Cultural Appropriation In America's Music Industry

Cultural appropriation, or more commonly known as the misrepresentation of different cultural groups, has been a hotly debated topic in the new media. But did you know that cultural appropriation in America’s music industry has been going on since the 1930s, during the era of Paul Whiteman, a popular Jazz artist? Strangely enough, some of his music was appropriated from black music artists. This act of “theft” has brought about many controversies throughout the years. But more importantly, it has brought about even more problems associated with racism in America. This leads us to the next question: How does the borrowing of culture cause racist problems? This is especially prominent in the music scene of America. In this essay, I will write …show more content…
Popular rock-n-roll music artist Elvis Presley is an example of blatant appropriation of black artists’ music. Elvis became famous riding on the support of whites in America for his style that closely resembles black music. While unfairly blacks criticising black music, they showed strong and biased support to the white music artists who appropriated the same black music that they had condemned. Slowly, it became clear that white artists’ music were more appreciated than the blacks even though the music belonged to the black artists. This form of cultural appropriation essentially strengthened subconscious racism and propelled a stronger inclination towards the concept of “white supremacy”, a common form of racism in America where whites feel that they are superior to the blacks. Furthermore, white cultural appropriation of black music culture does not give the African Americans, who are the originators, any credit for their own ideas. When appropriating black musical forms, white artists such as Paul Whiteman often reshape and redefine the styles to “minimize their association with ‘Blackness’” (Hall, 1997). This form of …show more content…
The idea involves famous musicians from minority groups to step up to give inspiration as well as provide opportunities to young musicians from the same minority groups. For example, renowned black artists like Drake, Nicki Minaj, and the Weeknd can establish a black musician community that provides young and talented black musicians with opportunities to showcase their talent and further advocate the origins of black music to the public. This grants a larger number of black musicians with power in the music industry, hence striking a greater balance between races in this regard. This allows racism in America to become more manageable due to the increase in respect for blacks and their