Music Is A Powerful Tool For Globalization

1671 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Music as an agent of social change

Over the years globalization has become a very controversial subject. Some view it as a progression that is significant to future world economic development: a sequence, which is predictable and permanent. However, others believe globalization to be a process that only benefits countries that are already economically strong. Globalization augments inequality within and among countries. It’s “a historical process, [which] is the result of human innovation and technological progress.” Globalization creates a large gap between economically developed nations, and undeveloped nations. “In short, globalization is about the connections between different regions of the world—from the cultural to the criminal, the financial to the environmental—and the ways in which they change and increase over time.” Globalization impacts many aspects of our lives, it’s in music, films, and poetry. Through the lyrics of Wyclef Jean’s If I was President and Nancy Schimmel’s 1492 one learns how music is a powerful tool in building consciousness and solidarity on global issues. The power that music has throughout the world is infinite. Many songs have the capability to help identify a culture, as well as educate countries about other cultures. Music has a way of inducing feelings, awakening old memories, and producing new ones. It can be used for entertainment, communication, and inspiration. However, at times music is used as a tool for resistance, and change: resistance against power, oppression, and government. Within our everyday lives, and in the lives of others lies the need to expand our horizons, and surround ourselves with more than just what is seen everyday. The role that music plays in today’s society is a significant tool in the develo... ... middle of paper ... ...come and low-income countries become. Inequality, death, and loss of culture are consequences that many countries suffer because of globalization. Through the lyrics of Wyclef and Schimmel we learn about the atrocities that occur as a result of globalization. Wyclef and Schimmel’s lyrics imply that the prosperity of countries that are economically, technologically, and, socially advanced are more valued than the life of an individual. Globalization institutionalizes disparities within countries, disparities that place underdeveloped countries at unfair disadvantage. In order to economically succeed, countries must enter into international competition, countries that are underdeveloped take the greatest risk when they enter because ultimately they are placing the lives of their citizens into the hands of countries that value growth and affluence more than human life.

Show More
Related

  • The History of Slave Music and its Impact on Modern Music

    2049 Words  | 5 Pages

    Music is an art and a wonderful gift to human race. It soothes, stimulates and makes us feel happy. It affects our moods in many different ways from lullaby to war cry for changes in the society. Music is actually distinct to different people. Above all, it has a transformational importance that is captured in its art and nature. Music draws our emotions and it has an impact of bridging different cultures across the continents. Slave songs were very vital channels through which all kind of information was conveyed both positive and negative.

    Read More

  • How Did The Swing Era Impact Society

    1252 Words  | 3 Pages

    Music’s role on society has changed drastically through the course of its history as it has become ever so increasingly expansive. Many of the previous musical movements were only for the wealthy as entertainment

    Read More

  • Analysis of M.I.A.'s Paper Planes Music Video

    1501 Words  | 4 Pages

    There is one universal language: the language of music. Music has a special quality and ability to bridge both social and cultural divides. A proposed theory by Dr. Gray, Founder and Director of National Musical Arts’ BioMusic Program; describes music has been around longer than human-beings have. Music is the one thing human beings from various backgrounds can relate to. Every living creature would agree. Music is heard everywhere not just among humans, but in nature as well, through the twitting of birds, winds blowing, the soft sound of raindrops against a windowpane, the ocean waves moving back and forth and the hum of the ocean rushing in a sea shell. There is no escaping it; music lives in and surrounds us steadily. While there are countless songs which confer social or cultural consciousness, this paper will analyze and address the dynamics of M.I.A.’s “Paper Planes”, video. Stylistically, the paper will examine the artist point of view, the unique use of lyrical analysis and sound description in relation to its historical, social, political and/or cultural context. This essay will also trace the lyrical analysis and sound description of song and discuss how the elements (visually, sonically, and lyrically) interplay with the theme of immigration and/or violence.

