence of American music is shown by British teenagers dancing on the "rock 'n' roll railroad car," a youth club run by the Reverend John Oates, who played the bass in his clerical robes.

Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, The Rolling Stones, Beatles stand for the era of the beginning of Rock&Roll.

в?... In my opinion, rock&roll music reflect the character of America, which is unique. Why only the rock&roll appeared in America in 1950s, while we Chinese didn’t even know it until 1980s? That is because of the different culture and situation. I think that Chinese culture would never breed music such as rock&roll. America is young, open, and full of passion, which is just like the rock music.

IIпјЋRap, Black Rage, and Racial Difference

"My music is a product of who I am and where I came from. I'm made in America. I'm not from Mars or nowhere else."

Rap music has emerged as one of the most distinctive and controversial music genres of the past decade. A significant part of hip hop culture, rap articulates the experiences and conditions of African-Americans living in a spectrum of marginalized situations ranging from racial stereotyping and stigmatizing to struggle for survival in violent ghetto conditions.

в?... We can find that in this cultural context, rap provides a voice to the voiceless, a form of protest to the oppressed, and a mode of alternative cultural style and identity to the marginalized. Rap is thus not only music to dance and party to, but a potent form of cultural identity. It has become a powerful vehicle for cultural political expression. It is an informational medium to tune into, one that describes the rage of African-Americans facing growing oppression, declining opportunities for advancement, changing moods on the streets, and everyday life as a matter of sheer survival. In turn, it has become a cultural virus, circulating its images, sounds, and attitude throughout the culture and body politic. And this