Adele is an astounding artist with highly respectable talents and achievements. I believe Adele very-well may end up in our textbook Popular Music in America: The Beat Goes on based on her success and popularity.

The English singer-songwriter known for her highly unique voice and touching music has made her a huge hit. Adele works with four different genres, pop, blue-eyed soul, soul, and contemporary R&B. Adele is not only a singer and songwriter, but she plays the guitar, bass, drums, and piano. Adele does not have a “traditional” voice I think that is why I find her music so intriguing.  Adele is also a partner and a mother while maintaining her music career and topping the charts. Adele’s first hit singles were “Rolling in the Deep” and “Someone Like You, these two hits took off in the early 2000’s as the beginning of Adele’s fame. The music Adele produces is soul touching and moves into many different genres, therefore, creating a variety of listeners. Adele’s voice is so strong, emotional and powerful it can bring goosebumps to the skin. “Suddenly there were words to that before-indescribable pain, frustration, sadness, then revolution that all comes from a breakup. I felt understood, I felt stronger, and above all, I hadn’t sung in front of a mirror with a hairbrush since Destiny’s Child, ” (Hunt 2018). Adele has trained her vocal cords to range two octaves and four notes, as you can hear in the following video, Adele has many different sounds.

Adele’s humble star power is captivating; she’s humorous to listen to, her voice unique and carries herself as a true class act (Hunt, 2018). Adele has won nine Grammy Awards and had many tracks reach hot 100. The most recent song I recall from Adele was “Hello” this song was captivating and stole the hearts of many.

Adele did not grow up in the perfect home; a single mother raised her in working-class neighborhoods. It inspires me that people can come from a normal, average lifestyle to a hit sensation. Adele was not born into fame; she made her way in the industry which would not have been easy. Adele attended BRIT School for Performing Arts & Technology in Croydon and after graduating in 2006, she recorded a three-song demo for a class project which impressed the XL Recording executives (TheFamousPeople.com, 2018). Subsequently, she was contacted by the company and signed for a recording contract (TheFamousPeople.com, 2018). Adele was inspired at a young age by singers like Ella Fitzgerald and Etta James. Below is a video of Ella Fitzgerald singing “Cry me a River,” you can see the similarities in Adele’s music. The tone and pitch of the music are similar as well as the rhythm and beat.

Adele has moved away from the classic pop genre and moved into a mix. I find her voice so intriguing and interesting to listen to making her a popular artist in my eyes. I think Adele’s way of pouring her heart into her music and singing with such dignity and emotion she will soon feature in our textbook.

 

1   “Vocal Range And Profile: Adele”. 2018. Criticofmusic.Com. http://www.criticofmusic.com/2013/05/vocal-range-and-profile-adele.html.

 

2   TheFamousPeople.com, Editors. 2018. “Adele Biography”. Thefamouspeople.Com. https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/adele-6088.php.

 

3   Hunt, Chase. 2018. “Adele Honored As One Of TIME’s 100 Most Influential People”. AXS. https://www.axs.com/adele-honored-as-one-of-time-s-100-most-influential-people-82388.

The Payola Scandal

#M6Q3

The Payola Scandal of 1959 involved the corruption of the radio and recording industries. The scandal was paying or bribing stations to play the song and make it popular with listeners. The idea was that if listeners heard the song repeatedly throughout the day, they would eventually take a liking and make it a hit. Once Payola became more evident, a new law was created making it a criminal act. This act is seen as a moral issue, and Congress wanted the people to have trust and no longer be lied to. The fine for involvement by disc jockeys in Payola was a 500 dollar fine and a year in jail.

Payola has been around for years and first became common in the big band years. Once the live music began going out of style record promoters saw an opportunity with disc jockeys as a method to promote their music. Payola is mostly associated with the 60’s, and 70’s when this was a known and common practice. When a new song or even a new genre or sound of music was released, record promoters felt threatened and paid even more to get radio play. It is fascinating to think that popular songs from history may not have been as known as celebrated as they were and still are today.

There were many major players in the Payola scandals but Alan Freed especially stands out to me. Freed was the disc jockey who gave rock and roll its name. Freed’s involvement led to the downfall of his entire career. Another major player was Dick Clark; he was a businessman and host of the TV show American Bandstand. Clark got away with minor consequences and was able to save his TV career by disconnecting himself from the music industry.

After Freed’s downfall in 1960 Congress outlawed under the table payment to disc jockeys for airtime and if there was airplay purchased it had to be disclosed to the public. Payola was now up to a $10,000 fine and a year in jail as it previously was $500 and one year in jail. Payola still managed to survive as there were loopholes found it was only slowed down and not as public. Disc jockeys that put radio stations at risk of losing their licenses were fired as a precaution.

I listen to the radio on a daily basis at work as my job consists mostly of driving. I have noticed many trends in radio stations playing songs up to 10 times a day, that I have counted. After researching the Payola scandal, I now realize why this happens. Payola today is not the same as in the past, it is much cleaner and up front rather than under the table deals. Payola is now known as sponsorship or promotions. For example, Warner Music partnered with iHeartRadio to promote its artists, a lot of advertising goes into this which in turn costs money. It is also known that Spotify has accepted money to place certain songs on playlists they create for listeners, this is a great way for people to be exposed on their own instead of being forced to listen on the radio. All in all if there is no money behind the artist, they cannot compete in the industry.

