tag:theconversation.com,2011:/fr/topics/uk-music-28690/articlesUK music – The Conversation2023-03-13T12:37:24Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2013212023-03-13T12:37:24Z2023-03-13T12:37:24ZEurovision 2023: voting changes show the contest has always been political<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/513963/original/file-20230307-14-yfvc1x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=135%2C100%2C3805%2C2546&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Ukraine were the winners of Eurovision 2022. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/kyiv-ukraine-february-15-2020-scene-1647247843">Review News/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Expert judges have been a mainstay of the Eurovision Song Contest since its inception in 1956. These experts are usually industry professionals with experience in popular music distribution. But with <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2022/nov/22/eurovision-scraps-jury-voting-in-semi-finals">the announcement</a> last November that from 2023 the contest will be replacing them with a global public vote in the semifinals, it seems the expert judge has fallen from favour.</p>
<p>What does this say about the quality of Eurovision’s content and the value of the show in the music industry? Largely chosen by the judges, the winners and runners-up of previous Eurovision years – including <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bC9sg6MpDc0">Måneskin</a> (2021) and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtJZdcWHNdQ">Katrina and the Waves</a> (1997) – have gone on to put out far-reaching releases and <a href="https://twitter.com/thisismaneskin/status/1443606935719366659">successful international tours</a>.</p>
<p>Some might argue that Eurovision’s decision to prioritise audience votes over expert insights poses a threat to the inclusion of experts in any artistic judgment of value. Expert judges provide an impartial voice to the voting system, which should be apolitical and focus only on the musical content, style, quality and originality.</p>
<p>As a Eurovision fan <a href="https://accedacris.ulpgc.es/bitstream/10553/117366/1/9788490424148.pdf">and expert</a> in how we communicate through music, however, I love the idea that audience members will get to have more say for 2023. But if audiences are now responsible at the semi-final stage, it seems odd that the judges return for a portion of the final. Why bring in the public at all, if they won’t be trusted to make the right call when it comes to Eurovision’s winning act?</p>
<h2>Responding to overseas interests</h2>
<p>Eurovision has been developing a wider global reach. This has increased since televoting was introduced, but the contest’s viewing figures have also benefited from the inclusion of Australia both as performers and voters since 2015, thanks to the country’s large Eurovision fanbase.</p>
<p>American TV bosses are currently looking for a network to buy their own Eurovision copy – the <a href="https://wiwibloggs.com/2023/01/10/american-song-contest-producer-christer-bjorkman-nbc-not-made-decision-future/274562/%22%22">American Song Contest</a> – which the Guardian called a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2022/mar/22/american-song-contest-eurovision-nbc-copycat">“chaotic copycat”</a>. Moving the voting system towards the public and away from experts could be interpreted as a tactic to include American audiences (who can now vote in the contest) and bring them into Eurovision rather than the copycat version.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/glUGSnvw48E?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The trailer for The American Song Contest.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>If <a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Critical_Event_Studies/bAw9DAAAQBAJ?hl%3Den%26gbpv%3D1%26dq%3Deurovision%2Bglobal%2Baudience%26pg%3DPA34%26printsec%3Dfrontcover&sa=D&source=docs&ust=1670852381307231&usg=AOvVaw1y9YUpdu924hgUTT9LMV9F">a global audience</a> including Australia and the US is both watching and voting in Eurovision, there is a risk that this will reduce the competition’s inclusion of diverse languages.</p>
<p>More countries could be tempted to perform songs in English as that’s the language global viewers will be most likely to understand. Expert judges could help to preserve Eurovision’s lingual and cultural diversity by judging value in that diversity.</p>
<p>More diversity and the inclusion of regional music and art forms is to be welcomed. Ukraine’s 2022 winning song, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8Z51no1TD0">Stefania</a>, was a perfect example, with its folk fusion with rap and pop.</p>
<h2>Is it realistic to call Eurovision apolitical?</h2>
<p>Eurovision has always declared itself to be apolitical. But as many music and musicological <a href="https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/A_Song_for_Europe/5zQrDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=eurovision+politics&printsec=frontcover">researchers</a> <a href="https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/A_Song_for_Europe/5zQrDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=eurovision+politics&printsec=frontcover">have noted before</a>, this is not the case. Russia was removed from the 2021 contest due to the war in Ukraine. If politics has nothing to do with Eurovision, then this decision was erroneous.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.kingston.ac.uk/news/article/2671/13-may-2022-blog-is-it-time-for-the-uk-to-rise-rather-than-crash-and-burn-at/">Songs that year talked of isolation</a> (following the COVID pandemic), climate change and refugees. If the contest is not political, it certainly doesn’t do a good job of curating its content, which is frequently politically charged.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/F1fl60ypdLs?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Ukraine’s winning 2022 Eurovision entry.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Eurovision fans accept the politics. In many ways, it is part of the show’s sensationalist draw. The recent voting change, then, could more cynically be interpreted as another political move by Eurovision organisers.</p>
<p>Changing the voting make up and bringing in a global audience continues the contest’s move beyond a European political dialogue (whereby neighbouring countries vote for each other) that began with the inclusion of Israel and Australia. Few will now receive nul point.</p>
<p>Bringing audiences in early creates a false sense of parity with the judges, which is undermined as the experts return for the final. The cards are stacked against audience votes. With a seeming lack of trust in both experts to create the final shortlist and audience to judge the final quality, the Eurovision Song Contest is confirming itself to be highly political.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/201321/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Professor Helen Julia Minors receives funding from the Arts and Humanities Research Council. She is affiliated with Radio Wey. </span></em></p>Moving the voting system away from experts could be interpreted as a tactic to include American audiences.Helen Julia Minors, Professor, Head of the School of Arts, York St John UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1963292022-12-13T14:59:44Z2022-12-13T14:59:44Z25 Years of Garage review – music documentary falls prey to the same mistakes that killed the scene<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500073/original/file-20221209-35151-hhz31u.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C35%2C1922%2C1118&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Promotional artwork for 25 Years of Garage.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Platinum Pictures</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>A host of veterans from the heyday of the UK’s garage scene (including <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwi89tXv7uz7AhWDoFwKHfPsBloQFnoECB8QAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fheartlesscrew.com%2F&usg=AOvVaw0UvQ1LMEx7uDMzMafmQ3kQ">Heartless Crew</a>, <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiL5Kn87uz7AhXClFwKHar-Bo4QFnoECGYQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.instagram.com%2Fdanebowers%2F%3Fhl%3Den&usg=AOvVaw3R2DlsTzHv9dVc7tmTsHvp">Dane Bowers</a> and members of <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiQkMqG7-z7AhWBY8AKHQp2CT8QFnoFCIUBEAE&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.instagram.com%2Fofficialsosolid%2F%3Fhl%3Den&usg=AOvVaw07W1vQ4jFZWpetxU16OjXS">So Solid Crew</a>) star in <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwi8_Kmg7-z7AhUKbsAKHXPYAskQFnoECB8QAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.imdb.com%2Ftitle%2Ftt15612416%2F&usg=AOvVaw0DDMZud8sYPI49-Q_hPt26">25 Years of Garage</a>, a new documentary co-directed by former promoter Terry Stone.</p>
<p>As an academic who specialises in Black music and advocates for its serious intellectual study, I find it encouraging to see active members of the garage scene documenting the culture.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500076/original/file-20221209-40753-4pofku.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Terry Stone wears a navy blue polo shirt and sits on a green couch." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500076/original/file-20221209-40753-4pofku.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500076/original/file-20221209-40753-4pofku.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500076/original/file-20221209-40753-4pofku.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500076/original/file-20221209-40753-4pofku.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500076/original/file-20221209-40753-4pofku.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500076/original/file-20221209-40753-4pofku.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500076/original/file-20221209-40753-4pofku.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Co-director Terry Stone is a former garage promoter.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Platinum Pictures</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>UK garage was a genre of electronic dance music, which peaked between the late 1990s and early 2000s. Incorporating elements of R&B, jungle and pop, its sound was marked by pitch-shifted vocal samples and a distinctive percussive rhythm.</p>
<p>In 25 Years Of Garage, stars remember the garage scene that emerged in the early 1990s, tracing its expansion from small rooms in Ministry of Sound to its own branded club nights. The focus is largely on Stone’s former business, Garage Nation, which ran successful club nights and events in the UK and abroad. </p>
<h2>A brief history of garage</h2>
<p>This trip down memory lane highlights garage’s ideology of <a href="https://oll.libertyfund.org/title/veblen-the-theory-of-the-leisure-class-an-economic-study-of-institutions">conspicuous consumption</a> and <a href="https://angl.winter-verlag.de/journal/ANGL">“bling culture”</a>. </p>
<p>There’s the champagne lifestyle – Moët as standard. The designer “garms” (clothing) which were colourful and flamboyant, especially for men (think Moschino, Versace, Iceberg Jeans). And the jet setting to Ayia Napa (always with budget airlines) for clubbing at infamous venues such as Pzazz and Insomnia, which at their peak attracted ravers from all over the UK.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/eDu4LNz6k-4?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Trailer for 25 Years of Garage.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Archive footage is included to showcase the “vibe” during the height of the scene, both home and away. These are dispersed with more recent recordings from a post-COVID restrictions event in south London. </p>
<p>Personal accounts recall the scene’s transition from fun, luxurious and carefree to dangerous and disorderly. In London, <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01419870601006579">police intervention</a> through 696 risk assessment forms (advanced notice of events which required organisers to share the names, stage names, private addresses, and phone numbers of all performers) <a href="http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/92164/">decimated the scene</a>. </p>
<p>Meanwhile in Ayia Napa, Cypriot locals resented the dominance of tourists and their disorderly behaviour in what was once a sleepy fishing village. Media coverage began <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/2631401.stm">labelling garage</a> as dangerous, with incidents of shootings and stabbings reported both at home and away.</p>
<h2>Sidelining the issues</h2>
<p>Despite acknowledging negative press around guns, violence and killings in the garage scene, the racialised element of press attitudes is not explored in 25 Years of Garage. Garage is presented as a multicultural scene – and in many ways it was. However, <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13691830802364809?journalCode=cjms20">reflection</a> on the impact of racism and policing in criminalising the scene is lacking.</p>
<p>The way the documentary responds to racialised narratives of garage, race and violence, almost reinforces them through <a href="https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/for-2016-0009/html?lang=en">dog whistling</a> (using words understood by a particular group of people) and the use of the <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.4324/9781315164601/new-ethnicities-urban-culture-back-les-les-back-goldsmiths-college-university-london">racially coded words</a> like “grime” and “yardie” to insinuate that perpetrators of violence were Black.</p>
<p>Throughout however, the documentary suggests that for promoters of various racial backgrounds “a gangster’s game” was needed, “a certain mentality and attitude” to be in and survive in this industry. For Stone himself, who is white, this included the need to wear protective vests from weaponry. </p>
<p>There’s also reference to the ever presence of cocaine presented in a matter of fact, deracialised way. The challenges around violence, crime and drugs were not the result of “grime” or “yardies”, but an issue for the scene as a whole.</p>
<p>Gendered issues also remain unaddressed. In 25 Years of Garage, women are a footnote. Very few are given the platform to share their stories, despite women being highly visible in both the historical and recent footage included in the documentary.</p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500072/original/file-20221209-35075-3zmp4f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Ms Dynamite wears her hair in a punky braid, and stands one leg on an amp as she performs." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500072/original/file-20221209-35075-3zmp4f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500072/original/file-20221209-35075-3zmp4f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500072/original/file-20221209-35075-3zmp4f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500072/original/file-20221209-35075-3zmp4f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500072/original/file-20221209-35075-3zmp4f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500072/original/file-20221209-35075-3zmp4f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500072/original/file-20221209-35075-3zmp4f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">London’s Ms Dynamite was a major player in the garage scene.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/novi-sad-serbia-july-10-ms-57688723">Nikola Spasenoski</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Women in the scene are referred to almost as mere entertainment in the lives of the men. This is despite featuring clips of <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiK0v729ez7AhVSZ8AKHY3DDHUQFnoECB4QAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.instagram.com%2Fmcbushkin%2F%3Fhl%3Den&usg=AOvVaw3_VH7ouA4V9K2U0PHvxCqB">MC Bushkin</a> noting that girls left jungle and drum and bass scenes for garage and <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiC8O6B9uz7AhWMRMAKHTR4B_kQFnoECA4QAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fra.co%2Fdj%2Fmcckp%2Fbiography&usg=AOvVaw3tvHI4fxdo3CIB5gXZyioV">MC CKP</a> stating wherever the girls were, the guys would follow.</p>
<p>The documentary positions women as passive and largely voiceless in the scene, <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/black-music-in-britain-in-the-21st-century-9781802078404?cc=us&lang=en&#">which was not the case</a>. </p>
<p>Women are essential in the survival of participatory music cultures such as garage (where everyone present at a music event is actively participating through playing an instrument, singing, chanting or dancing) in both visible (MCs, professional dancers, administrators) and invisible roles (fans).</p>
<p>This lack of reflection inadvertently erases women from the genre’s history.</p>
<h2>Is there a future for the garage scene?</h2>
<p>What caused garage’s decline? In 25 Years of Garage, DJ Majestic (once one of London’s most popular garage MCs) offers some insight. </p>
<p>He considers the then smaller role of the internet, which later did so much to cement the international success of grime. He also debates the limiting insistence of the UK element of “UK garage”, and the consequences of gatekeeping. <a href="http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/92164/">Not “letting the youngsters through”</a> meant that musicians including <a href="https://www.popmatters.com/031024-dizzeerascal-2496102558.html">Dizzee Rascal</a> and <a href="https://genius.com/Wiley-wot-do-u-call-it-lyrics">Wiley</a> declared that they did not make, nor care about, garage when they built their own sound.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500085/original/file-20221209-29206-95s4o3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Rapper Wiley performing on stage in a black tshirt, rapping into a microphone." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500085/original/file-20221209-29206-95s4o3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500085/original/file-20221209-29206-95s4o3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500085/original/file-20221209-29206-95s4o3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500085/original/file-20221209-29206-95s4o3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500085/original/file-20221209-29206-95s4o3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500085/original/file-20221209-29206-95s4o3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500085/original/file-20221209-29206-95s4o3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Wiley’s Wot Do U Call It makes his feelings about garage explicit, rapping, ‘Garage? I don’t care about garage.’</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:0_Wiley1.jpg">Faisal</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Associations with criminality and violence in the mainstream also decimated the scene’s chances of longevity. Its demise, meanwhile <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=KZAkAAAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=Sounds+Like+London:+100+Years+of+Black+Music+in+the+Capital&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=1&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiQ3-u_yOr7AhVUkFwKHYK_ARAQ6AF6BAgIEAI">opened up a plethora of other genres</a> such as bassline and dubstep.</p>
<p>Without an overarching narrative curating this documentary, it becomes an echo chamber. While it’s important to platform those essential to garage, all these personal accounts do is speak to other people from within the scene. </p>
<p>To push the genre forward, it needed to make the historical, sociological and cultural connections that would render garage accessible to outsiders.</p>
<p>In this way, 25 Years of Garage unintentionally demonstrates and reinforces the role gatekeeping – originally intended to protect the scene – eventually played in stifling it.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/196329/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Monique Charles does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>25 Years of Garage has good intentions, but this scene-documenting film makes some familiar mistakes.Monique Charles, Assistant Professor, Chapman UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1880802022-08-11T15:25:24Z2022-08-11T15:25:24ZHow Burna Boy set the world alight with his mixed brew of influences<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478504/original/file-20220810-590-s2rtpf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Burna Boy promotes his new album Love, Damini in the US.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Prince Williams/Wireimage</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Nigerian Afrobeats star <a href="https://www.allmusic.com/artist/burna-boy-mn0003297650/biography">Burna Boy</a> burst onto the global stage in 2018 with a slew of irresistible hits on his third album, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4wXXJEoblA">Outside</a>, accompanied by mandatory fiendish good looks and charm. <a href="https://www.grammy.com/artists/burna-boy/251682">Grammy</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsvCb59TcDk">BET</a> awards helped firm up his status within a highly competitive global music industry. </p>
<p>Before his international success, which has been cemented by his latest offering <a href="https://www.billboard.com/music/rb-hip-hop/burna-boy-love-damini-album-stream-1235109630/">Love, Damini</a> (2022), Burna spent years experimenting with different sounds in London and South Africa and his ragga-inspired vocal style became distinctive.</p>
<p>His 2014 contribution to South African hip hop mainstay AKA’s infectious song <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIuXDU-V954">All Eyes on Me</a> first put him on the African radar. His smouldering hook on the multiple award-winning track made all the difference and demonstrated he was an artist to watch, channelling both West African and Jamaican musical flavours.</p>
<p>Although he was deemed talented by his South African hip hop peers, his shine remained somewhat muted. He had to return to his native Nigeria to attain the level of success he obviously yearned: awards, global tours and A-class industry connections.</p>
<p>Although he rose in a whirlwind, with an enigmatic combination of singing styles and influences, Burna Boy has, at least for the moment, become mainstream; a slightly compliant agent of the commercial music industry. (The same is true of most of today’s Afrobeats stars, even if this is a Faustian truth everyone might choose to ignore.)</p>
<p>On Love, Damini (he was born Damini Ebunoluwa Ogulu) Burna still exudes just the right amount of foreboding and palpable intrigue to remain credible as an artist. But how much of his much-touted originality does he have left? Perhaps a way to begin to answer this question is to revisit his musical influences.</p>
<h2>Spotting his influences</h2>
<p>It is difficult not to love club bangers such as <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-h7ltwACLs">Soke</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPe09eE6Xio">Ye</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7WfPHHXCAY">Gbona</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ecl8Aod0Tl0">On the Low</a>, all produced before Burna Boy’s groundbreaking 2021 Grammy win with his fifth album, <a href="https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/burna-boy-twice-as-tall/">Twice as Tall</a> (2020). </p>
<p>In most of these songs, Fela Kuti’s influence is crystal clear in samples and the unequivocal lifting of various hooks. For many, it seemed like Burna was Kuti’s heir apparent. </p>
<p>From the late 1960s Nigerian musician and singer Kuti, along with his amazing bands, almost single-handedly pioneered a genre called <a href="https://www.masterclass.com/articles/afrobeat-music-guide#what-is-afrobeat">Afrobeat</a>. This sound incorporated strong Pan Africanist politics, intricate call and response singing, and heavy West African drumming laced with enticing jazz and funk riffs. <a href="https://www.teenvogue.com/story/afrobeat-history">Afrobeats</a> is an umbrella term for a more radio-friendly and commercial version of Kuti’s Afrobeat. </p>
<p>Burna Boy’s Kuti credentials appear impeccable. His maternal grandfather, the broadcaster and jazz enthusiast Benson Idonije, had <a href="https://guardian.ng/art/dis-fela-sef-a-benson-idonije-memoir/">managed</a> Kuti in the 1960s. In one <a href="https://www.okayafrica.com/bose-ogulu-burna-boy-mom-manager-fela-kuti-dancer-okayafrica-100-women-2019/">interview</a>, his mother and manager, business woman Bose Ogulu, reportedly refers to Kuti as the closest thing she had to a godfather.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/EDZ25anwgjc?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Burna has also been influenced by ragga, dub and grime ever since his days as a student in the UK. The foundations of these genres were laid mainly in Jamaica but found fresh creative wings in urban UK music scenes. This culminated in a hit like Burna’s 2017 song <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xho39TPlL4Q">Rock your Body</a>. </p>
