A reality show, an obsession with rankings, and the South Korean military have all redefined Brave Girls as a born-again viral hit in the quicksilver world of K-Pop ensembles.
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While it seems like a standard dance song, the behind-the-scenes production and timing helped “American Boy” become an international sensation and a club scene classic to this day.
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The rise of streaming, resurgence of catalog, and rapid onset of NFTs’ popularity are all converging. Music royalty will build bigger and more extravagant palaces but only at the expense of artists that are struggling to gain a platform as it is.
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Endless conglomerations, legal red tape, and streaming contracts make music sales pointless for starving artists in the streaming age, so why not avoid it all and pirate instead?
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What happens when a one hit wonder resurfaces 19 years after its release? The most iconic meme of all time.
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The short-lived — yet still thoroughly pioneering — Tropicália movement of the 1960s challenged Brazil’s military dictatorship through carefully-cultivated music rooted in defiance and eagerness for change.
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When We Were Young is organized by Live Nation, the same promoter behind the deadly Astroworld fest. But Live Nation is more than a promoter — it is a growing monopoly over most of the live music industry.
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In the '90s, public-access television show “rAw TiMe” generated a cult following. Where did it go, and what legacy did it leave behind?
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“Another Brick in the Wall, Pt. 2,” one of the most well-known protest songs in the world, has been so overused that its original intended meaning has largely been lost. In spite of this, popular interpretations of the song can still be worth considering.
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Poly Styrene and her band X-Ray Spex made history with the 1977 single “Oh Bondage! Up Yours!,” inspiring countless other women to protest their own experiences.
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“Imagine” by John Lennon came out 50 years ago. It wasn’t a protest song then, and, no matter what some think-pieces would have you believe, it still isn’t one now.
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The Russian electronic band continues to face suppression under Putin’s Russia and uses music to cry out against police brutality, homophobia, and censorship.
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East Asian pop culture has seen a recent avalanche of LGBT media, but continued conservatism and social pressure means it’s unlikely we’ll see more than a tongue-in-cheek nod to the invisible Asian gay communities of today.
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“Super Bass” rapper Nicki Minaj has been in the media as of late for her actions regarding her husband, Kenneth Petty, who is a registered sex offender. The fandom is split on this issue, with some defending Minaj at every turn.
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Following an IRA attack that resulted in the death of two children, The Cranberries wrote ‘Zombie’ to speak out against violence and pose one question to extremists: “What’s in your head?”
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The conspiracy theory that K-Pop is carefully-orchestrated national propaganda from the Korean government is growing in popularity. Not only is this idea untrue, it is also potentially dangerous.
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CSNY’s “Ohio” boldly responded to the murder of four students on Kent State University’s campus by the Ohio National Guard at a May 4, 1970 protest of the Vietnam War.
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Can this tech unicorn become a necessity for independent creators? Or will Clubhouse profit off of artists without helping them?
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