THE VIOCES OF CHANGE—OR LACK THERE-OF

We live in an era in which music is one of the most powerful forces available to those wanting to initiate social change. Music is a medium for philosophy, which potentially spreads very quickly from culture to culture, especially today with the internet, and the growing popularity among mainstream audiences for multi-cultural music. More and more, mainstream music is becoming eclectic of many culturally different kinds of music, as “through the conduits of commercial culture, music made by aggrieved inner-city populations in Canberra, Kingston, or Compton becomes part of everyday life and culture for affluent consumers in the suburbs of Cleveland, Coventry, or Cologne” (Lipsitz, 4).
However, because mainstream music is governed by capitalist business people, mainly in the United States, it is difficult for philosophies of any controversial or subcultural significance to find their way into the mainstream rotation. As a result, artists who want to “make it big” find...