<p>Even before the arrival of Love, Damini, Burna Boy had succeeded in melding his diverse cultural and sonic experiences into one powerful aural stew.</p>
<p>Burna has not only cribbed the Jamaican sound. He’s also adopted the rude boy persona with tales of <a href="https://guardian.ng/news/burna-boy-faces-police-probe-for-the-second-time-in-six-years/">private security gunshots</a>, <a href="https://dailytrust.com/burna-boy-shatta-wale-and-rape-culture">rape allegations</a> and a trail of broken hearts that have clouded his already threatening aura.</p>
<h2>Ways to weigh Burna</h2>
<p>Obviously, Burna was aiming to act as some kind of generational spokesperson for a restless and burgeoning <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2012/02/17/world/africa/who-are-afropolitans/index.html">Afropolitan</a> brigade. It couldn’t have been otherwise after being fed on a diet of Kuti-inspired Pan Africanism and neocolonial resistance. By most standards, this is heavy stuff for a market and generation captured by instant gratification.</p>
<p>And then he struck musical gold with his eclectic brew of West African rhythms, West Indian jungle grooves and the ubiquity of hip hop. Burna once <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fa6DweKPf1A">described</a> part of this gumbo as “pepperoni pizza” with Kuti’s Afrobeat as the dough. There is nothing particularly unique about this recipe. Instead, the X factor can be found in his own winning combination of ingredients – bound with an arresting personality. Of course, there’s also his amazing dexterity in sampling to ponder.</p>
<p>He has <a href="https://theconversation.com/setting-the-record-straight-burna-boy-didnt-create-a-music-genre-called-afrofusion-187189">proclaimed</a> that his brand of music is a new genre called Afrofusion. Probably this is just a way of leveraging newfound success for greater effect. A way to distinguish himself from the teeming throng of Afrobeats aspirers. </p>
<p>To the undiscerning, Burna Boy’s sound is pure genius. But for those conversant with Kuti, with Jamaican godfather of dub, <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/reggaes-mad-scientist-65011/">Lee “Scratch” Perry</a>, and similar genres of <a href="https://jamaicansmusic.com/learn/origins/toasting">Caribbean toasting</a> (lyrical chanting over dancehall music), it all seems a bit déjà vu. </p>
<p>There are different ways to weigh Burna. If we put him against Kuti, Perry and the greats of dub, he is arguably minor. But in an incessantly Instagrammed era, endlessly photographed and reproduced, he is a giant bristling with substance, creative menace and yet to be decoded signification. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/J3rOq9lYjeQ?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Burna was birthed from robust foundations of Afrobeat, hip hop, ragga, grime, drum ‘n’ bass and dub-related sounds. There are hardly any other foundations as deep as these. His work, up till now, has mainly consisted of translating and reconfiguring those jungle-laden sounds for a mass audience. </p>
<p>In this regard, he is a faithful conduit, a vehicle for simmering, unadulterated and quasi-spiritual grooves. Sometimes, it isn’t even certain that Burna recognises the depth of what he is channelling. If he did, he wouldn’t be so eager to pair up with every hot music star that pops up on the scene.</p>
<p>Burna’s lyrics in hits such as <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=421w1j87fEM">Last Last</a> (2022) are replete with profanity, inanity and nonsense rhymes that sound good to the ears especially if you happen not to understand West African <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-38000387">pidgin</a>. This is yet another aspect of his work that can be quite bewildering; the sudden swings between sense and nonsense, pseudo-philosophical gravity and outright puerility.</p>
<h2>Rolling in dollars</h2>
<p>Lately, Burna has launched a campaign to gain even greater success. Just look at his high profile collaborations with the likes of US musicians <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aiCPsNcRMU">Pop Smoke</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kxb5GItBjJI">Beyoncé</a> as well as UK pop stars like <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byO74UGa8bI">Sam Smith</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDZ25anwgjc">Ed Sheeran</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXeOBkKdiAg">Stormzy</a> or Nigerian singer <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNTkoLf5x5U">Wizkid</a>.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/100-years-of-pop-music-in-nigeria-what-shaped-four-eras-181298">100 years of pop music in Nigeria: what shaped four eras</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Already, some of his hits are beginning to sound a little laboured, over-thought or under-thought. But perhaps this hardly matters as long as the dollars, brand endorsements and festival invitations keep rolling in. In today’s music industry, that’s all that counts. </p>
<p>Burna Boy has won the world and retained his brooding sense of menace, but it remains to be seen how much of his true creative soul he has left. </p>
<p><em>This article was updated to more accurately reflect the biography of Bose Ogulu.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/188080/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sanya Osha does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>With his new album Love, Damini he has conquered the world. But how much of his creative soul does he have left?Sanya Osha, Senior Research Fellow, Institute for Humanities in Africa, University of Cape TownLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1468732020-09-28T14:37:00Z2020-09-28T14:37:00ZKate Bush joins glittering line-up of songwriting talent as latest Ivors fellow<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/360306/original/file-20200928-20-xnugah.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C2%2C797%2C767&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Ethereal talent: Kate Bush.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Stephen Luff/Wikimedia Commons</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Kate Bush, the grand dame of British pop, <a href="https://ivorsacademy.com/news/kate-bush-becomes-a-fellow-of-the-ivors-academy/">has just been awarded</a> a prestigious fellowship of the Ivors Academy, the UK’s independent professional association for music creators. It’s an appropriate honour – Bush is the artist who in many ways opened the door for women creators in the UK music industry. </p>
<p>She had the first <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110101165148/http://www.theofficialcharts.com/artist/_/kate%20bush#singles">female self-penned number one single</a> and was the first to <a href="https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/first-artist-to-write-every-song-on-a-million-selling-album-(female)">write all the songs</a> for a debut album selling over a million copies. She also broke new ground by producing her own albums and taking control of her own management and music publishing. </p>
<p>Bush’s accolade follows hot on the heels of singer-songwriter <a href="https://ivorsacademy.com/news/joan-armatrading-academy-fellowship/">Joan Armatrading</a>, who received the same honour at the beginning of September 2020. Both women have distinct artistic voices, with Armatrading’s often guitar-driven songs investigating the complexities of personal relationships and Bush’s focusing more on narrative, mood and ambient soundscapes. A common musical feature is a shared engagement with rhythmic complexities, which they both handle with great sophistication and subtlety. </p>
<p>The Ivors Academy Fellowship is regarded as the ultimate recognition for UK composers and songwriters as it is bestowed by fellow creatives. <a href="https://ivorsacademy.com/about-us/fellows/">The list of fellows</a> is a who’s who of pop music’s great and good, including Paul McCartney, Tim Rice, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Annie Lennox, Elton John, Peter Maxwell Davies and David Arnold. Membership of this elite club spans the musical theatre, pop and classical worlds – and the addition of Armatrading and Bush adds some welcome diversity.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Black woman in white t-shirt singing into a microphone." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/360307/original/file-20200928-18-1497dy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/360307/original/file-20200928-18-1497dy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/360307/original/file-20200928-18-1497dy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/360307/original/file-20200928-18-1497dy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/360307/original/file-20200928-18-1497dy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/360307/original/file-20200928-18-1497dy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/360307/original/file-20200928-18-1497dy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=533&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Me, myself, I: Joan Armatrading performing in Dublin in the 1980s.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Eddie Malin/Wikimedia Commons</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>With the Ivors Awards having existed for 64 years, the fellows represent the post-war generation of baby-boomers and the global success of the British popular music and entertainment industry, <a href="https://www.itv.com/news/2020-09-24/boris-needs-to-wake-up-uks-live-music-industry-pleads-for-help-as-coronavirus-keeps-venues-shut">now under threat</a> from the consequences of COVID-19.</p>
<h2>Scaling the heights</h2>
<p>Bush grew up near Bexley, Kent in the south-east of England. With a Catholic upbringing, her father was a GP and her Irish mother was involved with the traditional Irish dance movement. The family were musical and Bush’s brothers were active in the local folk scene. She taught herself piano at the age of 11 and, supported by her family, soon started writing her own songs. </p>
<p>Through a friend of her family, Bush got in touch with Dave Gilmour, guitarist and singer with Pink Floyd, who helped her put together some demo recordings. On the back of these demos Bush signed a record deal with EMI, aged 16, and used part of her advance money to fund training as a mime artist and dance classes with <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/lindsay-kemp-dies-dancer-choreographer-david-bowie-kate-bush-a8513361.html">David Bowie’s teacher Lindsay Kemp</a>. This involvement with movement and theatricality was to become a hallmark of her music videos and live shows.</p>
<p>The impact of Kate Bush’s first single, Wuthering Heights, followed by the album The Kick Inside, was immediate and powerful. Released in February 1978, when she was 19, the track was ethereal, sophisticated and displayed an unnervingly complete artistic vision. It existed in a completely different world to what was in the <a href="https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/singles-chart/19780212/7501/">charts at the time</a>. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-1pMMIe4hb4?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>When I first heard Wuthering Heights as a 16-year-old schoolboy, I was bowled over by the musicianship of Bush’s piano playing and singing, the melodic, metrical and harmonic complexity, the extraordinary emotional world, the literary allusions and the otherworldly sexual and musical allure that she exuded. How could anyone just three years older than me be that cool; that talented?</p>
<p>Bush’s influences seemed clear – the pastoral prog rock of Genesis and singer-songwriters <a href="https://jonimitchell.com/">Joni Mitchell</a> and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2017/apr/19/laura-nyro-songwriter-passion-and-soul">Laura Nyro</a> spring to mind. But Bush’s work combined this with a very English female sensibility infused with a Gothic twist to create something totally unique. </p>
<h2>Still running up that hill</h2>
<p>With a body of work that includes 25 UK top 40 hits and ten UK top 10 albums, nobody could accuse Bush of neglecting her public. But there have been long pauses between albums – and an almost unbearably long gap for her fans between <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/may/13/kate-bush-only-tour-live">her 1979 “Tour of Life”</a> and her <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/aug/26/kate-bush-before-the-dawn-eventim-apollo-review">2014 residency at London’s Hammersmith Apollo</a>. It was this series of 22 theatrically conceived shows which were the hottest ticket in town and reaffirmed Bush’s position in the hearts of the British public.</p>
<p>How do Bush’s albums that followed The Kick Inside stand up to scrutiny? Lionheart was the 1978 follow up and is more of a companion piece than a development. In the 1980s, a sequence of five albums – starting with Never For Ever in 1980 – saw Bush using the new sampling technologies of the Fairlight CMI synthesiser, which – at times – seems to overpower the skill of her songwriting.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wp43OdtAAkM?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>In 1985, Hounds of Love was a return to commercial form with an A-side chock full of hit singles, including Running Up That Hill. But the next album of original material did not emerge until 1989 with The Sensual World and its standout track, the plangent This Woman’s Work. The subsequent studio album was 1993’s The Red Shoes, with the soul-influenced Rubberband Girl as the hit single.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/85wZw1O83aE?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>In 2005 after a lengthy career break, Bush released the double album Aerial, nominated for Best British Female Solo Artist and Best British Album at the 2006 BRIT Awards. But there was <a href="https://www.nme.com/news/music/1876394-1876394">still no tour</a> to placate Bush’s fans.</p>
<p>Her tenth album, 50 Words for Snow, came out in 2011 and swiftly established itself as both a fan and critic’s favourite reaching number five in the UK charts. The duet with Elton John, Snowed in at Wheeler Street, is particularly emotionally affecting.</p>
<p>Bush’s career has set a high bar and a template for musicians wanting artistic freedom and a freedom to manage their own pathway through the promotional merry-go-round. The hope is now that this honour will spur her on and we’ll be hearing from England’s siren queen with the new album and <a href="https://www.skiddle.com/artists/kate-bush-123511150/">live shows</a> that her fans so desperately thirst for.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/146873/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Adrian York is affiliated with The Labour Party. </span></em></p>Kate Bush follows Joan Armatrading as the second female singer-songwriter to receive this honour in 2020.Adrian York, Senior Lecturer in Commercial Music Performance, University of WestminsterLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1465002020-09-25T12:18:28Z2020-09-25T12:18:28ZLive venues are the lifeblood of music culture and must survive<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/360007/original/file-20200925-24-12hjsvv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=272%2C191%2C4500%2C2706&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/cheering-crowd-concert-91770806">Shutterstock/dwphotos</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>People use live music as a resource to help feed and nourish their emotions, for heightening or changing their energy levels and as a platform to escape the constraints of everyday life. Live music venues are quite often tied up with <a href="https://amp.theguardian.com/music/2019/oct/09/the-glue-that-ties-communities-why-regional-venues-are-vital?CMP=twt_a-culture_b-gdnculture&">local scenes and communities</a> and the ambience of these spaces allows people to delve deeper into the music they love and experience it in a totally different way.</p>
<p>But in light of COVID-19 and the growing popularity of <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/354f05c7-8418-4d2b-bd56-3d8dd65d2bde">streaming services</a>, virtual concerts and other digital music offerings, there is now a question mark over the survival of live music as a viable business.</p>
<p>In the last few years, a number of changes have occurred which have had a significant impact upon how fans engage with music. The music market has undergone <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1469540510390499">a period of transformation</a>, mainly due to the explosion of digital forms of listening and the development of digital music providers, such as Spotify and Pandora. The music industry has shifted from material artefacts such cassettes and CDs to more fluid and intangible digital formats. </p>
<p>This shift has been momentous for the industry as it has totally changed the way people consume music. But <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0038038519860399">my research</a> shows that live venues are, in fact, the <a href="https://amp.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/may/30/music-venues-british-culture-taskforce?">lifeblood of British music culture</a>. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/B3-4yH8ZZyo?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Music lovers establish lasting, significant and memorable connections with the artists they love when they go to see them perform live. These experiences form part of the meaning which informs their engagement with that music. So places like clubs, venues and festivals become an intrinsic part of the story of that particular band or artist in the mind of the gig-goer.</p>
<p>Experiences like these then help to form a “live culture” or scene.
One of my <a href="https://www.lancaster.ac.uk/news/manchester-produces-indie-music-fans-just-by-being-manchester">studies</a> illustrates how indie music fans in Manchester draw upon upon the live music culture of the city. Manchester has long been inspired by its music heritage, having produced globally popular bands such as Joy Division and The Smiths. Venues, including the Hacienda and the Free Trade Hall (where The Sex Pistols and Bob Dylan famously played) and music scenes like “Madchester” all add to this “live culture”. </p>
<h2>Crisis and uncertainity</h2>
<p>But the UK live music industry is facing <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/may/13/uk-live-music-festivals-sector-at-risk-coronavirus">a crisis</a>. Uncertainty is looming with no end to social distancing in the near future or any significant financial support from the government. According to <a href="https://www.ukmusic.org/policy/let-the-music-play">recent estimates</a>, the live music industry is set to lose more than £900 million while 30-50% of its workforce are facing unemployment if things remain unchanged until the end of the year. </p>
<p>This situation is particularly exemplified in <a href="https://news.liverpool.ac.uk/2020/09/04/survey-reveals-catastrophic-impact-of-covid-19-on-local-music-scene/">local music scenes and communities</a> which have been heavily affected by COVID-19. Many independent music venues worldwide <a href="https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/how-independent-live-music-venues-are-fighting-for-their-existence-coronavirus/?utm_social-">are fighting</a> to keep afloat.</p>
<p>For instance, popular music venues The Deaf Institute and Gorilla in Manchester, recently <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-manchester-53493070">had to be saved from closure</a> due to financial constraints. Tim Burgess, of The Charlatans, <a href="https://twitter.com/Tim_Burgess/status/1283785610835169281?s=20">summed it up when he said</a>: “I’ve played and watched gigs in both and they were the lifeblood of Manchester’s vital network of venues. It’s awful news but seems inevitable that so many more independent venues will be lost.”</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1283785610835169281"}"></div></p>
<p>In an attempt to bridge the gap between themselves and the fans, artists have been switching to <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/03/17/816504058/a-list-of-live-virtual-concerts-to-watch-during-the-coronavirus-shutdown?t=1600701307753">“live” digital concerts and events</a> such as <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/jul/23/nick-cave-idiot-prayer-review-livestreamed-gig-alexandra-palace">Nick Cave’s Idiot Prayer gig</a> in an empty Alexandra Palace with just a piano and his voice. This was live-streamed and will be also released in cinemas. </p>
<p>The live music industry has also been experimenting with other digital formats such as Glastonbury’s attempt to launch a <a href="https://amp.independent.ie/entertainment/music/glastonburys-shangri-la-team-launches-virtual-reality-festival-39268865.html#click=https://t.co/KuFfBEgI">virtual reality festival</a>. <a href="https://www.nme.com/features/lost-horizon-virtual-reality-glastonbury-2020-shangri-la-2693862">Lost Horizon</a> is being streamed on Twitch and YouTube and the organisers invite attendees to fully immerse themselves by either using a desktop PC or a VR headset. </p>
<p>Other digital “live” events involve music fans consuming “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1108/EJM-12-2014-0775">real and fantastic</a>” time and space through virtual imaginary settings and the use of digital avatars. Examples include VR-driven concerts by <a href="https://www.roadtovr.com/john-legend-wave-concert-june/">John Legend</a>, <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-52410647">Travis Scott</a> and <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/pro/features/virtual-reality-livestreams-covid-1021683/">Jean-Michel Jarre</a>. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YUCzn_eMFF4?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>But are these experiences an authentic way of experiencing live music? Or do they indicate a transition towards a <a href="https://theconversation.com/virtual-reality-has-been-boosted-by-coronavirus-heres-how-to-avoid-it-leading-us-to-dystopia-141073">dystopian cultural milieu</a>? In this scenario, we might end up losing sight of the multi-sensory and collective aspects of live music and experience it instead alone at home through a VR headset or a similar technological device.</p>
<p>We need to safeguard the cultural heritage of the live music industry and support local spaces, events and communities in the delivery of innovative cultural offerings in a post-COVID era. More <a href="https://pitchfork.com/news/watch-flaming-lips-perform-race-for-the-prize-in-bubbles-on-colbert/">creative initiatives</a> are needed if we were to blend the physical and digital aspects without downplaying the significance of real live music. </p>
<p>The Flaming Lips have experimented with one such innovative approach. They did a live gig where both the band and the audience were “enclosed” in individual bubbles. It might not be the perfect solution – but I bet everyone who attended that gig will remember it for the rest of their lives.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/146500/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alexandros Skandalis does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Live music venues must be helped to survive the COVID-19 era.Alexandros Skandalis, Lecturer in Marketing and Consumer Culture, Lancaster UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1413362020-07-21T20:10:00Z2020-07-21T20:10:00ZSecond World War singing icon Dame Vera Lynn was more than the British Forces’ Sweetheart<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/348223/original/file-20200718-17-1j8j4fs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Photos of British singer Vera Lynn are seen in a window, as her funeral procession is led through the village of Ditchling, southern England, July 10, 2020. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Alastair Grant)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Since Dame Vera Lynn died June 18, there has been an outpouring of tributes rightly celebrating her fame as a singer and <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-sussex-53337459">“the Forces’ Sweetheart”</a> during the Second World War. </p>
