As stated by the legends of the iconic band ACDC, “it’s a long way to the top if you want to rock and roll”. These words serve as a summation of the music that plagued a generation and became more than a new genre of music loved by so many people and hated by even more. The rough and wild world of Rock and Roll music was the pretext for the changes in society that were much needed during the time of its birth and throughout its entire rein of its popularity, spanning from 1951 to the present day. As with any period of evolution and change, Rock and Roll was met with widespread dislike and outrage before the acceptance of the music and culture outweighed the rejection, but contrary to popular belief, rock music was not a just a source of negative influence on its fans and society. In early 1950s the world was beginning to settle from mass chaos caused by World War II and creeping into the pandemonium of the civil rights movement and the creation of a new outlook on life. At the center of this newly forming view was a new discovery in music called Rock and Roll. Born from the phenomenal genres of Blues and R&B, rock music made its first appearance in the early 1950s when white artists started developing music from the African American culture into their own style (America Rocks and rolls). This new hybrid of music was something people had never seen or heard before but that did not necessarily mean it was immediately loved and praised. Rock and Roll was so profoundly disliked because of its origins from the African American culture that it was faced with an automatic stigma. Rock and Roll was immediately rejected and deemed beneath the majority of white culture seeing as how it had come from neighborhoods in ghettos and had no traceable white lineage. It was a very popular belief that due to the fact that Rock and Roll was so closely associated with the Blues and R&B music of African American culture that it had no business on radio stations, in stores, or in white homes (America Rocks and rolls). Rock was initially banned from the radio and television and parents and other authority figures, such as schools, community leaders, and even big business owners and operators tried adamantly to keep their children and the public from being exposed to the music they deemed unsuitable, inappropriate, and bad for business (Segrave). Though as the Civil Rights movement progressed, restrictions on public life became nearly impossible, including the limitations on the exposure of rock music and its growing fan base. Thus the growth of the music birthed a whole culture surrounding the new and upcoming genre consisting mostly of teenagers of ages as low as fourteen to people in their mid-twenties. The younger generations began putting aside their parent’s beliefs and ways of thinking and opening their minds to the new world that was up and coming (Covach). And that new world included Rock and Roll. Fans of rock music developed their own style that set themselves apart from all other cultural groups and other members of society. From crazy hairstyles and wild cosmetics to outrageous and off-putting outfits of leather, spikes, and combat boots that set them apart from the rest of society, followers of rock music evolved from the monotony of traditional lifestyle into a whole new counter culture (Knowles). And as it was with all change, there was resistance. Certain stereotypes were applied to any and all participants of rock culture even if they
…show more content…
Nothing can compare with the “classics” of rock. No music of the present rock genre even compares to the stylings of the artists that played during the 1970s-1980s. Though they share common traits such as being widely disliked and stereotyped, rock music has diminished from its former electrifying glory into something society could handle. Even though it arguably opened up the door for true freedom in society, rock has been stifled at every turn since its birth in the 1950s (McKeen). Thus resulting in the somewhat dull and mediocre songs and creations that are now called rock and rock
Nothing can compare with the “classics” of rock. No music of the present rock genre even compares to the stylings of the artists that played during the 1970s-1980s. Though they share common traits such as being widely disliked and stereotyped, rock music has diminished from its former electrifying glory into something society could handle. Even though it arguably opened up the door for true freedom in society, rock has been stifled at every turn since its birth in the 1950s (McKeen). Thus resulting in the somewhat dull and mediocre songs and creations that are now called rock and rock