We often think of music as the product of individual genius: a composer, a lyricist, or a virtuoso. However, music rarely emerges in a vacuum. Music is a reflection of the soil it sprouts from, the air it breathes, and t...
When you listen to modern pop, hip-hop, or electronic music, does it ever cross your mind that the beat or melody you're hearing might actually be a small piece taken from a funk song from 30 years ago? This art is calle...
In a world where we can access millions of songs in seconds from our smartphones, it can be hard to imagine that listening to music was once a very public and social act. In the 1950s and 60s, the heart of a diner, a bar...
The music industry is filled with stories of stars who have faded as much as those who have risen. Sometimes an artist disappears at the peak of their career; sometimes they lose their popularity in the face of changing ...
Music usually demands our attention. When we listen to a song, we sing along to its chorus, admire its solo, or tap our feet to its rhythm. However, there is a music genre whose purpose is the exact opposite: to be part ...
In the late 1960s, a brand new and irresistible rhythm was born on the small Caribbean island of Jamaica. This new music, a slower-paced evolution of Ska and Rocksteady, was named Reggae. However, Reggae would not remain...
When we listen to a song, we feel the harmony of the instruments, the emotion of the vocal, and the power of the rhythm. However, we rarely think of the invisible hand that brings all these elements together, transformin...
The music industry was once a fortress of massive recording studios, expensive equipment, and professional producers. However, in the last decade, the walls of this fortress have slowly crumbled, and the center of music ...
When you buy a ticket to a music festival, you are not just buying a ticket to a series of concerts. You are buying a ticket to an experience, an atmosphere, a temporary community, and a culture. Music festivals are one ...
For decades, the global pop music scene was largely dominated by English-speaking artists. However, in recent years, a wave of rhythm originating from the streets of Puerto Rico, the dance floors of Colombia, and the hea...