<p>Lynn (born Vera Welch) had grown up in London’s working class East End and blossomed as a dance band singer in the 1930s. During the war, she became a beloved solo performer on stage, record and radio.</p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="Vera Lynn stands at a microphone singing, backed by a pianist." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/348226/original/file-20200718-27-1pzake0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/348226/original/file-20200718-27-1pzake0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=792&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348226/original/file-20200718-27-1pzake0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=792&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348226/original/file-20200718-27-1pzake0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=792&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348226/original/file-20200718-27-1pzake0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=995&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348226/original/file-20200718-27-1pzake0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=995&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348226/original/file-20200718-27-1pzake0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=995&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Vera Lynn performs at a munitions factory during the Second World War.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(P 551 from the Imperial War Museums collection/Wikimedia)</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Particularly as heard on the BBC, Lynn’s voice offered comfort and hope to forces and civilians alike. Her personal <a href="https://journals.msvu.ca/index.php/atlantis/article/view/778/765">sincerity</a>, working class background and accessible songs embodied the values of “<a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/104/1040534/the-people-s-war/9780712652841.html">People’s War</a>” unity, shared sacrifice and egalitarianism.</p>
<p>Once they reach the end of the war, however, some obituaries lose the thread. They <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/18/world/vera-lynn-dead.html">skim over</a> <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/dame-vera-lynn-dies-second-world-war-1.5617056">75 years of Lynn’s remarkable life</a> when, through hard work, public service and careful balance, she would adapt and change while sustaining — and sometimes challenging — her place in public memory.</p>
<h2>Post-war interest</h2>
<p>It’s worth noting Lynn herself did not assume the public would still be interested in hearing her after the war. She briefly “<a href="https://www.routledge.com/Popular-Music-and-the-Politics-of-Hope-Queer-and-Feminist-Interventions/Fast-Jennex/p/book/9781138055896">retired</a>” in late 1945, a few months before <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNNCB6cPuk4">her daughter was born</a>. </p>
<p>But she returned to the recording studio in late 1946. By early 1947, she was back on BBC radio, starring in her own show, and making solo appearances in <a href="https://www.macmillanihe.com/page/detail/britain-had-talent-oliver-double/?k=9780230284593">variety theatres</a>. </p>
<p>Some may <a href="https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/american-women-in-world-war-ii-1#:%7E:text=Women%20were%20critical%20to%20the,women%20worked%20outside%20the%20home.">assume that every “Rosie the Riveter”</a> or Forces’ Sweetheart became a housewife after the war. But Lynn, like many women, <a href="https://www.ehs.org.uk/dotAsset/4e68f7d2-4ddb-4d34-889d-30c831beb6b1.pdf">continued to work outside the home</a>. In her <a href="https://www.harpercollins.co.uk/9780007318919/some-sunny-day/">autobiography</a>, she recalled a discussion with her husband, Harry Lewis, about which of them would have the career. Lynn’s earning potential was greater, as he was a musician who had been discharged from the Royal Air Force Squadronaires dance band, because of illness. </p>
<p>They determined Lewis would support Lynn as advocate and manager. Their loving and effective partnership lasted until his death in 1998. </p>
<h2>Busy 1950s</h2>
<p>As with many women in the public eye, the 1950s media worked to make Lynn relatable by emphasizing her roles as <a href="https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/page/4759ee1e48de4d57a6eb95019aafd322">wife, mother and homemaker</a> — and downplaying her professionalism.</p>
<p>The fact was that the 1950s were <a href="https://www.harpercollins.co.uk/9780007318919/some-sunny-day/">even busier</a> for Lynn than the war years. Her popularity grew in the United States and in 1952, she became the first British artist to top America’s Hit Parade, with the nostalgic “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36prRdWCqu0">Auf Wiederseh’n, Sweetheart</a>.”</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/36prRdWCqu0?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Vera Lynn sings ‘Auf Wiederseh’n, Sweetheart.’</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Lynn made the move to television in 1955, signing contracts <a href="https://www.politics.co.uk/reference/itv">with broadcaster ITV</a> and then the BBC. As BBC Audience Research reported in 1957, audiences regarded the then 40-year-old as both a top contemporary entertainer and an admired “<a href="https://www.routledge.com/Popular-Music-and-the-Politics-of-Hope-Queer-and-Feminist-Interventions/Fast-Jennex/p/book/9781138055896">historic figure</a>.”</p>
<p>As British tastes changed and rock ‘n’ roll, rock, ska, punk and disco topped the charts, Lynn continued to broadcast, record and tour internationally. </p>
<p>She worked tirelessly for a range of charities, from veterans to children with disabilities and breast cancer research. </p>
<h2>Potent symbol</h2>
<p>In 1975, Lynn was made a Dame Commander of the British Empire, in recognition of her charity work, an honour she described as “<a href="https://www.harpercollins.co.uk/9780007318919/some-sunny-day/">the high point of my career</a>.” </p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="Vera Lynn stands smiling wearing a triple string of pearls and a jacquard blue and orange jacket in 1969." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/348224/original/file-20200718-29-1fvh100.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/348224/original/file-20200718-29-1fvh100.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=831&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348224/original/file-20200718-29-1fvh100.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=831&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348224/original/file-20200718-29-1fvh100.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=831&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348224/original/file-20200718-29-1fvh100.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1044&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348224/original/file-20200718-29-1fvh100.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1044&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348224/original/file-20200718-29-1fvh100.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1044&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Vera Lynn attends a reception in London in 1969.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo, File)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>During the 1970s, though Lynn sometimes described herself as <a href="https://www.routledge.com/Popular-Music-and-the-Politics-of-Hope-Queer-and-Feminist-Interventions/Fast-Jennex/p/book/9781138055896">semi-retired</a>, she continued to present new material, both on her own television variety show and on albums such as <em><a href="https://www.discogs.com/Vera-Lynn-Vera-Lynn-In-Nashville/release/4175261">Vera Lynn in Nashville</a></em>. </p>
<p>In a September 1975 <em>Radio Times</em> profile of the newly made dame, the novelist Margaret Drabble observed, “<a href="https://www.routledge.com/Popular-Music-and-the-Politics-of-Hope-Queer-and-Feminist-Interventions/Fast-Jennex/p/book/9781138055896">Altogether, she’s a very odd mixture of hard-working professional artist and busy contented woman-about-the-house. Perhaps … that is why, so long after the war, she remains so potent a symbol</a>.”</p>
<p>Lynn continued to make appearances, support charities and advocate for veterans and <a href="https://www.standard.co.uk/newsheadlines/dame-vera-questions-afghan-mission-6727364.html">active-duty troops</a>. She also continued to perform at Second World War commemorations, up to her “final” performance for the 50th anniversary of VE-Day in 1995, when she was the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOpFyDy5CRo">closing act</a> for a crowd of 100,000 in Buckingham Park. </p>
<p>In the process of sustaining her career, Lynn also laid the foundation for her enduring legacy as a Second World War icon, the “one singing voice above all others [that] had come to exemplify the courage, the determination and the refusal to be downhearted,” as she was introduced at the 1995 VE-Day concert. </p>
<h2>Racist myths impacting nostalgia</h2>
<p>Dame Vera, with her well-earned reputation for sincerity, kindness and courage, helped embody British memory of the Second World War as a “good war” in which Britain had fought heroically and alone against fascism. But no one becomes an icon alone and neither Lynn nor England triumphed through the war as solo efforts.</p>
<p>Though she never <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1148617/Dame-Vera-Lynn-warpath-BNP-uses-White-Cliffs-Of-Dover-anti-immigrant-album.html">“aligned” with a political party, Lynn did not stay completely out of the political fray</a>. In 2009, the xenophobic British National Party included her recording of “White Cliffs of Dover” on a fundraising CD without her permission. <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1148617/Dame-Vera-Lynn-warpath-BNP-uses-White-Cliffs-Of-Dover-anti-immigrant-album.html">The <em>Daily Mail</em> reported Lynn was “furious” and that her solicitor was investigating legal action</a>. (However, <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7899602.stm">she no longer controlled the rights</a> to the 1942 recording.) </p>
<p>Such nationalistic nostalgia is sometimes used to advance racist myths of Second World War Britain as a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/jul/06/before-windrush-review-race-relations-liverpool">fundamentally white nation</a>. This, despite the reality that Britain’s <a href="https://www.routledge.com/We-Europeans-Mass-Observation-Race-and-British-Identity-in-the-Twentieth/Kushner/p/book/9781138275812">continental ties</a> and <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-52939694">colonial history</a> have <a href="https://www.historytoday.com/archive/windrush">long</a> made it a nation <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/jul/06/before-windrush-review-race-relations-liverpool">populated by diverse peoples</a>.</p>
<p>It also overlooks the fact that the Second World War “<a href="https://www.routledge.com/An-Imperial-World-at-War-The-British-Empire-193945-1st-Edition/Jackson-Khan-Singh/p/book/9780815366867">was fought by the British Empire, not just by Britain</a>,” as the historians Yasmin Khan of the University of Oxford and Gajendra Singh of the University of Exeter write. Britain depended upon troops, resources, and food from both its dominions (Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand) and its colonies in <a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/108/1085586/the-raj-at-war/9780099542278.html">Asia</a>, <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8344170.stm">Africa</a> and <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-32703753">the Caribbean</a>. </p>
<p>Forgetting these histories has limited Britain’s reckoning with contemporary racism and the legacies of colonialism, including international <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/ng-interactive/2014/feb/11/britain-100-years-of-conflict">conflicts</a> of “post-war” Britain.</p>
<h2>Full span of Lynn’s life</h2>
<p>We can celebrate Dame Vera without mythologizing Second World War Britain, especially if we consider the full span of her life. </p>
<p>It is hard for any musician to sustain a long career, but it is especially hard for women, who are so often judged by their youth and physical attractiveness. Dame Vera had the curious experience of aging in the public eye. She was never far from her audiences’ <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_o5VXH-pIk">memories</a> of her younger Forces’ Sweetheart self, yet she evolved as an artist and philanthropist, and did not shy away from asserting control over how her image and music were mobilized.</p>
<p>We can celebrate the working-class girl who became a Dame, the working mother and philanthropist, the artist who sustained and built connections with fans everywhere and the woman who did her best to make the world a kinder, fairer place.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/141336/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Christina Baade receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. </span></em></p>We can celebrate Dame Vera while rejecting racist myths about Second World War Britain and those who seek to use Lynn to advance a xenophobic nostalgia.Christina Baade, Professor in Communication Studies, McMaster UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1420962020-07-07T14:59:15Z2020-07-07T14:59:15ZArts rescue package: don’t forget small venues – they’re where big stars learned their trade<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/346108/original/file-20200707-194405-pt8uae.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C8%2C3000%2C1976&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">What if The Beatles hasn't been talent-spotted at The Cavern Club in Liverpool?</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">littlenySTOCK via Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Icons – and gigs – come in all shapes and sizes. July 6 marks the anniversary of the day that Paul McCartney and John Lennon first met at <a href="https://www.beatlesbible.com/1957/07/06/john-lennon-meets-paul-mccartney/">Woolton Fête in 1957</a>. Sixty-three years later McCartney has played at massive and historic events: Olympic ceremonies, Royal Jubilees, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSoYvI9t3ug">Live Aid</a> and, of course, stadiums and arenas around the world. </p>
<p>In the precarious, socially distanced atmosphere of COVID-19 it’s becoming just about possible to imagine a small outdoor gathering such as Woolten Fête taking place again. But the timeframe for music venues reopening is less certain. This is a major concern – by McCartney’s <a href="https://www.prsformusic.com/m-magazine/news/sir-paul-mccartney-throws-weight-behind-grassroots-venues/">own account</a>, it’s the “grassroots clubs, pubs and music venues” that shaped his craft as a performer. As he said in 2016: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>Artists need places to start out, develop and work on their craft and small venues have been the cornerstone for this.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>COVID-19 and the lockdown have imperilled artistic activity and creative industries across the board – and the £1.57 billion rescue package from the UK chancellor of the exchequer, Rishi Sunak, offers much-needed breathing room for museums, venues, cinemas, galleries and theatres alike. </p>
<p>But much will depend on how this is administered – not just across the different art-forms but within these sectors: from the Royal Opera House to the small venues, including the Cavern and the Casbah Coffee Club where the Beatles cut their teeth. From the major cities to the smaller towns. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/346117/original/file-20200707-194401-xupv2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/346117/original/file-20200707-194401-xupv2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/346117/original/file-20200707-194401-xupv2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/346117/original/file-20200707-194401-xupv2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/346117/original/file-20200707-194401-xupv2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=531&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/346117/original/file-20200707-194401-xupv2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=531&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/346117/original/file-20200707-194401-xupv2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=531&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">John Lennon’s band The Quarrymen, the day he met Paul McCartney.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Given the scale of the crisis, resources are finite but it’s important, where possible, not to view it as a zero-sum game. A key feature of the relationship between the grassroots clubs, the concert halls and the arenas is interdependence – an <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/19401159.2015.1125633">ecology</a> where diversity of venues, as well as music styles, provides not only a pathway for musical careers but a cultural system where the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.</p>
<h2>Cultural and economic value</h2>
<p>Oliver Dowden, the culture secretary, talks of preserving the “<a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-53302415">crown jewels</a>”, such as the Royal Albert Hall, while the prime minister <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/157-billion-investment-to-protect-britains-world-class-cultural-arts-and-heritage-institutions">spoke of local venues</a>. Both are vital. The grassroots sector has been described as the “<a href="https://www.artscouncil.org.uk/sites/default/files/download-file/ACNLPG_Supporting_Grassroots_Live_Music_100519.pdf">research and development</a>” arm of the music industries and without these spaces it will be hard to produce the McCartneys of the future. This is not just a question of star power.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/SIdl9mN6yJM?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Music is a significant contributor to the UK economy – around £5.2 billion per annum <a href="https://www.ukmusic.org/assets/general/Music_By_Numbers_2019_Report.pdf">according to UK Music</a>. And live music – at £1.1 billion in 2018 – is central to that. The days in which live performances were secondary to recordings have passed. Consumer spend on live music <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09548963.2014.925282">outpaced recordings in 2008</a> and the sector overall – to say nothing of individual careers – relies on the live experience.</p>
<p>To that end, the government’s announcement can be viewed as an investment as much as a bailout, urgently needed though it is. Nor do the economic figures tell the whole story. The UK Live Music Census of 2017 (which I worked on) demonstrated how venues are embedded into their localities, woven throughout the lives of audience members as well as musicians. <a href="http://uklivemusiccensus.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/UK-Live-Music-Census-2017-full-report.pdf">As one respondent told us</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I feel part of something greater as I’ve shared something beautiful with a crowd, even if I haven’t spoken to them; it makes me feel like I’m part of a community.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Small venues were also the category that had been most visited by respondents to the audience survey (78% had attended one in the previous 12 months) and this foundation for local and national musical life means that “heritage” spreads out beyond storied concert halls like the Albert Hall. Local live music has been a focus of <a href="http://livemusicexchange.org/wp-content/uploads/Facilitating-Music-Tourism-for-Scotland%E2%80%99s-Creative-Economy-Behr-Ord.pdf">tourism</a> as well as home consumption. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/WvnnU-5T-cU?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>As the licensee of Camden Town’s Dublin Castle put it when explaining how the venue was simultaneously <a href="http://livemusicexchange.org/wp-content/uploads/The-Cultural-Value-of-Live-Music-Pub-to-Stadium-report.pdf">a community resource and a part of a bigger cultural picture</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>We get people travelling from Japan who come to The Dublin Castle because they know that Amy Winehouse played there and she used to frequent the bar. And they sit down and they’re thinking ‘I’m drinking where she drank’. And I think that makes you feel that you’re part of that scene which you want to belong to.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Nurturing the grassroots</h2>
<p>Despite its role in shaping Britain’s musical milieu, the grassroots sector hasn’t had it easy. Under pressure from <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2018/feb/16/uks-first-live-music-census-finds-small-venues-struggling">urban development and gentrification</a>, a spate of closures has led to the realisation that, once lost, these spaces are hard to replace. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/cKKjjtys0hM?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>The <a href="http://musicvenuetrust.com/">Music Venue Trust</a>, which played a major role in lobbying for the recent injection of funds, did much to galvanise and give a more unified voice to what had hitherto been quite a disparate group of businesses – something that is, after all, a part of their appeal.</p>
<p>The imminent threat to hundreds of venues might be allayed, then, but they aren’t out of the woods yet. Brexit still looms on the horizon – and recent research has shown that the beyond the problems this may cause <a href="https://www.theneweuropean.co.uk/top-stories/what-affect-has-brexit-had-on-the-music-industry-1-6534435">for touring musicians</a>, there could also be knock-on effects from the cultural sector <a href="https://www2.aston.ac.uk/lss/research/lss-research/aston-centre-europe/projects-grants/blmp-report-i.pdf">to local employment</a> more widely. </p>
<p>A mapping exercise <a href="https://pec.ac.uk/blog/birmingham-live-music-map-in-times-of-covid-19">currently underway in Birmingham</a> demonstrates the difficulty of disentangling the fates of local scenes, national industries and international networks. The chancellor’s rescue package is a vital first step in maintaining the global stepping stones from Woolten Fête to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6DfG7sml-Q">Shea Stadium</a>. It’s important that it isn’t the last.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/142096/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Adam Behr has received funding from the Arts and Humanities Research Council.</span></em></p>Chances are your favourite band started out learning the trade at a pub or small club. Venues like this are under threat like never before.Adam Behr, Lecturer in Popular and Contemporary Music, Newcastle UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1339612020-03-20T09:02:43Z2020-03-20T09:02:43ZCoronavirus: for performers in lockdown, online is becoming the new live<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321576/original/file-20200319-22602-1x4x21b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4583%2C3009&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Closed for the duration: the Royal Opera House, London.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Willy Barton via Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>There’s still a great deal of uncertainty as to what impact the <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/topics/covid-19-82431">coronavirus pandemic</a> will have on the UK’s cultural life. More and more people are now choosing to self-isolate and theatres, cinemas, clubs and concert halls are <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2020/mar/13/coronavirus-culture-arts-films-gigs-festivals-cancellations">closing down for the duration</a> with talk that an enforced lockdown is ever more imminent. </p>
<p>While initially presented as voluntary, cancellations of performances, conferences and other events were formalised on March 16 by the UK’s prime minister, Boris Johnson. Johnson <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/pm-statement-on-coronavirus-16-march-2020">advised citizens</a> to “avoid pubs, clubs, theatres and other such social venues” as part of a larger strategy to suppress the spread of coronavirus. People working in the arts sector are <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2020/mar/17/leading-arts-figures-demand-clarity-over-compensation-for-coronavirus-closures">understandably concerned</a> about what this might mean for the UK’s <a href="http://uklivemusiccensus.org">diverse community</a> of artists and performers – as well as all those in the sector who support those performers. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1239965135348752385"}"></div></p>
<p>The government has introduced some measures that aim to support the arts sector, both at a <a href="https://twitter.com/ChloeLaversuch/status/1239965135348752385?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22">local</a> and a <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-employees-employers-and-businesses">national level</a>. But a number of artists are trying to find ways to work from home by livestreaming their performances online. Such a shift forces artists to consider technological, economic and aesthetic issues – and may signal the dawning of a new era in live performance.</p>
<h2>Have broadband, will perform</h2>