After thoroughly researching Payola I have concluded that it is a bad thing. When there are constantly high-stake money deals between large name companies, there is no chance for the new artists to become known. I believe each artist should have an equal opportunity in the industry and not be dominated by lucrative deals between famous companies. It is impossible for new artists to get a start in the industry unless they are discovered by one of these large companies and further promoted on purchased air time. Payola is still very prominent today, and I don’t believe that it is going away anytime soon.

Citations:

up, The. 2018. “The Payola Scandal Heats Up – Feb 11, 1960 – HISTORY.Com”. HISTORY.Com. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/the-payola-scandal-heats-up.

“Payola Scandal Rocks 50’S Radio”. 2018. Modestoradiomuseum.Org. http://www.modestoradiomuseum.org/payola22.html.

“A Brief History Of American Payola”. 2018. Noisey. https://noisey.vice.com/en_us/article/64y8y9/a-brief-history-of-american-payola.

Hutchinson, Lydia. 2018. “Alan Freed, Dick Clark And The Radio Payola Scandal”. Performing Songwriter Ent., LLC. http://performingsongwriter.com/alan-freed-payola-scandal/.

“Artist Sponsorship Is Today’S Payola”. 2018. Music 3.0 Music Industry Blog. http://music3point0.com/2017/01/19/artist-sponsorship-todays-payola/.

 

 

 

 

Live Concert Review

#M3Q4

I recently attended a concert performed by the famous American country music singer songwriter Luke Bryan at the Country Thunder music festival. Bryan got his start in 2007 with his debut album “I’ll Stay Me”. Bryan has accomplished a lot since his start in 2007; he has released 6 albums, 4 compilation albums, 25 singles and most importantly 19 number one singles. Bryan has many musical talents including singing, guitar, piano and song writing. Bryan’s personal life has involved many tragedies. Bryan lost his older brother at the age of 19 in a tragic car accident. Years later his sister unexpectedly passed away leaving her three children and husband behind. Tragedy struck once again seven years later when her husband passed unexpectedly as well. Bryan and his wife took the three children in as their own and continue to raise them along with their own two children. Bryan appears to be a very genuine and kind person which helps him to thrive in the industry.

Unlike other country music artists Bryan incorporates a variety of genres into his music. Influences come from Rap, R&B, electronic, pop and rock, this sets Bryan apart and makes his music much more diverse and not as traditional. Bryan’s music goes from sappy love songs to partying in a cornfield all while maintaining the integrity of the country music genre. Bryan and his band use instruments like banjo, guitar, drums, bass, sometimes a piano or fiddle. One of his many number one singles “Country Girl (Shake It For Me)” is still very popular following its release in 2011. The following verse embodies Bryan’s style of country:

“Sombody’s sweet little farmer’s child
With a gattle in her Bud to get a little wild
Pony-tail and a pretty smile
Rope me in from a country mile
So come on over here and get in my arms
Spin me around this big ole barn
Tangle me up like grandma’s yarn
Yeah, yeah, yeah”

 

The word choice and rhyming flows very smoothly and tends to “pump up” the crowd. Bryan uses this style to get the crowd singing and engaged with the upbeat rhythm, beat and lyrics. This particular song is a country rock song, veering away from traditional country music that artists like George Strait may sing. The song below by Strait shows the classic country we are used to, the pure country with no other genres influencing.

 

The concert was performed at Country Thunder in Craven, Sk on July 15^th, 2018. The venue was a wide-open space with the stage front and centre. Even with the large crowd present Bryan worked the crowd impressively taking the crowd through a wide variety of emotions. Craven is in rural Saskatchewan and Bryan’s songs like “Kick the Dust Up” and “Huntin’, Fishin’ & Lovin’ Everyday” are relatable to many. Bryan grew up in a small town in Georgia and based his songs on a lot of his experiences growing up which are very similar to many of the concert attendees.

 

Luke engaged the crowd in a meaningful way throughout the entire concert. His song “Drink a Beer” is dedicated to his brother whom he lost in a car accident, emotions were running high not only on the stage but also in the crowd. Luke hit home with the audience when he appeared on stage wearing a Humboldt Broncos T-shirt as a tribute to everyone affected. Luke stole the crowds heart with not only his music but his character and strong stage presence. The ability to form emotional relationships with the audience adds an effect to the entire experience for everyone. I enjoyed this concert not only because I love country music but because Luke Bryan is an amazing performer and has a certain “presence” you may say.

Proof of attendance:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Citations:

Anon, (2018). [online] Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/06/magazine/what-makes-luke-bryan-country.htm [Accessed 19 Jul. 2018].

 

Bryan, L. (2018). Luke Bryan. [online] Biography. Available at: https://www.biography.com/people/luke-bryan [Accessed 19 Jul. 2018].

 

Thefamouspeople.com. (2018). Who is Luke Bryan? Everything You Need to Know. [online] Available at: https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/luke-bryan-14631.php [Accessed 19 Jul. 2018].

 

 

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