Is it just me or did the Grammy Awards the other night reveal that once again music is becoming more overtly political (a ‘60s/’70s reprise)? Yes, of course, everyone loves a good beat and a clever hook, but live performances by Jay-Z & Linkin Park and Bruce Springsteen had political messages right out front for everyone to hear. (And how about that Grammy for the JZ/LP “best rap/sung collaboration”? Reminds me of the classic Run-D.M.C./Aerosmith “Walk This Way” just from a collision of two musical genres into something good.) On the other hand, surprised by Bono’s comment on How To Dismantle an Atomic Bomb (talk about an in-the-news political theme) that the U2 album title had nothing to do with politics, unless you reduce it right down to the most elemental political form – the relationship between two individuals.
Will be interesting to see if MP3 downloads of the Grammy winners surge this week and next; it used to be that CD sales of winning artists went up dramatically after winning an award. Wait and see ...
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