<p>The livestreaming of artistic performances is not new – but until now the practice has not been a significant alternative to the live music economy at large. Perhaps the most common form of livestreaming has been through videos taken at gigs or festivals by audience members who want to <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1468797619885954">share their experience</a> of the live performance via footage shot on their smartphones. </p>
<p>But there have also been concentrated efforts by venues and artists to reach online audiences. A number of well-established organisations such as the <a href="https://wigmore-hall.org.uk/watch-listen/live-stream">Wigmore Hall</a> and <a href="https://www.rsc.org.uk/news/archive/summer-shakespeares-coming-to-cinemas">the Royal Shakespeare Company</a> regularly complement existing performance series with livestreaming to reach wider audiences or as educational outreach.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BZKtQAIE4ew?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Independent artists such as bass guitarist <a href="https://www.stevelawson.net">Steve Lawson</a>, on the other hand, include livestreaming as part of a portfolio of online activity – which also include delivering lessons or masterclasses via video or the now-commonplace selling of albums online.</p>
<h2>Virtual gigs</h2>
<p>The vast amount of livestreaming that takes place in the arts sector is in parallel with (or contingent upon) face-to-face performance. There are signs that this is already changing as social restrictions around the coronavirus pandemic become more widespread. </p>
<p>In the US, <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/coronavirus-livestreaming-concerts-967169/">Rolling Stone magazine</a> has highlighted how larger bands and venues are working to quickly provide online alternatives to gigs and tours that have now been cancelled due to lockdowns. </p>
<p>The move towards online live performance is even attracting artists who might not be thought of as natural users of digital technology. As many New York City venues <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2020/mar/12/broadway-shuts-down-coronavirus">were closed</a> in the week preceding St Patrick’s Day, musicians involved in the Irish trad scene formed <a href="https://tune.supply">Tune Supply</a> – a platform by which they could provide “customised traditional music and dance performance and instruction delivered digitally for the socially distanced world”. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5j06g0TE_Ao?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Similarly, Celtic punk band Dropkick Murphys <a href="http://www.dropkickmurphys.com/2020/03/14/streaming-up-from-boston-free-st-patricks-day-live-stream/">livestreamed a concert from Boston</a> on March 17 to make up for the first time in the band’s history that it hasn’t played on St Patrick’s Day.</p>
<p>As livestreaming concerts has historically been used to <a href="https://www.musictank.co.uk/product/the-live-music-industry-in-the-digital-environment-transcript/">complement or advertise</a> existing live events, the void left by the cancellation or indefinite postponement of these events forces online alternatives into greater importance. This shift in performance practice has logistical, financial, and artistic implications.</p>
<h2>We have the technology</h2>
<p>The infrastructure needed to livestream performances is readily available through consumer-level products. Modern smartphones are <a href="https://momofilmfest.com/best-smartphone-for-video-recording-filmmaking-2019/">more than capable of generating high-definition videos</a>, and the software needed to record and edit sound – something that was once the preserve of professional recording studios – has become relatively commonplace.</p>
<p>There’s obviously something of a learning curve involved in using this software adeptly, but there is a wealth of online resources for musicians to become more proficient producers. But beyond actually organising the performance, artists need to be able to ensure they have adequate bandwidth to transmit that performance to audiences. With <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-50865443">increasing access to high-speed internet</a>, the stage is set for potential viewers to access content with minimal lag and disruption.</p>
<h2>Who’s making all the money?</h2>
<p>Financially, artists will have to determine how they monetise these performances. Several models already exist to do so, each with unique features. Platforms such as <a href="https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/72857">YouTube</a> allow artists to livestream performances and upload other videos, with income being generated through ad revenue. The amount of profit relies heavily on the amount of advertising and number of viewers – videos under ten minutes make, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/youtube-creator-doubled-ad-money-by-making-longer-videos-2020-1?r=US&IR=T">on average</a>, about US$2.00 (£1.70) for every 1,000 views.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.twitch.tv/p/partners/">Twitch</a>, on the other hand, works on a subscription basis – audiences pay set fees to access broadcasts of events. At the moment, this platform caters more towards <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/1369118X.2017.1386229?casa_token=Mc7q9_3X5yUAAAAA:vOeM2mWSPbodK3xYuPupRVbyrc3X-KtySKYjZ9L5GscC7Kcz9WnKM_dPc33o6OkOF4inZz5Mcv76bQ">professional online gaming</a>, but there are also communities around the performing arts as well. <a href="https://www.patreon.com/c/music">Patreon</a> also works on a subscription basis, but is more closely tied to crowdfunding. Generating work through the financial support of their audiences, artists often benefit from establishing <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10824-020-09381-5">positive relationships with them</a>.</p>
<h2>That ‘live’ feeling</h2>
<p>Beyond the technological and financial logistics of livestreaming performances is a greater aesthetic issue. Livestreaming technically provides all of the ingredients to allow live music to persist in an era of social distancing. Artists can still provide high-quality audio and visual experiences to their audiences and audiences can still enjoy new music or their favourite hits, all without leaving their comfort of their own homes. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321634/original/file-20200319-22618-61dheg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321634/original/file-20200319-22618-61dheg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321634/original/file-20200319-22618-61dheg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321634/original/file-20200319-22618-61dheg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321634/original/file-20200319-22618-61dheg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321634/original/file-20200319-22618-61dheg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321634/original/file-20200319-22618-61dheg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Glastonbury Festival has been cancelled, despite it being the 50th year.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">marietta peros via Shutterstock.</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>What may be harder to replicate is that electric vibe of being with other people in that moment. The audience can make or break a gig – not necessarily through sheer numbers, but in terms of what the relationship between them, the artist, and the music is like. For performers, reproducing that “live” feeling out of context can be a significant challenge. </p>
<p>As increasing numbers of musicians and audiences adopt this way of making and enjoying music together, I suspect all participants will develop a new set of expectations around where aesthetic value is placed in the performance. </p>
<p>This unprecedented global crisis provides an opportunity for artists to develop new ways of working with audiences and content to replicate that sense of “liveness” and connectivity found in a concert hall. Who knows? This might become an enduring part of a new reality.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/133961/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>J Murphy McCaleb does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Will a coronavirus lockdown prompt a permanent change in the way we experience live performance?J Murphy McCaleb, Senior Lecturer of Music, York St John UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1030012018-09-12T11:37:21Z2018-09-12T11:37:21ZBrexit will strike a discordant note for Britain’s musical relationship with Europe<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/235995/original/file-20180912-133886-j3nx1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">BBC/Chris Christodoulou</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Franz Liszt, the 19th century’s most famous pianist, arrived in London in May 1840 ready to tour the United Kingdom. On arrival, he may have registered his name and rank – a legacy of regulating the flocks of French immigrants who gravitated to “La Généreuse Nation” following the French Revolution – but, in all probability, Liszt was simply met off the boat by his London agent. No questions asked. </p>
<p>Liszt, like other visiting musicians, enjoyed Britain’s <a href="https://www.historytoday.com/anne-kershen/1905-aliens-act">liberal “open door” approach to immigration</a>. Then, as now, London was truly an international city. The relative lack of native composers meant that the city was particularly welcoming to foreign musical talent. Londoners enjoyed Italian, French and, later, German opera, and German symphonic and choral music – the best singers and instrumentalists that Europe had to offer. Musicians and composers moved between London and the other great musical centres of Europe with ease. </p>
<p>What a contrast, then, to the conditions that visiting musicians are already beginning to encounter in anticipation of Brexit. This summer, various overseas musicians were forced to withdraw from performing in the recent <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/brexit-musicians-refuse-perform-uk-visa-process-womad-festival-chris-smith-a8464431.html">WOMAD festival</a> due to negative perceptions of the UK and “humiliating” immigration processes. The <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/top-orchestra-forced-to-move-due-to-brexit-immigration-restrictions-a7588841.html">European Union Baroque Orchestra has relocated</a> from Oxfordshire to Antwerp, and the EU Youth Orchestra has moved its headquarters from <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/oct/11/eu-youth-orchestra-to-quit-uk-for-italy-over-brexit">London to a new home in Italy</a>. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.musiciansunion.org.uk/Home/News/2018/May/Why-Free-Movement-Matters">Musicians’ Union</a> and the <a href="http://www.abo.org.uk/media/128619/ABO-Brexit-report.pdf">Association of British Orchestras</a> have both expressed concerns over Brexit, highlighting how musicians rely on multinational touring and numerous other benefits of EU membership. And anxiety over Britain’s position on the international cultural stage post-Brexit culminated this summer in provocative pro-Remain demonstrations at the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/sep/10/eu-flags-at-last-night-of-the-proms-anger-farage">Last Night of the Proms</a>.</p>
<p>In the hostile climate encouraged by Brexit, it is more important than ever to preserve Britain and Europe’s shared cultural heritage and to spotlight the longstanding mutual benefits of easy musical touring. </p>
<h2>Welcoming talent</h2>
<p>London has a long history of “adopting” European composers. Most famously, Handel became a <a href="https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/parliamentary-archives/explore-guides-to-documentary-archive-/archives-highlights/handel-and-naturalisation/">naturalised British subject</a> in 1727. But the close relationship between British and European musicians really stepped up a gear in the 19th century. A series of transformative technological leaps – the railway, the telegraph, and developments in printing – connected people more than ever before. British musical life benefited greatly from the ease with which ideas could be exchanged.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/235876/original/file-20180911-144473-92nod8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/235876/original/file-20180911-144473-92nod8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=484&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235876/original/file-20180911-144473-92nod8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=484&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235876/original/file-20180911-144473-92nod8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=484&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235876/original/file-20180911-144473-92nod8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=608&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235876/original/file-20180911-144473-92nod8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=608&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/235876/original/file-20180911-144473-92nod8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=608&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">George Frideric Handel (left) became a British citizen by act of parliament in 1727.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:GeorgIvonGro%C3%9FbritannienGeorgFriedrichHaendelHamman.jpg">Edouard Jean Conrad Hamman</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Networks of institutions and ambassadors transformed British musicians’ ability to perform in Europe in the 19th century. Meanwhile, London compensated for a dearth of native talent by actively recruiting foreign artists. </p>
<p>British musical institutions actively welcomed European talent. From their inception in the early 19th century, the Royal Academy of Music (RAM) and the Royal Philhamonic Society (RPS) were at the centre of important continental networks enabling the movement of musicians across the channel. The RAM developed an informal relationship with the Leipzig Conservatory which enabled students to travel to Germany to continue their studies and to enjoy Leipzig’s unrivalled musical culture. Most English students then returned to London; Great Britain’s musical life benefited from their knowledge and the connections they had made. </p>
<h2>Key players</h2>
<p>The RPS also promoted the relationship between English and German musicians. Several of its most influential members were German (such as composer <a href="https://www.classicfm.com/composers/beethoven/guides/ferdinand-ries-1784-1838-beethovens-right-hand-man/">Ferdinand Ries</a> and virtuoso pianist <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ignaz-Moscheles">Ignaz Moscheles</a>), but spent the greater part of their careers in London while maintaining ties with their colleagues at home. The RPS also actively recruited famous visiting artists from abroad to bolster its reputation and keep London society abreast of the latest musical developments. Felix Mendelssohn became one of its most trusted advisers, recommending visiting artists and easing the entry of Continental musicians into British musical life.</p>
<p>English composers boasting European contacts acted as intermediaries between London and the Continent. Composer <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/William-Sterndale-Bennett">William Sterndale Bennett</a> was a particularly effective networker. Having studied at the RAM, Bennett had spent time in Germany, becoming popular in local musical circles. Bennett acted as an ambassador for the RPS in Germany, keeping musicians there informed about its activities. He persuaded Mendelssohn to conduct the 1842 season and was also the point of contact for <a href="https://www.allmusic.com/artist/louis-spohr-mn0001302878/biography">Louis Spohr</a>, one of the most famous composers of his day, when he was invited to conduct the RPS’s 1843 season.</p>
<p>These institutions and their unofficial ambassadors promoted the exchange of musical ideas in the 19th century between Great Britain and the Continent. Publishers, and later agents, were also crucial in enabling Continental musicians to undertake British tours. They had the local knowledge needed to book venues, plan transportation, and manage promotion and ticket sales. Today, agencies such as <a href="http://www.visitingarts.org.uk/about/">Visiting Arts</a>, perform a similar role in helping musicians to cross borders. It too, is also closely monitoring the effects of Brexit.</p>
<p>Just as in the past, institutions and ambassadors will have an important role to play in smoothing relationships post-Brexit. And musicians need to be guaranteed the free movement that is so essential to their work. International collaboration is historically a source of considerable pride and success in British musical life. Let’s ensure it stays that way.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/103001/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Joanne Cormac receives funding from the Leverhulme Trust. </span></em></p>Leaving the EU will threaten the long and close relationship between Britain and Europe when it comes to making and enjoying music.Joanne Cormac, Leverhulme Early Career Fellow in Music, University of NottinghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/974812018-07-10T12:23:01Z2018-07-10T12:23:01ZThree Lions roar: the mixed fortunes of England’s football anthems<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/221970/original/file-20180606-137291-18ocjfx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Will England be serenading its football heroes in 2018?</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/doug88888/4550561194/">@Doug88888/flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">CC BY-NC-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>We’re fast approaching the final stages of the <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/topics/world-cup-2018-11490">2018 World Cup</a> – and what a tournament it’s been. Germany going out in the group stages turned out to be more than just a chance for schadenfreude – but a harbinger for what has been possibly the most unpredictable World Cup in living memory. One by one, many of the remaining giants fell: Argentina, Spain, Portugal, Brazil. Meanwhile, England won their first-ever penalty shootout and are about to play only their second semi-final since winning the tournament in 1966.</p>
<p>As you’d expect, Baddiel & Skinner’s enduring anthem Three Lions <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/newsbeat-44711564">has been sung</a> in pub beer gardens and in city squares since Harry Kane’s brace gave England a winning start to the tournament – their first in an opening World Cup game since Germany 2006.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RJqimlFcJsM?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Scott Murray <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2018/may/29/englands-world-cup-musical-efforts-have-often-been-rewarded-on-the-pitch">suggested recently</a> in The Guardian that: “England’s World Cup musical efforts have often been rewarded on the pitch” – implying some correlation between the quality of England’s football anthems and the team’s performance. It only takes a <a href="http://riogoldhammer.com/blog/2018/7/4/every-england-football-anthem-since-1990-reviewed">quick look back through England’s football anthems</a> to suggest that this is debatable, to say the least.</p>
<p>Lonnie Donegan’s World Cup Willie in 1966 was a cheerful number that accompanied England’s first (and only) major tournament win and was based on the home team’s mascot. More than 50 years on, there doesn’t seem to be any record of <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/worldcup2014/article-2639683/Englands-World-Cup-Hit-Parade-Lonnie-Donegan-Fat-Les-Ant-Dec-Three-Lions-John-Barnes-rapping.html">how the song performed in the charts</a>. Four years later in Mexico – with expectations high – the squad gave us <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ag_ujTfx3ak">Back Home</a>, which reached number one in May 1970 (England, meanwhile, went out in the quarter finals to West Germany). </p>
<p>There followed lean years – England failed to qualify in 1974 and 1978. But in 1982, with New Wave, the New Romantics and Two Tone all the rage in the pop charts, England rather mystifyingly selected a song by Chris Norman and Pete Spencer of country band Smokie – possibly because they had written a pop song for England captain Kevin Keegan a couple of years before. The resulting song, This Time (We’ll Get it Right), reached number two in the charts, which was a whole lot better than the squad managed on the pitch, going out in the second group stage.</p>
<p>England’s 1986 campaign is largely remembered for the heartbreak of Maradona’s “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2014/apr/08/world-cup-moments-maradona-hand-god">Hand of God</a>” which denied the team a semi final berth. The team song, meanwhile – once again performed by the squad – was the instantly forgettable <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emMosrLEqSk">We’ve Got the Whole World at Our Feet</a> by Tony Hiller, best known for the songs he wrote for <a href="http://www.brotherhoodofman.co.uk/">Brotherhood of Man</a>, winners of the 1978 Eurovision Song Contest. No such luck for this song, which peaked at 66 in the UK charts. </p>
<p>The 1990 World Cup in Italy – which gave West Germany their third title – featured the now classic World in Motion, for which the England squad teamed up with New Order. It was England’s best World Cup performance since 1966 – and the team made a pretty good fist in the recording studio, too. With a contribution from Keith Allen and a rap by John Barnes, the song reached number one in the UK charts. England, meanwhile, went out in the semi finals to West Germany after – you’ve guessed it – a penalty shoot-out.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Re4aDJL3heA?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<h2>Three Lions with a side of Vindaloo</h2>
<p>It’s an irony that probably the best England football anthem was recorded for the Euros in 1996. The team had failed to qualify for the 1994 World Cup in the US, but the European championships were in the UK, so football was indeed coming home – at least in one sense. </p>
<p>More than just being a brilliant song, Three Lions represents a narrative departure from previous football anthems. Rather than having the players appear on the record singing about playing for England, player cameos were limited to the video while the song itself was sung by The Lightning Seeds with comic duo Baddiel & Skinner and described the emotional rollercoaster that is supporting England’s football team (“30 years of hurt”). A subtle redirection, but one that would subsequently redefine the genre.</p>
<p>For France 1998, the FA commissioned an indie-pop hybrid supergroup starring the Spice Girls and Echo and the Bunnymen for the official anthem – the forgettable (How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the World. But the chart was dominated by the rerelease of Three Lions and the hugely popular Vindaloo from Fat Les (which reached number two in the UK chart with a little help from Blur bassist Alex James and lyrics by Keith Allen). </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/va6nPu-1auE?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<h2>Songs for the Golden Generation</h2>
<p>In 2002, all hopes were that England’s “Golden Generation” of Michael Owen, David Beckham, Wayne Rooney et al would restore the national team’s pride after the ignominy of going out to Argentina and the Beckham sending off in 1998. To serenade the team in Japan and South Korea, England had comedy duo Ant & Dec, who got to number three in the UK chart with We’re on the Ball. Sadly, on the pitch where it counted, Beckham and co were not as on the ball as Brazil, the eventual winners, who knocked England out at the quarter final stage.</p>
<p>And so to 2006 in Germany, where England went out once again at the quarter final stage, once again after a shoot-out – this time to Portugal. The song was Embrace’s tepid World at Your Feet, but the world was most definitely not at the feet of Stephen Gerrard, Frank Lampard or Jamie Carragher, all of whom missed their penalties. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gKSVvYuvtH0?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>You have to fast forward to 2014 for the next official England football anthem, written for Sport Relief by Take That’s Gary Barlow and performed by a blended band with a smattering of Spice Girls and other pop singers teamed with former footballers including Gary Lineker, Glenn Hoddle and Sir Geoff Hurst. The song sank without trace, as did England’s football hopes as the team failed to get out of the group stages.</p>
<p>There is <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-44711734">no official England anthem</a> for the 2018 World Cup (though there are some good unofficial efforts - The Tallywags in particular).