    Read More

  • Music as a Tool of Protest and Social Change

    1915 Words  | 4 Pages

    “Music is uniquely wonderful. It is incapable of being touched yet it touches everyone who is capable of hear sounds. It can seemingly evoke any emotion; we instinctively respond to happy tunes, mournful songs, beautiful melodies, inspiring anthems, stirring hymns, and majestic orchestrations.” (Doolan, Robert. 1985) There is no question that music is great part of society; it has been at civilization’s side whether it be the lyres and flutes of the ancient Greeks or how it calms or excites emotions and keeps armies in order during battle. Within society, there has also been social unrest and the desire for change. Protesting is the expression of a society’s concerns on current events of which they feel affected by whether it be through public rallies, picketing, riots or even bombings. Protest through music is one powerful medium for engaging people. Amidst what life throws at individuals, music has comforted the soul, provoked individualistic thought and opinion, and music draws people together through groups alike who have the same attachment or concerns with their surroundings. Whether it be rock, jazz, blues, rap, hip hop, dance, spiritual, or world, music has inspired artists to spill out their expression and views of society. Music is a universally effective tool of protest in generating social change and unrest as it continues to unite those with like ideas.

    Read More

  • Music and Cultural Identity

    1236 Words  | 3 Pages

    Some may say music is just music; a song is just a song. However, music plays an enormous role in our psychology, because a single song has the ability to bring about many kinds of thoughts and emotions in the listener. Music is subtly one of the main factors in which people identify with certain groups and establish their belonging in society. It shapes people’s perspectives on how the world functions and the roles they play within it. Music can function the same way in a culture; it can reflect many of the culture’s values and ideologies. Music can have many effects on culture and the people’s idea of who they think they are within that culture. Music can serve in a way that promotes cultural identity and pride, yet it could also play a role in the separation of social and economical identities in within cultures.

    Read More

  • Impact of Globalisation on the Music Industry

    1044 Words  | 3 Pages

    In this paper I will be discussing how globalisation has impacted the Music Industry in recent years, and in particular the multi-national giant Universal Music Group (UMG). Globalisation is a noun that is hard to define; it has many definitions depending on which scholar you talk to, which dictionary you reference, and the viewpoint you take. The Oxford dictionary will tell you that globalisation is “the process by which businesses or other organisations develop international influence or start operating on an international scale” (Definition of globalization in English). People’s perspectives on defining the word vary depending on the place they were born, where they have lived, the religion they follow, their social status, political ideology, cultural background and wealth, amongst other things, because all of these will affect whether they view globalisation to be a positive or negative occurrence. My favourite definition comes from Kenichi Ochmae; a Japanese organisational theorist most recognised for introducing Japanese management methods, such as the just-in-time method of production, to the Western world. In 1992, Ochmae said that globalisation is the “onset of the borderless world” (Al-Rodhan, 2006). This is my preferred explanation of globalisation because it is so simple to digest. From the phrase “borderless world” alone you can begin to understand exactly what globalisation is all about, however the simplicity of this definition is also its downfall because it is very non...

    Read More

  • Sociology and Globalisation

    2154 Words  | 5 Pages

    Many historians and sociologists have identified a transformation in the economic processes of the world and society in recent times. There has been an extensive increase in developments in technology and the economy as a whole in the twentieth century. Globalization has been recognized as a new age in which the world has developed into what Giddens identifies to be a “single social system” (Anthony Giddens: 1993 ‘Sociology’ pg 528), due to the rise of interdependence of various countries on one another, therefore affecting practically everyone within society.

    Read More

  • Hip-hop, Reggae, and Politics

    5107 Words  | 11 Pages

    Music is an art form and source of power. Many forms of music reflect culture and society, as well as, containing political content and social message. Music as social change has been highlighted throughout the 20th century. In the 1960s the United States saw political and socially oriented folk music discussing the Vietnam War and other social issues. In Jamaica during the 1970s and 1980s reggae developed out of the Ghetto’s of Trench town and expressed the social unrest of the poor and the need to over-through the oppressors. The 1980’s brought the newest development in social and political music, the emergence of hip-hop and rap. This urban musical art form that was developed in New York City has now taken over the mainstream, but originated as an empowering art form for urban youth and emerging working class.

