The civil war in Syria has passed its third anniversary, yet the situation in and around the nation remains dire. War persists, and the crisis endures, affecting approximately 2.5 million Syrian nationals who have been displaced from their homes into neighboring countries. These innocent civilians—75 percent of whom are women and children and 1.5 million … Read more
Every time I got into an Ivy League school, I allowed myself an apple. Plus 90 calories. * * * The beautiful Kate Upton, airbrushed to perfection on the cover of Vogue, never bothered me. Nor did the ubiquitous tabloid articles about how thin Mary Kate Olson was getting. I never stared naked at my … Read more
Even those unfamiliar with the genre can recognize that rap and hip-hop are not what they used to be. A pre-2005 hip-hop or rap hit can be easily distinguished from a track released in the past decade, and artists who have gotten into the game within the last ten years bear little similarity to what … Read more
It’s November 5, 2012 in Columbus, Ohio. Jay Z stands on a constructed stage with an enormous American flag behind him; the beat for “99 Problems” drops as the lights start to flash. Some people in the crowd dance, many scream the lyrics, others whip out their phones to record the moment—just another Jay-Z show. … Read more
For most of the 20th century, changes in the music industry were limited to hardware. The gramophone became the record player, which eventually became the hi-fi and later, the at-the-time revolutionary CD. The biggest labels dominated the industry, supervising the mass dissemination and release of albums in an age of limited media. Like a venture … Read more
George Watsky goes all in. Though far from a household name, he sells his music, tours the nation, and is surviving on his art. The 27-year-old California native is part of a generation of YouTube stars who use the website as a platform to spread their messages. Google’s partnership with AdSense, and the creation of … Read more
For seventy-two years, Martha Reeves has called Detroit her home. It is where she was raised in a home ebullient with Southern musical influence, paid for by her father’s hard work in the Northern industrial center. It is where she found, according to her autobiography, “a strong sense of neighborhood” and community support for her … Read more
Demonstrations are the physical representation of the will of a group of people, a show of force by those whom the world might see as peripheral. Yet, for all the muscle that a protest may exhibit, lasting impact comes from something more intangible, something that strikes a chord and resonates with all those involved. This … Read more
On March 28, 2013, the Harvard College Events Board announced that the rapper Tyga would be the headline performer for the College’s annual Yard Fest concert. Within days a petition was posted on the grassroots organizing website change.org, demanding that the Events Board rescind the offer to Tyga, contending that his music “promotes sexism and … Read more
Music is the artistic form of protest. During the American Civil War, soldiers sang the “Battle Hymn of the Republic.” Civil right activists sang “We Shall Overcome” as they held hands in non-violent protest. And in the late seventies, when the American eye turned away from the struggles of the inner city, the street anthem … Read more