But one thing’s for sure, if Kane and his teammates succeed in ending 52 years of hurt on July 14, you’d be a fool to bet against Three Lions reaching number one as well.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>More evidence-based articles about football and the <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/topics/world-cup-2018-11490?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=TCUKengagement&utm_content=WorldCup2018">World Cup</a>:</em></p>
<ul>
<li><p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/england-fans-sing-footballs-coming-home-but-where-is-home-really-99479?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=TCUKengagement&utm_content=WorldCup2018">England fans sing ‘football’s coming home’ – but where is ‘home’ really?</a></em></p></li>
<li><p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/why-this-football-tournament-should-be-called-the-mens-world-cup-98348?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=TCUKengagement&utm_content=WorldCup2018">Why this football tournament should be called the men’s World Cup</a></em></p></li>
<li><p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/why-do-people-suddenly-get-into-football-during-the-world-cup-98812?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=TCUKengagement&utm_content=WorldCup2018">Why do people suddenly ‘get into’ football during the World Cup?</a></em></p></li>
</ul><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/97481/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rio Goldhammer is the founder of Bunnysnot Records. </span></em></p>England’s on-field performances have been matched by some fairly forgettable songs over the years.Rio Goldhammer, Doctoral Researcher in Leisure Studies, Leeds Beckett UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/974722018-06-22T10:04:35Z2018-06-22T10:04:35ZMaking music videos is not a criminal activity – no matter what genre<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/224399/original/file-20180622-26561-1coa9x4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">YouTube/Harlem Spartans</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>West London music group 1011 has recently been <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/jun/15/london-drill-rap-gang-banned-from-making-music-due-to-threat-of-violence">banned</a> from recording or performing music without police permission. On June 15, the Metropolitan police issued the group, which has been the subject of a two-year police investigation, <a href="http://www.nme.com/news/music/drill-group-banned-making-music-without-police-permission-2339547">with a Criminal Behaviour Order</a>. </p>
<p>For the next three years, five members of the group – which creates and performs a UK version of drill, a genre of hip-hop that emerged from Chicago – must give 24 hours notice of the release of any music video, and 48 hours notice of any live performance. They are also banned from attending Notting Hill Carnival and wearing balaclavas.</p>
<p>This is a legally unprecedented move, but it is not without context. A recent Amnesty UK <a href="https://www.amnesty.org.uk/files/reports/Trapped%20in%20the%20Matrix%20Amnesty%20report.pdf">report</a> on the Metropolitan Police Gangs Matrix – a risk assessment tool that links individuals to gang related crime – stated that: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>The sharing of YouTube videos and other social media activity are used as potential criteria for adding names to the Matrix, with grime music videos featuring gang names or signs considered a particular possible indicator of likely gang affiliation.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Furthermore, recent research indicates that <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/may/29/rise-in-proportion-bame-suspects-met-police-gangs-matrix">almost 90% of those on the Matrix</a> are black or ethnic minority.</p>
<p>For young people who make music, video is a key way to share their work with a wider audience. Online platforms such as SBTV, <a href="http://thelinkup.com/be-on-link-up-tv/submit-music-video-for-youtube-upload/">LinkUp TV</a>, <a href="http://grmdaily.com/videos">GRM daily</a> and <a href="https://www.ukgrime.com/promotion/">UK Grime</a> are all popular sites. Often using street corners and housing estates as a location, these videos are a central component of the urban music scene. But the making of these music videos appears to feed into a continuing unease about youth crime and public safety.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/f10yTpZzuv4?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Fifteen years ago, <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/2752681.stm">ministers were concerned</a> about “rap lyrics”; in 2007 some MPs demanded to have <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2007/aug/26/ukguns.ukcrime2">videos banned</a> after a shooting in Liverpool. UK <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/feb/23/teeangers-carry-knives-not-drill-music">drill music</a> is only the focus of the most recent crackdown by the Metropolitan police, which has <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/newsbeat-44281586">requested YouTube</a> to remove any music videos with “violent content”.</p>
<p>The production and circulation of urban music videos has become a contested activity – and performance in the public sphere is presented as a cause for concern. This is leading to the criminalisation of everyday pursuits. Young people from poor backgrounds are now becoming categorised as troublemakers through the mere act of making a music video.</p>
<h2>Tackling ‘gang’-related violence</h2>
<p>The Crime and Disorder Act 1998 introduced the Anti-Social Behaviour Order or ASBO, a loosely defined term that covers any behaviour, such as playing loud music, littering or drug taking, that is likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress. Local councils and social housing landlords can apply for an ASBO and the breach of an order facilitates entry into the criminal justice system. By congregating in public areas, young people lay themselves open to coming under the watchful scrutiny of the regulating authorities and young people can be served with dispersal notices banning them from public places.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/221148/original/file-20180531-69517-j3s5fl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/221148/original/file-20180531-69517-j3s5fl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/221148/original/file-20180531-69517-j3s5fl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/221148/original/file-20180531-69517-j3s5fl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/221148/original/file-20180531-69517-j3s5fl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/221148/original/file-20180531-69517-j3s5fl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/221148/original/file-20180531-69517-j3s5fl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/221148/original/file-20180531-69517-j3s5fl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Dispersal order.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Joy White</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Then, the <a href="https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2009/26/contents">Policing and Crime Act 2009</a> defined gang-related violence as actual or the threat of violence that occurs in relation to group activities.</p>
<p>Such “group activities” must be carried out by at least three people who have one or more characteristics that enable them to be identified by others as a group - such as the use of a name, emblem, colour or other characteristic, and an association with a particular geographical area. However, across the public order agencies, there is no agreed working definition what constitutes a gang.</p>
<p>But it is only more recently that some local authorities also sought to remove videos from the internet. In 2013, Newham Council appointed a dedicated member of staff <a href="https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/164007/response/405592/attach/2/FOI%20RESPONSE%20E15688.pdf?cookie_passthrough=1">to monitor and remove videos</a> that they felt had evidence of criminal or illegal activity. According to a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fzlx4yn1wZ0">BBC News report</a>, these videos had a “territorial tone”.</p>
<p>The removal of drill and grime music videos is yet another risk assessment tool in a pre-emptive strategy to maintain public order. But the deep seated and complex issue of youth violence is not solved by gestures – such as banning music videos – that merely give the sense that “something is being done”.</p>
<h2>Policing creative expression</h2>
<p>In this way, making a music video has become entangled with legislation and policies that are designed to maintain public safety.</p>
<p>Creating a music video to upload share online is an everyday pursuit for many young people. Despite its emancipatory beginnings, YouTube has become a mode of surveillance and intelligence gathering for the regulating authorities. Music videos are now routinely analysed in terms of both lyrics and behaviour, scanned for evidence of perceived wrongdoing.</p>
<p>The desire to secure public safety means that some creative expressions have been deemed to be out of control and therefore in need of being monitored and policed in an authoritarian way. But this has led to a situation where among the regulating authorities, there is <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1741659011433367?journalCode=cmca">little differentiation</a> between MCs using artistic licence to comment on and reference criminal acts, and those that are alleged to be a visual record of actual wrongdoing or an incitement to wrongdoing. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xPF3YdUEbKo?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Performance personas adopted by MCs may articulate experiences of life on the margins and, as such, reflect a harshness that is seen and heard in their everyday surroundings. As with other genres and art forms, this creative expression may include fantasy and flights of fancy. One reason why some artists rap about violence is <a href="https://www.standard.co.uk/go/london/music/67-interview-this-is-not-a-gang-this-is-a-logo-this-is-a-company-this-is-a-brand-a3620276.html">that they come from violent backgrounds</a> – reflecting, not shaping, the reality of teenagers from stigmatised areas.</p>
<p>Nonetheless, young people from such communities are often on the receiving end of policy initiatives and processes to tackle public safety issues. Within this context, any “gang” activity is perceived as an issue of crime and disorder as well as public safety.</p>
<p>The police’s uncritical acceptance of the term “gang” and consequent labelling of groups of young men who gather to make music videos as having a high risk of criminal behaviour means that in impoverished areas, three young men wearing the same colour clothes can be constituted as a gang and therefore become subject to regulation and disciplinary technologies. These policies and practices combine at a local level to criminalise the everyday activities of young people who want to meet up, socialise and pursue their hobbies. </p>
<p>The 1011 case may seem like a proportionate response to increasing levels of youth violence. But the majority of young people who make music videos and broadcast them online are not “gang” members or committing any crime, yet are increasingly rendered as troublesome and subject to growing levels of surveillance and censorship.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/97472/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Joy White received funding from the Independent Social Research Foundation (ISRF) in 2015.</span></em></p>West London group 1011 music group have been banned from making music without police permission.Joy White, Visiting Lecturer, University of RoehamptonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/905562018-01-29T14:51:05Z2018-01-29T14:51:05Z‘Agent of Change’ protects music venues from noise complaints, but won’t stop them from closing<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/203780/original/file-20180129-100926-1586ejm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/Gi6-m_t_W-E">Bruno Cervera/Unsplash</a>, <a class="license" href="http://artlibre.org/licence/lal/en">FAL</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>A Conservative minister for housing, a grey-haired Labour MP, ageing icons of rock and creative young people have formed an unlikely alliance in support of the Agent of Change (Planning) Bill. The proposed law, which will be discussed for the second time in the House of Commons on March 16, <a href="https://www.iq-mag.net/2018/01/uk-govt-sajid-javid-backs-agent-change/#.Wmn_opOFilM">makes developers responsible</a> for dealing with noise issues when they build new homes near music venues. </p>
<p>This all came about because people were worried about the high number of live music venues that were closing across the UK. The Greater London Authority (GLA) <a href="https://www.london.gov.uk/what-we-do/arts-and-culture/music/saving-londons-music-venues">asked for a report</a> on London’s grass roots music venues, only to find that 35% of them had been “lost” since 2007. Cities across the nation – from <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/sep/09/the-slow-death-of-music-venues-in-cities">Glasgow to Manchester</a> – have similar stories to tell, even though the government <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/creative-industries-record-contribution-to-uk-economy">has recognised</a> how important the music industry is for the economy. </p>
<p>So how did this happen? Many different governments since around the year 2000 have tried to get more flats and houses built in cities, because there aren’t enough for everyone who wants to live there. Many homes have been built on “brownfield” sites – where there used to be factories or warehouses, which are now used less or not at all. These types of places also offered spaces where creative entrepreneurs could set up new clubs, or take over existing venues and attract new customers with the offer of live music. </p>
<h2>Buyer beware</h2>
<p>But as people move into the new flats built on these sites (which they often pay a lot of money for) some inevitably complain about the noise coming from the venues. Venue owners in Shoreditch (one of London’s hip neighbourhoods) actually put up signs warning would-be buyers that there are live music venues in the area. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/203518/original/file-20180126-100919-1a2zuoa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/203518/original/file-20180126-100919-1a2zuoa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=360&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203518/original/file-20180126-100919-1a2zuoa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=360&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203518/original/file-20180126-100919-1a2zuoa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=360&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203518/original/file-20180126-100919-1a2zuoa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=452&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203518/original/file-20180126-100919-1a2zuoa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=452&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203518/original/file-20180126-100919-1a2zuoa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=452&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A sign on Rivington Street, Shoreditch.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.hackneycitizen.co.uk/2014/10/21/rivington-street-pedestrian-zone-shoreditch/">Hackney Citizen</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Up until now, these complaints caused big problems for music venue owners, because planning principles were not on their side. The onus was on them to ensure their neighbours weren’t disturbed by music and loud noises. But putting in proper soundproofing or keeping customers quiet can be difficult and expensive. </p>
<p>This doesn’t just affect the kind of places run on a shoe string on the outskirts of town. Even London’s mighty Ministry of Sound – which has been a mecca for House music lovers since 1991 – <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-25642151">was caught up</a> in a lengthy planning application for a tower block of flats nearby – a case which eventually ended in the flats having to be soundproofed.</p>
<h2>A matter of principle</h2>
<p>The way the planning system works, is that local authorities in England and Wales produce their own development plans, which must align with national policy as set out in a 2012 document called the <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/6077/2116950.pdf">National Planning Policy Framework</a> (NPPF). This document made a small move to protect venues, by saying that if they wanted to expand, then there should be no unreasonable restrictions. But it didn’t address the situation described above. </p>
<p>Some local authorities have already started to draw up their own policies, which put the burden of noise reduction measures firmly on the developer who is making the change – whether it’s for <a href="http://musicvenuetrust.com/2017/11/agent-of-change-is-policy-d12-in-london-plan-2018/">flats or other uses</a>. This is the legal principle, known as the “Agent of Change”. The bill, now supported by government, will ensure that the principle is embedded in the NPPF – so all local authorities will have to follow it. It will also carry more weight in appeals against planning decisions.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/203778/original/file-20180129-100926-4mj8h3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/203778/original/file-20180129-100926-4mj8h3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203778/original/file-20180129-100926-4mj8h3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203778/original/file-20180129-100926-4mj8h3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203778/original/file-20180129-100926-4mj8h3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203778/original/file-20180129-100926-4mj8h3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203778/original/file-20180129-100926-4mj8h3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Got the power?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/TZCppMjaOHU">William White/Unsplash</a>, <a class="license" href="http://artlibre.org/licence/lal/en">FAL</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Although the “Agent of Change” principle will help prevent live music venues from closing, it won’t be enough on its own. Sadly, it would not address other issues such as rising rents, hikes in rateable values and property owners preferring to redevelop their buildings into flats. For example, consultancy firm <a href="https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/report_headlines_-_impact_of_business_rates_revaluation_on_londons_grassrots_music_venues_-_nordicity_-_april_2017.pdf">Nordicity estimated that</a> a revaluation of business rates would cause a fifth of London’s grass roots venues to close. And London’s oldest LGBTQ venue, the Royal Vauxhall Tavern, is still <a href="http://www.rvt.community/news/">engaged in a battle</a> to save it from redevelopment, by way of a community buy out. </p>
<p>Yet <a href="https://pubs.camra.org.uk/pubsuccessstories">past examples</a> show that people can save their local pubs from closure, whether through local campaigning or by taking ownership of the buildings. And to see creativity and culture, especially for young people, supported through the dusty corridors of parliament, is truly heart warming.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/90556/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Marion Roberts has received funding from many different organisations, including central and local government and charitable foundations, for research on the night time economy.</span></em></p>Developers will now be responsible for dealing with noise issues from nearby music venues – but it will take real community activism to prevent closures.Marion Roberts, Professor of Urban Design, University of WestminsterLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/907102018-01-25T18:04:43Z2018-01-25T18:04:43Z‘Northern white crap that talks back’: The Fall’s Mark E Smith spoke for weird Manchester<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/203459/original/file-20180125-102744-1ndlug4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/libertinus/30116696143">Montecruz Foto via Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Mark E Smith, the only constant member of post-punk band The Fall, <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-42811968">has died aged 60</a> after a year of ill health. Smith co-founded The Fall in Prestwich, north Manchester in 1976 amid the initial stirrings of British punk. Though the band soon evolved beyond punk’s musical template, its DIY outsider spirit remained central to Smith’s ethos. </p>
<p>Reading through the mass of writing on The Fall, it quickly becomes clear what an enigma Smith presented to those who hoped to pin him down. There is no disputing his unique voice. But Smith was no mystery. So much of his seemingly otherworldly vision was born of the Northern working-class culture that produced him. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"956264603301892101"}"></div></p>
<p>Consider the pantheon of Mancunian music legends. Very few these days still frequent the local pubs they’ve always haunted. Fewer still live where they grew up or walk around the city observing goings-on with their belongings in a supermarket carrier bag – as Smith did right up until the end. The video to the Fall’s 1987 cover of R. Dean Taylor’s There’s A Ghost In My House is set in Smith’s regular watering hole The Woodthorpe, for example. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/D0bZofM6EOU?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>It’s unlikely, too, that any other cult band has ever embarked on a tour of Northern working men’s clubs, as The Fall <a href="http://thefall.org/gigography/gig80.html">did in 1980</a>. According to its sleeve notes, live LP Totale’s Turns was “recorded in front of an 80s disco weekend mating audience”.</p>
<p>This apparent jibe is good-natured, it should be said. One of Smith’s most important legacies was his determination to speak for his kind. Though educated at Stand Grammar School, Smith was not part of the rarefied, art school-influenced culture of his post-punk peers. Instead he embodied a much older tradition of the working-class autodidact – voraciously and eclectically well read in everything from spy thrillers to existentialist philosophy. As he once claimed: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>There were no groups around that I thought represented people like me or my mates. If I wanted to be anything, it was a voice for those people … The Fall had to appeal to someone who was into cheap soul as much as someone who liked [the] avant-garde. I even wanted the Gary Glitter fans.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Yet Smith never opted for a “tell it like it is” kitchen sink realism. Fall co-founder Martin Bramah <a href="http://thequietus.com/articles/03755-becks-induction-hour-a-mark-e-smith-interview-about-the-lp-that-nearly-felled-the-fall">described</a> the band’s songs as “Coronation Street on acid”. </p>
<h2>Hit the North</h2>
<p>The Manchester that emerges is a far cry from the glossy, dynamic marketing version that has dominated since the 1990s. It’s grimy, seedy and supernatural, populated by city hobgoblins, psychics living above hairdressing salons on the
Bury New Road and slimy creatures in dockland warehouses. Somehow, though, it’s uncannily familiar.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/v5zav2yrC7M?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Influenced by the “weird fiction” of <a href="http://thequietus.com/articles/23928-mark-e-smith-the-fall-rip-obituary-obit">HP Lovecraft and Arthur Machen</a>, Smith was fascinated by what he called “the horror of the normal” – that threshold between the mundane and the magical. His genius was his ability to pull this off without ever seeming pretentious. Smith’s words were laced with a twisted humour that did not undermine their sharply observed force or their dreamlike qualities. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/year-zero-for-british-punk-was-1976-but-there-had-long-been-anarchy-in-the-usa-61329">Year zero for British punk was 1976 – but there had long been anarchy in the USA</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>In The North Will Rise Again, a regional rebellion culminates in a razed Arndale Centre and marauding crowds “with bees on sticks”. Factory Records impresario Tony Wilson establishes a secret base in Edinburgh from which to direct proceedings. Meanwhile Smith’s amphetamine fuelled alter-ego Roman Totale lurks underground, his body “a tentacle mess”.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sw8bcjPWKE8?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<h2>Working-class hero</h2>
<p>Even these kinds of freakish fantasies have their roots in the world from which Smith came. My friend, the writer Steve Hanson, once told me his Lancashire high school classroom was “full of little Mark E Smiths” evolving their own bizarre slang and tall tales. This collective propensity to daydream and experiment with language has a long working-class history. It’s an implicit challenge to the pressure of speaking “properly” and settling into the drudgery of your expected role.</p>