    Read More

  • The Cultural Impact Of Americanization: The Globalization Of Culture

    1665 Words  | 4 Pages

    Globalization is a phenomenon that arose from the industrial revolution in the 19th century, and has been progressively expanding since. According to Joan Ferrante (2015), globalization is the “ever increasing flow of goods, services, people…and other cultural items across political boundaries.” There is much speculation associated with globalization in terms of social and economic growth, but the cultural aspects of globalization are often overlooked and misconstrued with global Americanization (Legrain 2003). Globalization has had resulted in a major downplay on cultural individualism, and also on the way that different cultures view each other. In this paper I will explore globalization’s cultural impact on

    Read More

  • Nations Should Promote Globalization, Not Localization

    1779 Words  | 4 Pages

    Globalization can briefly be defined as ‘something’ that affects and changes the traditional arrangements of the state system. It is a term that directly implies change and therefore is a continuos process over a long period of time as compared to quickly changing into a wanted or desir...

    Read More

  • The Effects of Globalization on Music

    1786 Words  | 4 Pages

    The influence that music has throughout the world is immeasurable. Music evokes many feelings, surfaces old memories, and creates new ones all while satisfying a sense of human emotion. With the ability to help identify a culture, as well as educate countries about other cultures, music also provides for a sense of knowledge. Music can be a tool for many things: relaxation, stimulation and communication. But at the same time it can also be a tool for resistance: against parents, against police against power. Within the reign of imported culture, cross cultivation and the creation of the so-called global village lies the need to expand horizons to engulf more than just what you see everyday. It is important to note that the role of music in today’s world is a key tool in the process of globalization. However, this does not necessarily provide us with any reasons that would make us believe that music has a homogenizing affect on the world.

    Read More

  • Personal Journal: My Passions and Hobbies

    563 Words  | 2 Pages

    Music, a form of art, made up of unique and special sounds containing elements of pitch and rhythm can powerfully soothe one’s soul. Firstly, there are different types of music, and each has its own features. These sounds and features are what I admire in music because to me it creates a new form of communication to one’s consciousness. It stimulates our mind and gives it a sense of harmony and peace through the hardships that life poses for us. As a kid, I would always listen to music from any genre, deciding which genre would complement me the most as I grew older. In middle school, I remember going on the computer and finding a website/program where I could make my own beats. From that day on, I spent countless of hours each day making sure the tune sounded proper and pleasurable for my ears. At first, it wasn’t good, but eventua...

    Read More

  • Globalization as a Social Change

    1114 Words  | 3 Pages

    The term globalization is one that is an exceptionally wide-ranging term and it is used to explain a wide variety of definitions. Many people link the term globalization with the how the world is connected on an international and a local scale. One example of this is how Inda and Rosaldo illustrate globalization as being in “a world full of movement and mixture, contact and linkages, and persistent cultural interaction and exchange” (Inda and Rosaldo 4). On the other hand, they also imply that although movement and connections are prime components of globalization, disconnection and exclusion also form globalization (Inda and Rosaldo 30). Global flows of economic and social structures are not fluid and constant; they have the power to exclude and immobilize as well as enhance movement and include certain beings. In the 60s, the term `global village' was used by Ma...

    Read More

  • The Role of Music in Society

    1731 Words  | 4 Pages

    Music has played a role in society since the dawn of man. Said to be the beginning of communication in early civilization, music and dance have influenced how we think, act and treat members of our own society. Song and dance is used in rites of passage ceremonies such as births, weddings and funerals throughout the world. Jamaican and Yoruba cultures have made many contributions to our society. The uses of this music as a vehicle for political issues, values, and beliefs have been used by many musicians from different cultures. I intend to discuss the Contribution of these two contemporary cultures music and their effect on society.

    Read More

  • The Positive Effects of Globalization on My Life

    1774 Words  | 4 Pages

    Globalization plays a massive part in my life as it does in everyone’s lives. Every day the world is getting smaller, between technological improvements and peoples interest in these technologies it is easy to see why this is happening. In this essay I have only shortly touch upon some of the places where globalization has affected my everyday life. From shopping as Asda to meeting people on the other side of the world to discuss my dissertation ideas globalization has had a positive affect on my life. The fact that I can walk down a street in Coleraine or Sydney and see similar shops and food outlets is a positive thing in how our lives are intertwined through out the world.

    Read More

More about Music Is A Powerful Tool For Globalization

Open Document