“Music is prophecy…[it] makes audible the new world that will gradually become visible.”
-Jacques Attali
This quote is taken from the book “Noise: The Political Economy” by Jacques Attali (Brandon 377). In the book, Attali describes the powerful influence that music can have on society, declaring that “every major social rupture has been preceded by an essential mutation in the code of music.” (Brandon 370). I agree with Attali’s faith in music. Time has proven that several important milestones in our country’s history were either preceded by music or existed in tandem with music. The biggest time period that comes to mind is 1960s America. A decade filled with fierce political division and remarkable social change. A decade where a racist system of government that was centuries old was finally changed. A decade where the youth population finally had enough of the practices of the older generation and wanted to express themselves in various ways. There are so many examples of music from the time reflecting important cultural and historical events, such as the Counterculture and Civil Rights movements.
Though it is clear that the music of the 1960s had a political and culturally representative aspect to it, there is one question that has to be posed: What about today? 1960s America was certainly a very busy and tumultuous time in the country’s history, providing an explanation for why politics influenced the music of the time. But are American musicians today willing to say as much about cultural topics as they once were? There are certainly just as many popular musicians today as there were in the 1960s. Taylor Swift. Kanye West. Kendrick Lamar. Beyonce. Jay-Z. They all certainly have the power and influence necessary to make political change happen, but do they really care? Or better yet, does the population of modern America care as much?
View senior Mason Mester’s website for an indepth study of Bob Dylan’s impact on American Culture.