<p>Nor does it conclude in childhood. Instead it becomes the preserve of pub fantasists and workplace folklore, as Smith so brilliantly captures on Fantastic Life, in which a 54-year-old dustbin man claims to have participated in the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/GuKXYeRCUzI?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Smith once wryly called The Fall “music for those who don’t want it” – but over time the band’s generally positive critical standing came to be mirrored in an ever-growing and dedicated fan following. This sustained them making music until Smith’s passing. Their career saw the band try everything once with little regard for prevailing fashions – secure in the knowledge that “50,000 Fall fans can’t be wrong”, as their 2004 hits compilation declared in a cheeky allusion to Elvis. </p>
<p>It seems Smith succeeded more than he sometimes acknowledged in giving a voice to his peers, capturing a part of Manchester and the North that goes beyond the usual clichés.</p>
<p>As he presciently observed on 1979’s Psykick Dance Hall:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>When I am dead and gone<br>
my vibrations will live on<br>
in vibes on vinyl through the years<br>
people will dance to my waves.</p>
</blockquote><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/90710/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>David Wilkinson has received funding from the Arts and Humanities Research Council and was a researcher on the Leverhulme project 'Punk, Politics and British Youth Culture'. </span></em></p>The Fall’s frontman was the ultimate pop outsider who never lost his working-class Manchester roots.David Wilkinson, Lecturer in English, specialising in popular musical and subcultural studies., Manchester Metropolitan UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/881792017-12-11T14:21:30Z2017-12-11T14:21:30ZAll I want for Christmas is You: Mariah Carey number one for UK’s favourite festive song<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/198545/original/file-20171211-27698-1oi81k2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">shutterstock</span> </figcaption></figure><p>For me, one of the best bits about the Christmas season is hearing a favourite Christmas songs on the radio or while out shopping. Together with the gradual appearance of trees and lights, Christmas music acts as an indicator that we are now safely allowed to think about – and get excited about – festivities to come.</p>
<p>Everyone has their own taste when it comes to Christmas music, but what is the UK’s favourite Christmas song? Most attempts to answer this question are completely subjective, but here we aim to introduce some objectivity by using UK chart data. This chart data allows to compare songs in terms of how often they were bought and streamed during the Christmas period.</p>
<p>Downloads were <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4432237.stm">first incorporated</a> into to the UK Official Singles Chart in 2005, but to begin with only songs which were also physically on sale were included. This restriction was lifted at the <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6216535.stm">start of 2007</a>, opening up the festive charts to floods (or is that blizzards?) of Christmas tracks each year. Streaming was <a href="http://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/uks-official-singles-chart-to-include-streaming-data-for-first-time__4245/">also introduced in 2014</a>, which means that listens on iTunes, Spotify, Google Play Music and similar services also count towards chart performances. We can therefore identify the nation’s most popular Christmas songs by looking at their performance in the UK charts between 2007 and 2016.</p>
<p>Although the shops have their decorations and TV adverts out earlier and earlier each year, we’re going restrict our chart analysis to the five weeks leading up to Christmas each year. Any song containing the word “Christmas”, or with any vague notion of “Christmasness” to it was eligible for inclusion. Using data from the <a href="http://www.officialcharts.com/charts/singles-chart/">Official UK Charts Company website</a>, we can identify which Christmas songs appeared in the charts, how often they appeared and how high they placed.</p>
<p>The table below shows the 20 Christmas songs which spent the most weeks in the charts between 2007 to 2016. It displays their release date, highest chart placing and also the number of weeks they spent in the Top 10, Top 20, Top 40 and Top 100. To ensure that newer songs are not discriminated against, we make an adjustment to account for post-2007 release dates. A simple mathematical adjustment was made to account for new songs which were released after 2007. Songs released after that date had their totals scaled up based on the number of available chart weeks.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yXQViqx6GMY?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>In order to make an objective comparison of these songs, we devise a simple points system. A song gets ten points for every week it spends in the Top 10, five points for every additional week in the Top 20, two points for each additional week in the Top 40 and one point for each additional week in the Top 100. This allows us to rank the songs from first to 20th. Where there was a tie in the number of points, the song which reached the highest chart position was placed highest. This points total is included in the final column of our table.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/198972/original/file-20171213-27575-s999x2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/198972/original/file-20171213-27575-s999x2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/198972/original/file-20171213-27575-s999x2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=283&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/198972/original/file-20171213-27575-s999x2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=283&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/198972/original/file-20171213-27575-s999x2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=283&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/198972/original/file-20171213-27575-s999x2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=356&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/198972/original/file-20171213-27575-s999x2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=356&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/198972/original/file-20171213-27575-s999x2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=356&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The UK’s 20 favourite Christmas songs, ranked based on chart performance.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Craig Anderson</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Based on our points system, we can see that Mariah Carey’s All I Want For Christmas is You is the UK’s favourite Christmas song, narrowly pipping Fairytale of New York by The Pogues and Kirsty MacColl. Both of these songs are way out in front of everything else; they both made it as high as Number 4 in the charts, while none of the rest cracked the Top 10. Amazingly, Carey’s track appeared in the UK Top 100 in every single week that we studied, while The Pogues were in there in all but two weeks. Ultimately, Carey came top on account of spending more weeks in the Top 10 than the Pogues did.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/j9jbdgZidu8?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Further down the list, we see timeless classics from Wham!, Wizzard and Slade making up the rest of the top five. All of these songs had at least one appearance in the Top 20 at some point over the past decade and cracked the Top 40 on more than ten occasions.</p>
<p>It’s notable that all but three of the tracks in the Top 20 were released more than 20 years ago. The highest placed new song on the list was Michael Buble’s It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas, which placed in ninth – and even that is a cover of an older song. The first brand new song is Coldplay’s Christmas Lights, which placed 13th on our list. When Slade sang: “Does your granny always tell you, that the old songs are the best?”, it seems as though she was right.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0A8KT365wlA?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Now, when the inevitable debate about festive songs starts while you’re rocking around the Christmas tree or driving home for Christmas, you can add some facts and figures to the discussion. In the meantime, if the weather outside gets frightful, feel free to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqU9pPtZtEi-dEq3aU-Yh0Ee6AeLxHPdN">listen to our Top 20 Christmas songs playlist</a> and enjoy the most wonderful time of the year.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/88179/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Craig Anderson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Here are the UK’s most popular Christmas songs.Craig Anderson, Lecturer in Statistics, University of GlasgowLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/840712017-09-14T11:35:57Z2017-09-14T11:35:57ZThe Mercury Prize is an analogue award in a digital age<p>Perhaps you have dutifully trawled through each of the 12 albums that make up the 26th <a href="https://www.mercuryprize.com/news/2017-hyundai-mercury-prize-albums-of-the-year-revealed">Mercury Music Prize shortlist</a>, thinking as you go, “I’ve just got used to streaming, so why should I back-pedal into old track-by-track ways?” Yet this is how the winner gets picked from the 12 albums by the 12 – such is Mercury’s devotion to the duodecimal – judges.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.nme.com/news/judging-panel-for-2017-mercury-prize-revealed-2098723">These judges</a> are asked to argue about each album as some sort of fully-rounded artistic statement. Finally, the judges must unanimously choose one above the others. Whichever artist wins, gains a statuette, £25,000 in cash and the promise (but only a promise) of <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-41257488">increased sales</a> and a ride up the charts the following week. But it is formally the album format that wins – as the prize has ended up as a defender of old-school music production and consumption.</p>
<p>The Mercury Prize was <a href="https://www.mercuryprize.com/about-the-prize">set up in 1992</a> as an alternative to the <a href="http://www.brits.co.uk/">BRIT Awards</a> by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). It made sense that the record industry should want to promote its independent labels at a time when it had been profitably reviving old albums in the new CD format.</p>
<p>“Mercury” itself was <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-11212656">a telephone company</a> that lost its name in 1997 when it was amalgamated with its parent company, Cable & Wireless Communications. It was the show’s first sponsor. Since then, there have been six prize sponsors, the current being Hyundai. None of the sponsors have been able to replace the “Mercury” name with their own, however. It has become a brand like the <a href="http://www.tate.org.uk/art/turner-prize">Turner Prize</a> for art, with which it shares a certain reputation for “making and breaking” artists. </p>
<p>Meanwhile, the BPI’s thumbprint on Mercury can be found in the rule that a solo artist or 50% of a band must be British. Mercury has also largely promoted those musicians either side of the mainstream, including artists like PJ Harvey (twice a winner) and alt-J (nominated again this year). Controversially, this year saw the nomination of the very mainstream Ed Sheeran.</p>
<p>Mercury’s organisers are spoilt for choice because over 200 albums are submitted annually by record companies. Over the first 10 years, one modern classical album – nearly always one – was also included. A classical expert was appointed to the jury in the hope of persuading the others of the album’s merit. But a classical artist has never won and that item was soon exposed as mere tokenism.</p>
<h2>Artists at their best</h2>
<p>Since then, it has been jazz that has embraced the “token” role (this year, Laura Jurd’s <a href="https://laurajurd.com/dinosaur/">Dinosaur</a>). The organisers insist that the jury looks beyond genres and welcomes acts from across musical styles. But in 2013 it was pointed out that a heavy metal album has never been chosen for the prize. As a defence, it was <a href="http://www.clashmusic.com/features/five-points-for-mercury-prize-reform">ingeniously claimed</a> by Mercury chair of judges, Simon Frith, that metal is not a genre but a “niche”.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/fl7R4Ir1fKc?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>There is one thing that takes place at the ceremony that I believe has an impact on the jury’s final choice but has little to do with the album. Each of the 12 artists are asked to give a live performance, perhaps to justify the television coverage. The show takes place during the post-summer festival circuit, so the artists are often at their best. </p>
<p>It was at the 2007 event that Amy Winehouse <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1562214/Amy-Winehouse-performs-at-Mercury-prize.html">made her first appearance</a> after illness and redeemed herself in the eyes of the industry with a rendition of Love is A Losing Game. It did not end up winning her the prize but the fact that a live performance takes place on the night of the vote – when the judging panel is trying to come its final decision – surely affects the view of the jury members and could sway them in a new direction. Furthermore, the artists do not, of course, perform the full album on which they are being judged. </p>
<p>If the Mercury Prize is to last it will have to hope that the music buying public will carry on consuming albums which provide “artistic statements” or it may have to consider changing its vetting and voting policy to a completely new set of terms that reflect the practice of streaming. It may have its <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/news/blog/2013/oct/30/mercury-prize-undemocratic-critics">detractors</a> but the project does bring the work of 12 artists to the public’s attention who might otherwise struggle to be heard. After all, Mercury was the god of communication and business.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/84071/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Richard Witts does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The Mercury Prize still relies on the album format in an age of downloads and streaming.Richard Witts, Reader in Music and Sound, Edge Hill UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/814082017-08-02T10:25:18Z2017-08-02T10:25:18ZSmall music venues are part of music’s heritage – we need to support them<p>This year’s Glastonbury Festival saw a closing set to rival the very best. For two hours on a June evening, Radiohead seduced and energised a vast and adoring crowd before delivering a brilliant finale. Thom Yorke’s vocals hung over the English landscape like evening mist, clearing as a choir of 50,000 voices echoed the refrain, joined no doubt by a TV and online audience of millions. For a minute there, we lost ourselves – and it was brilliant.</p>
<p>Yet that Radiohead moment was only made possible through the existence of small music venues such as those on the so-called “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/jan/24/independent-venue-week">Toilet Circuit</a>”. Such small venues, located in provincial towns and city centres across the UK, are where bands such as Radiohead learned their craft, built experience, gained a fan base, and earned money that makes everything else possible. </p>
<p>These venues form an essential part of a cultural ecosystem that extends from clubs to theatres, pubs to opera houses. Like my <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-berlin-needs-techno-to-avoid-becoming-just-another-city-55534">earlier study of Berlin techno</a>, these venues are also part of our heritage – and interestingly, Zurich’s techno scene has recently gained UNESCO <a href="https://www.residentadvisor.net/news.aspx?id=39420">Intangible Cultural Heritage</a> status. </p>
<p>It is an ecosystem that has evolved over hundreds of years. But the Toilet Circuit, alongside other smaller venues such as pubs, is under immediate threat. Venues are <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/student/istudents/small-music-venues-in-the-uk-are-under-threat-and-we-need-to-do-something-drastic-about-it-a6825456.html">closing at an alarming rate</a> and this is threatening the whole ecosystem. The Jericho Tavern in Oxford, where Radiohead played their first gig – and which was a key venue in the 1980s and 1990s – has long since ceased to host live music.</p>
<p>Unless they become commercially successful, musicians <a href="https://www.musicindustryhowto.com/music-artists-income-breakdown-how-do-musicians-really-make-their-money/">make little from recorded music</a>. Instead, most of their income is from touring – and that requires venues. The vast majority of live performances take place in smaller venues involving unsigned bands or those on small independent labels, playing to smaller audiences who enjoy a combination of the music and the environment in which it is performed.</p>
<h2>Seedy aesthetic</h2>
<p>In a <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/2159032X.2017.1330936">recent paper</a> in the journal Heritage & Society, Dan Miller and I presented three examples which together highlight the significance of Toilet Circuit venues to their audiences: The Bull & Gate (London), the Forum (Tunbridge Wells, Kent) and the Duchess of York (Leeds). Of these, only The Forum survives. </p>
<p>The Toilet Circuit is aptly named, and bands and audience appreciate the “seedy aesthetic”, a characteristic that has shaped mythologies and heritage of the circuit, unlike the shiny corporate environs of bespoke arenas. Audiences enjoy the close interaction with musicians, the rituals of the moshpit and wall-of-death, the stage diving. They enjoy the intimacy, meeting the band afterwards, and buying a CD at the merchandise stall. Such things are unique to smaller venues, such as those on the Toilet Circuit.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180689/original/file-20170802-1023-lsh7d7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180689/original/file-20170802-1023-lsh7d7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180689/original/file-20170802-1023-lsh7d7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180689/original/file-20170802-1023-lsh7d7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180689/original/file-20170802-1023-lsh7d7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=525&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180689/original/file-20170802-1023-lsh7d7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=525&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180689/original/file-20170802-1023-lsh7d7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=525&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Pavement playing live at the Duchess of York in Leeds in the 1990s.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Greg Neate</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Most such venues are in town and city centres, where noise controls have led to curfews and complaints. Rents have also increased, threatening the sustainability of venues that exist on a shoestring. Thank goodness therefore for organisations such as <a href="http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/">Arts Council England</a> (ACE) and the <a href="http://musicvenuetrust.com/">Music Venue Trust</a>, which exists to support such venues and promote the values and significance of venues that many still regard as “low arts” and not worthy of cultural support. </p>
<p>Yet in ACE’s <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2017/jun/27/arts-council-england-to-spend-170m-more-outside-london-plymouth-tees-valley-bradford">recent round of funding</a>, £367m went to the music sector, but 85% of this was allocated to opera and classical music. Of course, one cannot fund everything, and each part of this vital ecosystem can make a legitimate claim. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180690/original/file-20170802-5576-145w2wz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180690/original/file-20170802-5576-145w2wz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180690/original/file-20170802-5576-145w2wz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180690/original/file-20170802-5576-145w2wz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180690/original/file-20170802-5576-145w2wz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180690/original/file-20170802-5576-145w2wz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180690/original/file-20170802-5576-145w2wz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Animals as Leaders playing live at The Forum in Tunbridge Wells in 2011.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Pseudo98</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>As the ACE Chief Executive <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/jul/15/grassroots-music-venues-face-closure-as-funding-bid-fails">has explained</a>: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>We are acutely aware of the challenges faced by music venues across the country and will continue to look at ways to work strategically with the sector to address them.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>But the need is urgent, and this part of the ecosystem is unique for its formative role in developing talent for an important industry. According to the Music Venue Trust’s strategic director, Beverley Whitrick: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>If these venues were commercial, they wouldn’t be dropping like flies … They are the bit at the bottom of the industry that doesn’t make money and helps develop the talent that then gets taken away from them once the artists start being more successful.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Support your local venue</h2>
<p>Beyond encouraging more people to attend local live music events, there are practical things that can be done to help secure these venues, through funding and planning controls, for example. As with any heritage decisions, understanding cultural significance and value comes first. If we value something we are more likely to find sustainable ways to safeguard it. </p>
<p>But unlike many heritage assets, it may not be the actual venue that matters so much as there being a venue at all. Venues such as those mentioned above are iconic and steeped in the history and mythology of individual performances and associations. But this is largely an intangible heritage, and for us it is the cultural activity that matters most.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180691/original/file-20170802-20062-c9r832.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180691/original/file-20170802-20062-c9r832.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180691/original/file-20170802-20062-c9r832.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180691/original/file-20170802-20062-c9r832.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180691/original/file-20170802-20062-c9r832.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180691/original/file-20170802-20062-c9r832.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180691/original/file-20170802-20062-c9r832.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Bull & Gate in Kentish Town, London.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Stephen McKay</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Radiohead’s encore was not the only Glastonbury highlight from 2017. Another involved a politician. Many of the voices later supporting Radiohead deliver their magnificent encore had earlier joined in an unprecedented refrain, <a href="https://theconversation.com/pop-activism-had-largely-disappeared-its-time-to-bring-it-back-80021">chanting the name “Jeremy Corbyn”</a> as he came on stage. </p>
<p>This was the politician who, in his recent election campaign, <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/jeremy-corbyn-labour-grime-live-music-interview-general-election-polls-2017-theresa-may-jme-stormzy-a7752021.html">highlighted the need to support music venues</a> – not the massive corporate arenas where Radiohead now perform, but the smaller local venues where they and thousands of musicians like them began their careers. The sceptical voter might have considered this a blatant attempt to appeal to younger voters. Yet the message is in character – and he is right.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/81408/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>John Schofield does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The legendary ‘Toilet Circuit’ pubs and clubs that helped launch some of Britain’s best bands are under threat.John Schofield, Head of Archaeology, University of YorkLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/754212017-05-12T11:19:34Z2017-05-12T11:19:34ZTen ways the UK could ensure a Eurovision triumph<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/163162/original/image-20170329-8577-1pmxx3r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=20%2C693%2C3435%2C1629&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Iron Maiden at Ottawa Bluesfest in 2012.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://flic.kr/p/ekozPj">ceedub13/flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Eurovision song contest is about to roll around again, and it’s safe to say the UK’s chances are about as horrible as ever – even the UK entrant, former X-Factor contestant Lucie Jones, said she would just be happy <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2017/05/10/eurovision-2017-uk-entry-lucie-jones-high-hopes-final-just/">not to come last</a>. And with Brexit now thrown into the mix, the country’s status on the continent has seen better days. But the UK’s most valuable cultural capital isn’t traded on the London Stock Exchange. No – it’s rock n roll.</p>
