Coldplay Influence On American Popular Music

Coldplay is an influential aspect of American popular music because they originated at an awkward time in musical history and had to find a new direction to go in. In the late 1990s, there were so many different genres and styles of music and Coldplay shaped the way that the new bands would style their music. They also didn't believe in living the Rock ‘n' Roll lifestyle, which made them much better role models for the younger generation than previous popular musicians. Chris Martin said in a 2011 interview, "I've lost all respect for fame, but I haven't lost all respect for respect. So the one great thing about being famous is that I get to meet people who I respect" (Dennis, 2011). They live like normal people, they don't drive extremely …show more content…
Some of their music, such as singles on the album Viva La Vida, are more rock based and not quite as quiet and simple, but Yellow is still a good representation overall. The song starts off with a thirty-second instrumental intro. It starts off very soft and slow and around halfway through the tempo speeds up and volume increases to build into the song. This builds drama and tension within the song, which is very catchy to the listener. The instrumental sounds like a slight rock melody, but not quite as harsh as regular rock music. The music is slightly more subdued and mellow, but with rock instruments and influences. The instruments that are heard in Yellow are very simple. They are acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass guitar, electronic keyboard, and drums. The melody that is created by these instruments is very simple and repetitive, but they make a beautiful, smooth sound. It is very much a catchy pop song, with simple, slow, repetitive beats and a verse to chorus song pattern. The vocals are very soft and steady at most parts, and slowly get more passionate, gritty, and raw to build up drama. The instruments also mirror the vocals in this way, as they speed up, slow down, and make slight pauses to create emotion and tension between different verses within the song. The drum beats and intensity also pick up between verses. At the end of the song, the instruments slow and the volume decreases. The vocals get soft, steady, and slow like they were at the beginning of the song. The lyrics are also very representative of Coldplay's musical style. They are very idealistic and happy with a good majority of their songs. The lyrics of "Yellow" are very emotional and relatable to the audience. They like to create songs that listeners can associate with someone or something that is in their life. This song is about a someone that the singer