Diversity In The Music Industry Essay Example

local markets resulting in the birth of the various music genres present today. Various forms of music appeal to different audients depending on the cultural background, age, sex, region and social class (Tummons, 66). As a result, diversity has brought into the industry vices such as discrimination, prejudice, and supremacy battles among others. For instance, there have been speculations regarding the documentation of the various genres of music in the current market and those claiming stake in such.

Racism

Racism is pervasive throughout the entertainment landscape. It manifests in the form of discriminations and superiority complexes, particularly during the music awards and position on the music charts. Multicultural countries such as the United States are often close culturally but complex and nuanced racial dynamics. Diversity in the entertainment industry recently came under scrutiny following the lack of adequate representation of the ethnic minority entertainers in the major awards such as the BRIT Oscars Awards. According to Claire, the awards are meant to celebrate the artists’ contribution to the various cultures and allow the particular ethnic groups and races appreciate their artistic creations. However, the number of ethnic minority entertainers giving acceptance speeches in the awards are too few in comparison their majority group counterparts.

Claire argues that the artists with minority backgrounds face discrimination. In her statement, a controversial piece of art created by a white artist possess better chances of winning a major award compared to one with undeniable impact but created by an artist with a minority ethnic background. For instance, the pervasiveness of racism in the music industry is evident at the 2015 Grammy Awards. The nominations for Record of the Year and Best New

Artist were exclusively white. Similarly, predominantly white executives manage all the major records such as the Warner Music Group, Spotify, Pandora, and Apple. The modern society is striving to embrace multiculturalism and diversity, but the music industry seems to struggle to make this a reality.

Culture

The music industry represents vast cultural contributions by the various races and ethnic groups from around the world. Racial representation in the entertainment industry is often a reflection of the general population (Claire). Due to the contributions made to the industry by the different races, most of the modern music is a fusion of various cultures. For instance, Justin Bieber’s “Sorry” and “Fast Car” by Jonas Blue are classified as “pop,” a music genre associated with the whites. However, the influence of the black culture is conspicuously evident. Geographic demarcations influence the style of music appreciated by the consumers. This is because the genre often reflects the people’s cultures, hence music with which they can relate. For example, the Reggae music genre is believed to have developed in Jamaica. This genre reflects the cultural practices of the Jamaican people hence more widespread in the Caribbean compared to other regions such as the United State or the United Kingdom (Croteau and Hoynes, 337). Similarly, Reggae music is associated with the black people. For this reason, the genre has become more popular in other regions populated by the blacks such as Africa in comparison to the white population areas.

Age

The most common form of diversity in the music industry is content diversity (Tummons, 123). The diversity has the effect of appealing to different groups of people depending on their preferences as well as identity

creation. The age factor is an important consideration with respect to musical content. The type of content that appeal to the younger audience may have the opposite effect on the older audience. Fast paced Rock and Roll music is associated with the younger audience due to the fast pace that requires energetic audience. The older generation is often less energetic, thus appreciate music with slower rhythm. Similarly, the older generation may find the modern music content offensive, unlike the younger audience whose lifestyle is reflected by the music content. Different people exercise different cultural practices that may dictate the music content to which they listen (Tummons, 66). The people perceive content that opposes the cultural beliefs as immoral whereas those that conform to the cultural beliefs are acceptable. Similarly, cultural beliefs may lead an individual to shun or accept lifestyles such as homosexuality dictating the music content that appeals to them. Diversity in the music industry ensures that the music originates from all the cultures to meet the consumers’ preference

Religion

Religion is critical in determining the acceptance and the success of an artist (Croteau and Hoynes, 73). The music industry contains both secular and religious artists. These entertainers appeal to different groups of people depending on their religious beliefs. A non-religious individual may find spiritual songs meaningless or incomprehensible. On the other hand, a religious individual may find secular songs sacrilegious, immoral, or offensive. The society contains both religious and non-religious people in need of such entertainment; therefore, diversity ensures satisfaction of such needs.

Sex

Sex, similar to the other aspects, contributes to the diversity in the music industry. Certain music genres are associated with either male or

female audience, although not exclusive. Female entertainers due to their perceived submissive nature and gentle personalities are not associated with genres considered as macho such as Rap music. The women are believed to be attracted to soft rhythm music that complements their nature. Contrary to the female entertainers, the male performers are associated with vigor and stamina, hence the genres that depict hyper masculinity (Tummons, 126).

Conclusion

Diversity should be about identifying the problems faced in the past and working together to create a culturally rich musical content and contribute to every aspect necessary for understanding and developing the society. In addition, diversity in the music industry ensures that it can meet the requirement of every consumer and presents a venue for cultural sharing and fusion. The music industry creates products for consumers with varying preferences hence the need for variation.

Cited Works

1. Croteau David, Hoynes William. Media/Society: Industries, Images, and Audiences. 5th ed., SAGE, 2014.
2. Marie Claire. The Truth About Racism In The Music Industry. Marie Claire, 02 Feb. 2016, http://www.marieclaire.co.uk/uncategorised/the-truth-about-racism-in-the-music- industry-61640. Accessed 06 Dec 2016.
3. Tummons P. Jonathan. Cultural Assimilation, Appropriation and Commercialization: Authenticity in Rap Music, 1997-2004. ProQuest LLC, 2009