<p>Classic rock, punk rock, glam rock, space rock, heavy metal, indie rock, gothic rock – ask anyone in the world to list their favourite bands and it’s likely that one of the names on the list will be British. But going on the UK’s Eurovision entries alone you’d be forgiven for thinking this wasn’t the case. Another year, another forgettable song. Each time earnestly losing while <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1022689/UK-quit-Eurovision-amid-fears-tactical-voting-turning-competition-farce.html">lamenting the politicisation</a> of the contest. </p>
<p>No more, I say. It’s time to troll the competition with the cynical self-awareness that truly makes the UK. No one likes us? In the immortal words of Johnny Rotten: we don’t care. With that in mind here are ten bands that would greatly improve Britain’s chances.</p>
<p><strong>1. The Darkness</strong></p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/tKjZuykKY1I?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Catsuits, innuendo, and a wall of Marshall amps. With their debut album, Permission to Land, reaching quadruple platinum in the UK, The Darkness are arguably the last of the British Rock megastars. It’s hard to imagine a band winning a BRIT Award for “best album” with a classic rock record ever again, but that’s what this band from Lowestoft, in Suffolk, did in 2004.</p>
<p>The Darkness have it in them to write one last tongue-in-cheek hit. At Eurovision, Brits would either ride high or crash and burn in a sea of smiles (and glitter, and fireworks). What could be better than that?</p>
<p><strong>2. Iron Maiden</strong></p>
<p>Remember when the Finnish metal band Lordi won Eurovision in 2006? Well, they did. And they did so in full demon make-up, with a song called <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gAh9NRGNhUU">Hard Rock Hallelujah</a>. It’s about time Britain reminded its neighbours who invented camp, theatrical, leather-clad heavy metal in the first place.</p>
<p>You don’t have to be a huge Iron Maiden fan to think a flaming 666 and a giant puppet called “Eddie” would be a spectacle to behold (and win votes) at Eurovision. Also, Bruce Dickinson is an accomplished fencer and commercial pilot. Are you? Well then.</p>
<p><strong>3. Paul McCartney</strong></p>
<p>“Hey Paul, fancy entering Eurovision this year?”</p>
<p>“Nope.”</p>
<p>“None of that hippy stuff though – we need you to ROCK!”</p>
<p>“I said no.”</p>
<p>Probably should’ve waited before cashing in the knighthood. But let’s face it, Macca is worth ten Engelbert Humperdincks.</p>
<p><strong>4. PINS</strong></p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Cum5B0qWn_8?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>If we wanted some young blood in the competition there are few better bands around today. Take PINS, a rock band formed in Manchester in 2011. Their low-fi indie pop style isn’t very Eurovision, but that’s exactly the point. Britain’s too cool to care about winning anyway.</p>
<p><strong>5. Adele</strong></p>
<p>Something of a segue from a fairly throwback-style list, but come on. If winning was top priority, the BBC would move heaven and earth to enter Adele and <a href="http://wiwibloggs.com/2013/12/30/editorial-adele-sing-uk-eurovision/35697/">I’m not the first to say so</a>. Eminently likeable and multi-platinum in most countries on the planet, if anyone could win it, it’s her.</p>
<p><strong>6. Happy Mondays</strong></p>
<p>You can’t get much more British than unleashing a bunch of Mancunian party animals onto an unsuspecting European city. Seeing Bez, Shaun and the gang dancing away is something to get behind. Britain’s cousins on the mainland might not “get it”, but clearly a vote against them would be a vote against fun. You don’t hate fun, do you, Europe?</p>
<p><strong>7. Manic Street Preachers</strong></p>
<p>Despite being an elder statesman type figure in British indie today, the Manics continue to introduce fresh styles to their work. But, as their 2016 Welsh <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmHnnkzgjCI">football anthem</a> proves, they’re never shy of the pop limelight either. Would they mix it up with some europop or go full post-punk? Who knows? But they’re always on form and usually up for a laugh.</p>
<p><strong>8. Girlschool</strong></p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/FbR2eczApEI?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>If heavy metal culture emerged in Britain, so too did its subversion. Not only did Girlschool hold their own in the overwhelmingly male-dominated genre throughout the 70s and 80s, but managed to maintain a worldwide fanbase across punk and metal subgenres– their influence <a href="http://www.allmusic.com/album/nightmare-at-maple-cross-mw0000839846">credited</a> with reaching the American Riot Grrrl movement. The US had Joan Jett; in the UK there was Girlschool. Luckily for the Brits, aside from the unfortunate loss of Kelly Johnson in 2007, they are still playing.</p>
<p><strong>9. The Wildhearts</strong></p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/mnTJXyg7gCQ?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Ginger Wildheart’s prolific output since the band’s 90s heyday demonstrates arguably the biggest songwriting chops on this list. With former bass player Danny McCormack back on the scene after having his leg amputated and now supporting his old band with his new outfit, The Main Grains, the past year has seen the unlikely reunion of a pair that “<a href="http://teamrock.com/feature/2016-11-29/ginger-wildheart-danny-mccormack-and-i-should-both-be-dead-by-now">should both be dead</a>” by their own admission. The Wildhearts unite a motley fanbase that spans sub-genres that embody all that is shambolic, chaotic and perennially underdog in cheerful chorus. They’re ideal ambassadors for British music.</p>
<p><strong>10. Morrissey</strong></p>
<p>OK. So we’ll probably never get the Smiths reunion, and this is a pretty unlikely suggestion anyway, but it would be the ultimate trolling. Sending Mozza out to perform the most miserable song he can come up with, sitting awkwardly through interviews, would be a wonderful sight. </p>
<p>He could recreate his 1994 <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_Bh-G9whv4">collaboration</a> with Siouxie for maximum indie points.</p>
<h2>Honourable mentions</h2>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gNdnOTvGbJQ?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p><strong>Motorhead</strong>: if Lemmy was still alive he’d probably tell you where to stick the suggestion, but how cool would that be? There’s always <strong>Asomvel</strong> though. <strong>Cardiacs</strong>: again, <a href="http://www.cardiacs.net/news/">tragic health circumstances</a> rule this one out. But it would have been a win/win. <strong>Siouxie Sioux</strong>: so cool and everyone knows it. You may not hear much from her fans by day, but by night they dance the world over. <strong>Black Sabbath</strong>: the UK would place in the top half on street cred alone. <strong>Sleaford Mods</strong>: anti-pop perfection. <strong>The Slits</strong> and <strong>X-Ray Spex</strong>: Oh Ari. Oh Poly. Oh Eurovision! Up Yours! How the world needs you now … <strong>1919</strong>: I won’t hold my breath, but audiences would be well up for the gig.</p>
<h2>Playing to strengths</h2>
<p>With the UK’s nations competing separately in most sporting events, international competition usually manages to deepen rather than heal divisions in British culture. But while it would be a delusion to suggest Eurovision could magically heal the wounds of Brexit Britain, it could provide a much needed moment of shared cultural celebration. This isn’t an exhaustive list either. If not the Manics, <strong>Super Furry Animals</strong> would be an excellent Welsh choice, while north of the border <strong>Biffy Clyro</strong>, <strong>Primal Scream</strong>, or <strong>The Jesus and Mary Chain</strong> would be ideal entries.</p>
<p>In 2009, music fans in the UK <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2009/dec/20/rage-against-machine-christmas-number-1">hijacked the charts</a> to push <strong>Rage Against the Machine</strong> to Christmas No 1. Is it far-fetched to imagine fans across Europe doing the same for Iron Maiden or Biffy? Of course not. Just as Adele does, these artists are headlining stadium tours across Europe, and yet the UK has backed <a href="http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2017-01-30/former-x-factor-contestant-lucie-jones-will-represent-the-uk-at-eurovision-2017">another X-Factor candidate in Jones</a>. Jones has a nice voice, sure. But the question Britain should be asking is this: will it mobilise the Lordi vote? The answer is probably not.</p>
<p>If Britain is true to its musical history and has fun with it, it should at least be enough to earn a begrudging respect from rivals, if nothing else. And surely that’s the most quintessentially British ambition to pursue?</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/75421/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rio Goldhammer does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>For many years now the UK has been a Eurovision laughing stock, despite a wealth of pop talent. What about if it was to pick one of these sure-fire rockstar winners instead?Rio Goldhammer, Doctoral Researcher in Leisure Studies, Leeds Beckett UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/742692017-03-08T14:56:11Z2017-03-08T14:56:11ZThe UK’s rich musical heritage is threatened by a live music culture under pressure<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/159970/original/image-20170308-24179-1ibgi8t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">dwphotos / Shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>From the Proms to Glastonbury, the UK’s music has always been as clearly characterised by live music as bestselling recordings and star biographies. The rich history of our musical spaces illuminates the evolution of an array of musical styles and their social contexts.</p>
<p>But the relationship between music makers and policymakers hasn’t always been plain sailing – particularly when new genres burst into the public consciousness. Explaining Glasgow City Council’s 1956 decision to ban rock ‘n’ roll shows from its venues, the general manager of its City Halls Department <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=zoK1CwAAQBAJ&pg=PA180&lpg=PA180&dq=We+do+not+think+this+kind+of+dancing+can+do+us+any+good.+In+any+case,+there+are+dangers+which+can+result+in+trouble+and+damage+to+property.+We+have+experience+of+what+can+happe">stated</a>: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>We do not think this kind of dancing can do us any good. In any case, there are dangers which can result in trouble and damage to property. We have experience of what can happens when this rock ‘n’ roll takes place.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>But by the mid 1960s, of course, rock was firmly established throughout the country as impressarios took it into theatres and cinemas. By the end of the decade, Pink Floyd had played at the <a href="https://www.wired.com/2009/05/dayintech_0512/">Queen Elizabeth Hall</a> and the Rolling Stones had staged a celebrated concert in <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-YCqUMQ29U">Hyde Park</a>. From London’s Marquee to Liverpool’s Cavern, many of the venues of that era became as iconic as the acts that played them. The student union circuit became a seedbed for a generation of promoters, such as <a href="https://theconversation.com/note-to-harvey-goldsmith-its-your-music-thats-dead-not-festivals-42698">Harvey Goldsmith</a>, and the site of legendary gigs, exemplified by The Who’s <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sanAHVITCDY">Live at Leeds</a> in 1970.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sanAHVITCDY?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<h2>Challenging times</h2>
<p>Live events, across all genres, are also central to the UK’s music economy. In 2008, revenues from live music <a href="http://www.prsformusic.com/aboutus/press/latestpressreleases/pages/livemusiccontinuestooutperform.aspx">overtook recording</a>, becoming an ever more essential part of musicians’ livelihoods. And so there’s a greater need than ever for a range of venues, from pubs through to arenas, for fledgling acts to progress through as they grow their audience. But vital parts of this live music <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/19401159.2015.1125633?journalCode=rrms20">ecology</a> have suffered in recent years. Grassroots venues are run on tight margins, and have been under pressure for some time from external factors such as <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/sep/09/the-slow-death-of-music-venues-in-cities">rising costs and gentrification</a>.</p>
<p>Likewise, the surrounding policy context can add to the burden. Even without the outright suspicion on display over rock ‘n’ roll in the 1950s, local authorities’ licensing and development policies can militate against a healthy music scene if care isn’t taken to protect it. </p>
<p>Between 2007 and 2015, London lost <a href="https://www.london.gov.uk/press-releases/mayoral/mayor-helps-london-music">35% of its grassroots venues</a>. This brewing crisis prompted a response, and the <a href="http://musicvenuetrust.com/">Music Venue Trust</a>, formed in 2014, worked to push the issue up the policy agenda, liaising with the Mayor of London’s office to form a <a href="http://musicvenuetrust.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/londons_grassroots_music_venues_-_rescue_plan_-_october_2015.pdf">Music Venue Rescue Plan</a> and appoint a <a href="https://www.london.gov.uk/press-releases/mayoral/mayor-reveals-uks-first-ever-night-czar">Night Mayor</a> to champion the city’s night-time economy. </p>
<p>The Music Venue Trust’s research shows that the number of venues in the capital in January 2017 was <a href="http://musicvenuetrust.com/2017/02/rescue-plan-londons-grassroots-music-venues-making-progress/">stable for the first time in ten years</a>. But it takes a concerted effort, and the situation is febrile for venues up and down the country with <a href="http://www.scotsman.com/news/popular-edinburgh-music-venue-to-close-by-end-of-march-1-4380714">threatened closures</a> now a persistent refrain.</p>
<p>The government’s <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/mar/06/budget-2017-final-plea-against-business-rates-rise">review of business rates</a> could see a rise in the level of rates they will pay of up to 55%. For some music venues, this could easily be the difference between staying operational or going under. This wouldn’t just be a loss to the economy. Local venues are a <a href="http://livemusicexchange.org/wp-content/uploads/The-Cultural-Value-of-Live-Music-Pub-to-Stadium-report.pdf">cultural</a> as well as an economic resource. The social and musical networks they house are not easily replaced and the larger spaces, ultimately, depend on healthy grassroots for tomorrow’s headliners.</p>
<p>The challenges are widespread, and face venues of all kinds. A squeeze on funding has seen local authorities reduce their <a href="http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/sites/default/files/download-file/Funding%2520Arts%2520and%2520Culture%2520in%2520a%2520time%2520of%2520Austerity%2520(Adrian%2520Harvey).pdf">spending on the arts</a>, and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/education/2016/oct/08/laura-mvula-school-music-cuts-wealthy-children">music education</a> also faces an uncertain future.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/159973/original/image-20170308-24211-rwo8s6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/159973/original/image-20170308-24211-rwo8s6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/159973/original/image-20170308-24211-rwo8s6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/159973/original/image-20170308-24211-rwo8s6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/159973/original/image-20170308-24211-rwo8s6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/159973/original/image-20170308-24211-rwo8s6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/159973/original/image-20170308-24211-rwo8s6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Large venues such as the O2 Academy Brixton rely on smaller grassroots venues.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/phonegigpics/17277033272/in/photolist-sjHj51-j7sep6-98Nqm7-GPR9w-j7ujUS-498wwA-j7v2cN-n9qeCT-hym1Qc-nBGXYs-nBGWBj-n9sfXG-6TbinH-j7sirK-h4eryB-5YfVFw-4MsqYc-8ueDke-6CgLER-9NgMMB-6CkVBb-8VT7Zu-aW1LRa-5JbpUB-3BpjFg-6CkUn7-6SUh9j-6vJ3T-6SXJgw-3WCL9B-ejHV7D-6TbeNk-9NjyM7-5JbjPZ-E7ZhpL-8EAcnn-81DpRg-69HDX7-3cxFa2-5Yg44h-6SQkkV-k1DVJS-6JThY3-6CgKLZ-5YbPgr-NmfAuu-PqHPH4-PqHPpD-PqHNRK-PqHMZ4">phonegigpics/flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Soundchecking the UK’s live music</h2>
<p>The state of affairs, then, is finely balanced. On the one hand, live music in the UK is an immense economic and cultural asset, driving everything from <a href="http://www.ukmusic.org/research/music-tourism-wish-you-were-here-2016/">tourism</a> and civic pride to <a href="http://comresglobal.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Report_Final-published.pdf">soft power</a>. On the other, the conditions for venues and music makers call for a carefully calibrated response from policymakers to manage the ongoing tensions. </p>
<p>This is the motivation for a team from the Universities of Edinburgh, Glasgow and Newcastle to conduct the world’s <a href="http://www.uklivemusiccensus.org/">first national music census</a>. A snapshot census of live music across six cities – Glasgow, Newcastle, Leeds, Oxford, Southampton and Brighton – on Thursday March 9 will gather observational data and information about audiences at gigs and concerts across genres and venues types, from open mic sessions in pubs, through city halls to an Olly Murs arena show.</p>
<p>Online nationwide surveys of audiences, musicians, venues and promoters running until May will provide the broader context, along with social media analysis. The research team has consulted with a range of <a href="http://livemusicexchange.org/blog/introducing-the-uk-live-music-census-matt-brennan-adam-behr-martin-cloonan-emma-webster/">key music industry and charity organisations</a> to arrive at a set of questions that captures the full spectrum of activity in a way that will be applicable to drawing up policy on a local and national scale.</p>
<p>Even in straitened times, government can still find ways to support live music if it has the right information. Lord Clement Jones, a driving force <a href="http://livemusicexchange.org/blog/hamish-birchall-on-the-live-music-act-2012/">behind 2012 legislation</a> to facilitate live music, <a href="http://www.aol.co.uk/news/2017/03/05/higher-business-rates-could-threaten-live-music-venues/">noted</a> the value of up-to-date, comprehensive information:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Live music is facing a number of challenges at the moment, from venues closing down to the threat of increased business rates. However, data about the sector has so far been relatively scarce and mostly anecdotal, and so the much needed data collected by UK Live Music Census will help us protect live music going into the future.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Pulling together diverse voices from across the live music sector to provide a cohesive picture of the situation will help to safeguard the routes from pub to stadium that have enriched our national culture until now.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>To take part in the UK Live Music Census, <a href="http://www.uklivemusiccensus.org">complete the online surveys</a> from March 9 to May 8. Help to build the picture through social media by sending photos or information about any gigs or clubs you’re at on March 9 to @ukmusiccensus (<a href="https://www.facebook.com/ukmusiccensus/">Facebook</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/ukmusiccensus">Twitter</a>, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/ukmusiccensus/">Instagram</a>).</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/74269/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Adam Behr receives funding from the Arts and Humanities Research Council and is part of the UK Live Music Census team.</span></em></p>Grassroots venues are run on tight margins, and have been under pressure for some time from external factors such as rising costs and gentrification.Adam Behr, Lecturer in Popular and Contemporary Music, Newcastle UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/723282017-02-09T12:33:48Z2017-02-09T12:33:48ZWhy so many singers sound American – but British grime artists are bucking the trend<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/156053/original/image-20170208-17355-y80igx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Grime artist Bugzy Malone</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/villageunderground/30224374833/in/photolist-NyoiQW-NyoiBu-P1Zwap-Nyoid3-P1Zw3F-Nyoi3o-NXKVMm-Nyohxf-N3PQE4-NXKVxJ-N3PQ3T-NXKVa9-NXKT8d-N3PPCV-NXKUTN-N3PPhV-NXKUBq-NXKUqd-NXKUkU-NXKUew-NXKU3E-N3PMYT-N3PMFP-NQH14m-N3PLS4-Nyoevy">villunderlondon/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Most British pop and rock stars sing with an American accent. But UK grime artists are taking pride in their Britishness and staying true to their regional roots. </p>
<p>It doesn’t matter where in the UK a singer is from or how they sound when they speak, when the song begins the regional accent usually ends. In its place emerges a general American-type accent. Not precisely identifiable in terms of region but certainly more US than UK. </p>
<p>This common phenomenon is especially striking when we happen to know that, when speaking, the singer shows strong regional features. Think Adele, Cheryl Cole, Jamelia, Mick Jagger, Ozzy Osbourne, all of whom have distinctly regional accents but adopt an Americanised singing style.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bwDpAfFzcRQ?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Ozzy Osbourne - Crazy Train (Speak Of The Devil)</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Why American?</h2>
<p>So, why is this the case? Most likely it’s a combination of <a href="http://david-crystal.blogspot.co.uk/2009/11/on-singing-accents.html">two main factors</a>, one linguistic, one social. Linguistically, the very process of singing has an accent-neutralising effect. Accent differences are largely created through intonation, vowel quality and vowel length – all of which are affected when we sing. In singing, syllables are lengthened, air flow is increased, articulation is less precise. Thus we get a more generic, neutralised accent that happens to share features with American varieties of English. </p>
<p>Socially, there is an expectation (based on musical history) that popular music will be sung this way. It’s not that singers are consciously trying to sound “American”, rather they are adopting the default style for their genre. Linguist Andy Gibson noted a similar trend in New Zealand singers and suggested we should simply call it a “<a href="http://www.news.aut.ac.nz/news/2010/july/why-we-sound-like-americans-when-we-sing">pop music accent</a>”. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/156056/original/image-20170208-17313-wlctte.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/156056/original/image-20170208-17313-wlctte.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/156056/original/image-20170208-17313-wlctte.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/156056/original/image-20170208-17313-wlctte.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/156056/original/image-20170208-17313-wlctte.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/156056/original/image-20170208-17313-wlctte.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/156056/original/image-20170208-17313-wlctte.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Alex Turner from Arctic Monkeys.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/alterna2/6783336357/in/photolist-bkqnz8-bkqo5T-gh2Ba7-c7qnh-aiUiFZ-aBD48Y-czPTr-aCqWfN-bBeeqh-6LVi2A-bjWxfk-2bShCr-2bWcdJ-2bWcdq-6LVhb7-caYas-gh2Xff-gh3hbJ-gh3h87-6LR9t4-2bShER-2fgijm-gh3cCp-2bWcdS-gh3cDg-gh3BZ8-bjWxZ6-gh3BT6-2bShAZ-6LVivL-2bRjBx-6LVhzE-6LR7sP-6LR8hg-6LVgMw-2bRjEB-JvkWt-6LR7TZ-6LVkhd-9LKXU-2bWcaW-6LR9ie-6LR9KX-2bShAe-2bRjFX-gaeYrn-6LRap2-6LVk5Y-gh2XnQ-gh3czi">Alterna2/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But this accent neutralisation isn’t inevitable, as the numerous exceptions over the years illustrate. Artists such as Madness, Ian Dury, Lily Allen (London), The Proclaimers, Biffy Clyro (Scotland) and Cerys Matthews (Wales) have all maintained aspects of their regional accents to varying degrees when singing. Linguistics professor Joan Beal explored the <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0075424209340014">use of local accent and dialect features</a> in the music of Sheffield band Arctic Monkeys, suggesting that it represents their authenticity and independence from the corporate machine.</p>
<p>“UK grime” seems to be continuing this tradition. Originating in early 2000s east London, grime is a uniquely British descendant of UK garage, bashment, drum and bass, jungle, and dancehall that has been spreading across the country. And while it does have its own genre-appropriate language in the form of <a href="http://www.lancaster.ac.uk/fss/projects/linguistics/multicultural/index.htm">Multicultural London English</a> (MLE), there are distinct signs of regional variation.</p>
<p>As you move away from London, features of MLE appear in the speech of young people in other cities, suggesting that it has become the <a href="https://theconversation.com/skepta-grime-and-urban-british-youth-language-a-guide-65611">language of urban British youth</a>. However, small regional differences exist and this is reflected in musical performance. Just as Arctic Monkeys and others took a stand against the accent-neutralising process of popular music, grime artists are resisting the London-centricity of their art. </p>
<h2>Local and proud</h2>
