Menu

Topics

TV Programs

Connect

Local

your local region

National

Share

Share this item via WhatsApp whatsapp Share this item on Flipboard flipboard Share this item on Reddit reddit

Calendar

Calendar

Search

Quick Search

  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  

Trending Now

  •  
     
  •  
     
  •  
     
  •  
     
  •  
     
  •  
     

Add Global News to Home Screen

Instructions:

  1. Press the share icon on your browser
  2. Select Add to Home Screen
  3. Press Add

Comments

Want to discuss? Please read our Commenting Policy first.

Video link
Headline link
Advertisement
Entertainment

The Ongoing History of New Music, episode 910: OH goes BHM

By Alan Cross Corus Radio
Posted February 12, 2021 10:00 am
3 min read
The Ongoing History of New Music, episode 910: OH goes BHM - image
Share this item via WhatsApp

Share

Share this item via WhatsApp whatsapp Share this item on Flipboard flipboard Share this item on Reddit reddit
Here’s a truth that some people find very uncomfortable: rock, alt-rock, indie, rock, and metal are predominantly white. Why is that? The answers–and there is more than one–are complicated. In fact, there’s actually been quite a lot of study into this question.Perhaps it’s because non-white people don’t choose this music as part of the way they project their identity to the world. Culturally, they just don’t identify with these forms of music, so they naturally gravitate somewhere else. Others ask this: How is this different from someone choosing the music of their culture and ethnicity over that of another? If you’re Italian, for example, chances are you may have a greater affinity to Italian music than, say, gamelan music of Bali.Here’s another truth: Any form of music tends to reflect the shared sentiments of a particular community. Compare indie-rock attitudes with hip-hop. You probably won’t find an indie band singing about drinking Cristal in the back of a Maybach while discussing the size of the diamonds in their new grillz. Neither would a hip-hop artist rhapsodically describe driving their new pickup through the countryside. And what are the odds of a country artist singing about police brutality and inner-city poverty?Each form of music has its own aesthetics. If it doesn’t mean anything to you on a cultural, emotional, or personal level, you’re just not going to be into that music.However, others don’t buy into this, seeing the non-whiteness of rock as a status quo barrier to people of colour who would like to participate but feel excludes, unwelcome, and branded as outsides. They also see countless microaggressions, covert (and not-so-covert) expressions of racism exacerbated by continued cultural appropriation.We’re not going to solve any of these issues on this program. But we will acknowledge the contributions of Black performers have made to the evolution of alt-rock. Yes, this music is pretty white–but not always.Songs on this program:
  • Death, Keep on Knocking
  • Bad Brains, Pay to Cum
  • The Specials, A Message to You, Rudy
  • English Beat, Tears of a Clown
  • Fishbone, Ma and Pa
  • Living Colour, Cult of Personality
  • Body Count, Body Count’s in the House
  • Lenny Kravitz, Mr. Cab Driver
  • Bloc Party, Banquet
  • Bakar, Hell N Back
  • Kennyhoopla, How Will I Rest in Peace…
Trending Now
Try this playlist from Eric Wilhite.
Story continues below advertisement
The Ongoing History of New Music can be heard on the following stations:
More on Entertainment
© 2021 Corus Radio, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Sponsored content

AdChoices