<p>Take Bugzy Malone. Born, raised and based in Manchester, Bugzy’s bars have a distinctive local flavour. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsGKkfElA8k">Listen, for example,</a> to the northern vowel in words such as “up”, “trust”, and “money”, and the tell-tale Manchester vowel sound at the end of “corner”. </p>
<p>Or Lady Leshurr, the unofficial Queen of Birmingham. In her <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FyodeHtVvkA">Queen’s Speeches</a>, she displays local accent features such as the second vowel sound in “upload” (saying it somewhere between Received Pronunciation (RP) “load” and “loud”).</p>
<p>Similarly, Astroid boys have a subtle yet unmistakable Welsh aspect to their delivery. Notice the typically Cardiff vowel in words like “early”, “burger” and “work”.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lODBPucIVR4?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>There are two likely reasons for this style of performance. First, rapping arguably has a lot more in common with speaking rather than singing, so the phonetic constraints are not as strong. However, it would still be possible to perform in an entirely “London” way, which early grime artists tended to do.</p>
<p>The second reason is to do with local identity. It’s no coincidence that grime artists rap about their lives and local areas. Bugzy takes pride in having “put Manny on the map”, Lady Leshurr references her Birmingham lingo, and Astroid boys were the subject of a recent <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04rdvlb">BBC Radio documentary</a> in which they said: “Yeah we are from Cardiff … our accent’s in the music, we rap about the streets we grew up on.”</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/156054/original/image-20170208-17341-19zytd1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/156054/original/image-20170208-17341-19zytd1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/156054/original/image-20170208-17341-19zytd1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/156054/original/image-20170208-17341-19zytd1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/156054/original/image-20170208-17341-19zytd1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/156054/original/image-20170208-17341-19zytd1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/156054/original/image-20170208-17341-19zytd1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Lady Leshurr at Sónar 2016.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/scanner-fm/27116477093/in/photolist-GPvmbW-HjRS9o-QGLAKq-Hjc3CF-J6fAvS-Hjc4yZ-J6fB7S-Hjc2iM-Hj2Vpm-J6fC41-Hjc2oM-J6fBeq-Hjc558-Hjc2WR-HPz8d1-Hjc4CB-Hjc3hk-J6fBVq-Hjc3YF-Hjc59g-Hjc4Rc-Hjc3Qp-J6fBvh-J6fCqU-J6fCkU-J6fCMA-Hjc3xF-Hjc4YX-J6fCEG-HPz83S-Hjc4Jt-Jc9vAb-J6fC9w-Hjc4f2-Jc9viY-Hjc46e-J6fBLN-Hjc3Hk-J6fBnS-J6fAXy-Hjc3q6-J6fARS-J6fAJ7-Hjc3bi-J6fABy-Hjc33x-Hjc2V8-Hjc2Pg-J6fAhf-Hj2Vr5/">scannerFM/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Interestingly, this reference in performance to the local area is also found among the singers mentioned earlier who maintained their regional accents and identities. Ian Dury, Madness, The Proclaimers and Arctic Monkeys would regularly situate their lyrics locally and could also be seen as having a spoken quality to their music.</p>
<p>So, is this a conscious decision made by grime artists? In a <a href="http://www.dazeddigital.com/music/article/32123/1/lady-leshurr-on-answering-the-haters-in-style">recent interview with Dazed and Confused magazine</a>, Lady Leshurr said: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>People used to diss my accent and I got insecure and stopped using it. But I just woke up one day and thought, “What are you doing Leesh? You’re from Birmingham, you shouldn’t have to hide your accent because of other people”. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>Researchers at Manchester Metropolitan University are now looking at how language and other resources are used by grime artists to construct young, urban, and regional identities. Grime is about staying true to who you are and where you come from, making Lady Leshurr the “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DCXiaXa6ow">realest gyal</a>” and other grime artists relatable and engaging. Keeping it regional is their way of keeping it real.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/72328/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rob Drummond has received funding from The Leverhulme Trust. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Erin Carrie does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>When British singers step up to the microphone many adopt an American accent. Grime is the exception.Rob Drummond, Senior Lecturer in Linguistics, Manchester Metropolitan UniversityErin Carrie, Lecturer in Linguistics, Manchester Metropolitan UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/709172017-01-12T13:19:23Z2017-01-12T13:19:23ZMusic has the power to rock the state, but youth movements will find the state always bites back<p>Among records recently released to the National Archives is a file from the 1980s entitled “<a href="https://hatfulofhistory.wordpress.com/2016/12/31/policing-acid-house-parties-in-1989-what-the-new-thatcher-government-papers-reveal/">Acid house parties</a>” which details the government’s disquiet over the growing phenomenon of raves, the large, open-air dance events in which thousands of young people, guided by organisers using new technologies such as pagers and mobile phones, descended upon fields to party. </p>
<p>The response was a series of laws imposing strict conditions and harsh penalties, with the <a href="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1994/33/part/V/crossheading/powers-in-relation-to-raves">Criminal Justice Act 1994</a> infamously outlawing music “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/libertycentral/2009/jul/21/criminal-justice-bill-protests">characterised by a series of repetitive beats</a>”. While many at the time may have felt immediate action was required to prevent the collapse of civilisation as we knew it, in fact this was merely the latest in a long line of moral panics over popular music through the 20th century. </p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.jerryjazzmusician.com/2014/01/unspeakable-jazz-must-go-strong-opinions-impact-jazz-american-culture-1921/">cultural mixing pot of jazz</a>, and even traditional music and ballads or bawdy songs in music halls had at some point caused anxiety among the powers that be. But it was during the rock’n’roll era that this process of music putting the fear into the state was <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xgx4k83zzc">turned up to 11</a>.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/85-19PxC17o?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<h2>Slash the seats</h2>
<p>Even before the arrival of Elvis Presley’s gyrating pelvis, fears about rock’n’roll were brewing from the transgressive collision of Afro-American rhythm and blues, white youths, and sex – all during the fraught racial politics of 1950s America. Crossing cultural boundaries and national borders, rock’n’roll became a global phenomenon, with fears for the youth of the day gripping almost every nation. The United Nations even <a href="https://www.unodc.org/congress/en/previous/previous-02.html">convened a special conference</a> in London in 1960 to discuss the problem of juvenile delinquency.</p>
<p>In Britain, the arrival of rock’n’roll in 1955 collided with a pre-existing panic over the Teddy Boy youth movement, sparked by a notorious gang-related murder in Clapham in 1953. The Teds embraced the new music and the press was filled with reports of Teds slashing cinema seats while dancing to Bill Haley and the Comets’ “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZgdufzXvjqw">Rock Around the Clock</a>” from the closing credits of Blackboard Jungle – an American movie about, ironically, juvenile delinquents.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/HA0_NRjx9KQ?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>But rock’n’roll cleaned up – Elvis joined the army, and squeaky clean crooners and apostate rockers like Cliff Richard took the edge off pop music. The next moral panic came with the <a href="http://uknowledge.uky.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1125&context=libraries_facpub">British Beat boom</a> in 1964, when <a href="http://dangerousminds.net/comments/the_real_quadrophenia_mods_vs._rockers_fight_on_the_beaches">running battles broke out between mods and rockers</a> in seaside towns. Rockers were the descendants of the Teds, who had abandoned Edwardian frock coats for leather jackets. The mods were associated with bands like The Who, The Yardbirds and the Small Faces, with a sharp dress sense favouring suits, a clear collective identity, and an often undeserved reputation for misbehaviour. </p>
<p>The out-of-touch Conservative government under Alec Douglas-Home passed in 1964 The Malicious Damages Act and The Misuse of Drugs Act, banning the amphetamines that it was claimed fuelled the mod scene. This was the first time an explicit association was made between narcotics and pop music subcultures. From now on, the two would regularly be grouped together. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5Rj-OHCusEI?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<h2>Busted</h2>
<p>Fifty years ago this year, <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/may/10/newsid_2522000/2522735.stm">police raided the home</a> of Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards and arrested him, singer Mick Jagger and gallery owner Robert “Groovy Bob” Fraser. The trial was a global media event, not least for the behaviour of the judge at the trial who constantly chided and condemned the “petty morals” of the band before jailing them.</p>
<p>The response to the convictions was extraordinary. As well as the expected vocal protests of Rolling Stones fans, the editor of The Times – an “establishment” newspaper – published an incendiary editorial, <a href="https://www.iorr.org/talk/read.php?1,1755802,1756208">Who breaks a butterfly on a wheel?</a>, attacking the judge for seeking to make examples of the two bandmates. Ultimately Jagger and Richards successfully appealed against their sentences, although clearing his name was a Pyrrhic victory for Richards, in the light of his subsequent life dogged by heroin addiction and many brushes with the law. </p>
<p>A cascade of music celebrity raids followed, and by 1967 a backlash had emerged against youth counter-cultures on both sides of the Atlantic, with the likes of <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/763998.stm">Mary Whitehouse campaigning for a return to “traditional values”</a>. Medical and psychiatric professionals added their voices to those of the reactionaries, as there were legitimate concerns about the proliferation of drugs: 1967 was the first “<a href="http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2012/07/lsd-drugs-summer-of-love-sixties">Summer of Love</a>”, when the music and art of the era was laced with LSD. Although not all favoured prohibition there was clear evidence of harm that had to be addressed.</p>
<p>Questions linger over the establishment’s targeting of groups such as the Beatles and the Stones, and others such as Jimi Hendrix. The press almost certainly tipped off the police over drug use at Richards’ home, and there is evidence of <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1323236/The-Acid-King-confesses-Rolling-Stones-drug-bust-set-MI5-FBI.html">police collusion with the media</a>. And the establishment itself was not innocent: the Metropolitan Police’s drugs squad later had to be gutted of corrupt policemen after it was discovered that <a href="https://cathyfox.wordpress.com/2016/02/05/the-fall-of-scotland-yard/">senior officers had committed perjury</a> to defend a known drugs dealer. Were pop stars targeted to deflect attention from serious criminals who had the police in their back pocket?</p>
<h2>The moral minority</h2>
<p>Sometimes the problem was not drugs but obscenity. Even if it seems absurd today, The Beatles song <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19sAewJH22I">I am the Walrus</a> was struck from BBC playlists due to the lyric: “Boy you have been a naughty girl and let your knickers down”, while The Sex Pistols were forced to argue the precise meaning of the word “<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/vb8c/">bollocks</a>” in court. Elsewhere, anarcho-punks The Anti-Nowhere League and Crass also <a href="http://www.nme.com/photos/the-songs-they-tried-to-ban-1413829">found themselves in the dock for the use of obscene language</a>. </p>
<p>The most notorious attacks on popular music on grounds of obscenity was undoubtedly the <a href="http://europe.newsweek.com/oral-history-tipper-gores-war-explicit-rock-lyrics-dee-snider-333304?rm=eu">Parents Music Resource Center</a> in the US during the 1980s, who demanded warnings on record sleeves alerting parents to explicit lyrical content. Their list of what they regarded as the most egregious examples of obscenity, known as the “<a href="http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/pmrcs-filthy-15-where-are-they-now-20150917">filthy fifteen</a>”, contains both heavy rockers and comparatively tame pop acts.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152250/original/image-20170110-29003-c7lxn9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152250/original/image-20170110-29003-c7lxn9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152250/original/image-20170110-29003-c7lxn9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152250/original/image-20170110-29003-c7lxn9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152250/original/image-20170110-29003-c7lxn9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=479&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152250/original/image-20170110-29003-c7lxn9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=479&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152250/original/image-20170110-29003-c7lxn9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=479&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The result of a congressional enquiry was an agreement by the Recording Industry Association of America and manufacturers to add the now iconic “Parental Discretion Advised” sticker on certain records. Not only did this often act as an incentive to adolescent purchasers rather than a warning, but there is significant evidence that the industry agreed not as a sop to the moral lobby but <a href="http://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1039&context=younghistorians">in return for a levy on blank cassette tapes</a>, ensuring the industry could profit from the practice of home taping records. </p>
<h2>Folk devils</h2>
<p>Sometimes it was not the musicians but their fans that worried the authorities. The skinhead, punk, rasta and raver scenes have all been viewed as, <a href="http://www.underground-england.co.uk/news/mods-v-rockers-traditional-english-seaside-entertainment-2/">in the words of the sociologist Stanley Cohen</a>, “<a href="https://infodocks.files.wordpress.com/2015/01/stanley_cohen_folk_devils_and_moral_panics.pdf">folk devils</a>”: those who seemed to champion disorder. Authorities struggled with the question of whether bands are responsible for the actions of their fans. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/cYApo2d8o_A?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Two famous cases from the 1980s saw heavy metal legends Ozzy Osbourne and Judas Priest blamed for the suicides of several fans. It was claimed that Judas Priest had inserted a subliminal message into the track <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PqAPVB4u9Zs">Better you than me</a>, and that Ozzy’s track <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UoPYv0Kq-0">Suicide solution</a> was an incitement to suicide – something Osbourne denied. Both court cases failed, but raised important questions about the relationship between fans and bands. Even after the end of the conservative-dominated 1980s, the 1997 Columbine High School massacre in Colorado was <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6moDcEkSnY">blamed on Marilyn Manson’s music</a> in much the same way.</p>
<p>The last decades of the 20th century were the high tide of moral panics over popular music, with almost every development in musical subcultures generating unease and outright hostility from the authorities, morality campaigners, and opportunistic newspapers editors looking for the next trend to decry and sensationalise. </p>
<p>In recent years the potential for music to shock or generate controversy seems to have lessened. Even members of boyband <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2637722/ONE-DIRECTION-EXCLUSIVE-Joint-lit-Happy-days-Watch-Zayn-Malik-Louis-Tomlinson-smoke-roll-cigarette-joke-marijuana-way-tour-concert.html">One Direction escaped largely unscathed</a> from tabloid exposure about recreational drug use, which a generation earlier had <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/friday_review/story/0,3605,461173,00.html">ended the careers of the likes of East 17</a>. </p>
<p>Certainly, there is greater toleration or acceptance of the harder edges of musical cultures. But the passing of the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-did-the-mind-boggling-new-drugs-bill-make-it-through-parliament-53612">Psychoactive Substances Act 2016</a> shows that anxieties about youth culture and behaviour are still part of the political landscape. And it takes only a fraught atmosphere, the search for a scapegoat, and ill-judged responses from popstars to turn a headline into the next moral panic.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/70917/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Clifford Williamson works for Bath Spa University.</span></em></p>The 20th century saw battle lines drawn between music-driven youth movements and the state like none before.Clifford Williamson, Senior Lecturer in Contemporary British and American History, Bath Spa UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/613292016-06-23T10:36:54Z2016-06-23T10:36:54ZYear zero for British punk was 1976 – but there had long been anarchy in the USA<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/127506/original/image-20160621-13002-tsrji5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Sex Pistols in the Paradiso Club, Amsterdam, 1977.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Koen Suyk; Nationaal Archief, Den Haag, Rijksfotoarchief: Fotocollectie Algemeen Nederlands Fotopersbureau (ANEFO)</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Any talk of a “<a href="http://www.route-online.com/home-page-feature-boxes/clinton-heylin-interview-anarchy-in-the-year-zero.html">year zero</a>” in any field should be eyed suspiciously: after all, nothing comes from a vacuum. However, such a labelling for the year 1976 has been commonly made in relation to so-called “punk rock”. Just how suspicious of the label do we need to be, then?</p>
<p>Let’s start by challenging the idea of 1976 as punk’s year zero. Take the Sex Pistols as the most dominant example (<em>the</em> punk band, in the eyes of many people). </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2bPsiK2DNEA?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Actually, the Pistols’ first gig takes place on November 6, 1975 (pre-year zero, then) and is peppered with covers of short, fast, fiery songs from the sixties by the Who, the Small Faces, the Monkees and so forth. The Pistols’ own material is diatonic – simple – in harmonic terms and rhythmically unchallenging; their lyrics are interesting enough, certainly, but are not the most provocative lyrics ever set to post-Elvis rock music.</p>
<h2>Born on the Bowery?</h2>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/127507/original/image-20160621-13039-1w5b2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/127507/original/image-20160621-13039-1w5b2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/127507/original/image-20160621-13039-1w5b2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/127507/original/image-20160621-13039-1w5b2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/127507/original/image-20160621-13039-1w5b2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/127507/original/image-20160621-13039-1w5b2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/127507/original/image-20160621-13039-1w5b2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">CBGB club in the Bowery, New York: punk’s nursery.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Adam Di Carlo</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>What about the fabled CBGB venue on Manhattan’s lower east side? Again, things are well underway by 1975; indeed, key players from the Patti Smith Group, Television, Ramones and so forth are already familiar faces at CBGB by 1974. The Dictators’ “Go Girl Crazy!” is issued in 1975 but much of it sounds uncannily like the stuff which started pouring out of the UK from 1977 onwards.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/tPYqQjDj59Q?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Punk doesn’t come out of nowhere in 1976, then. The most widely name-checked precursors are the Velvet Underground, the Stooges, New York Dolls, MC5, perhaps the Kinks. Dig a little deeper and you’ll find people referring to the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/steven-rosen/might-the-sonics-be-the-great-american-rock-band_b_7174168.html">raw, “garage” rock of the Sonics</a>, <a href="http://ultimateclassicrock.com/kingsmen-louie-louie/">the Kingsmen</a> and, to give some more obscure examples, the Swamp Rats check out: “No Friend of Mine”) or the Monacles (especially “I Can’t Win”).</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CVyqsRfUZ60?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Then there’s so-called Krautrock: Neu!’s “After Eight” from 1975, for example, is remarkably close to the overall sound and feel of the UK punk rock which would proliferate around two years later. Meanwhile, punk archivists have uncovered innumerable obscurities in recent years, such as Hollywood Brats’ “Sick On You” from 1973, which are uncannily close to the sound which would predominate in the UK and beyond a few years later.</p>
<p>Dr Feelgood, the Hammersmith Gorillas, Eddie and the Hot Rods – the list of pre-Pistols “proto punk” bands is in fact far too large to cope with for present purposes. In brief, there are countless examples of punk-sounding songs and bands which existed in the years prior to 1976.</p>
<h2>‘That’ night in Manchester</h2>
<p>Isn’t all this only part of the story, though? Let’s think about the fabled Manchester Free Trade Hall gig of April 1976. The Sex Pistols have drawn some attention from the weekly national music press (NME et al) but are not much established beyond a tiny milieu in London. The likes of the Clash and the Damned are yet to play their first gigs. Those bands, like countless others, will be energised into action by the Sex Pistols: unless we are prepared to discount the proclamations of the actual bands in question, the evidence in this regard is incontrovertible.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lWm30kLeamo?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>In attendance at the Free Trade Hall are individuals who will go on to form Joy Division/New Order, the Smiths, the Fall, Factory records, the Buzzcocks – groups (and a record label) which will gain worldwide fame and epoch-defining status in the coming years and decades.</p>
<p>If 1976 in general and the Manchester Free Trade Hall gig in particular were just random points on a lengthy continuum, we wouldn’t speak of “pre-punk” and “post-punk” in the way that we do. If the Sex Pistols et al hadn’t brought such a “shock of the new” to 1976, the vernacular claims to individual transformation wouldn’t be so overwhelmingly common. Punk happened; you only have to listen to people talking about it to realise that.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1vvGp_VPeLI?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>This doesn’t mean that there were no precedents for the “class of ’76” – we have seen above that there certainly were. But none of these quite matches the impact of the Sex Pistols and most don’t come anywhere near. Take <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COmIRUoRxhw&list=PLeUOcetqebBNnT9rLfgreJqLNIk7HvaZH">The Monks</a>: thanks to the internet, this band have become an “obvious” reference point for those who want to note the pre-Pistols existence of snotty lyrics, aggressive music and, in short, a certain aesthetic of negativity. The thing is, though, even though the Sex Pistols may not have sold all that many records relatively speaking, their sales nevertheless dwarf those of a band like the Monks, as does their cultural impact.</p>
<h2>Nihilism doesn’t come from nowhere</h2>
<p>The Sex Pistols and the Manchester Free Trade Hall gig of 1976 are important, then – not as a year zero as such (as Derrida taught us, there is no “<a href="https://newderrida.wordpress.com/2007/11/19/some-key-terms/">originary trace</a>” – everything follows on from something – always) but as a particular and significant moment in time. </p>
<p>So <em>the</em> punk moment, some 40 years ago, was not a perfect or absolute singularity. It was, however, a clarion call: a felt-possibility – something that gave the feeling there was a chance to begin again with radical novelty. This new sense may not have brought as much of a nuisance to the powers-that-be as is often claimed. Nevertheless, it was – and is – worth something. So value it carefully.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/61329/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Pete Dale does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Did the Sex Pistols invent punk rock or did they pick up on something happening in New York for years?Pete Dale, Senior Lecturer in Popular Music, Manchester Metropolitan UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.