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Radio Technology
Radio Technology was developed at the end of the 19th century.
The first radio broadcast for news, entertainment, and music was KDKA and WWJ
NBC was the first radio broadcast to go coast to coast. -
Tin Pan Alley
Sheet music was crucial to selling music.
Sheet music business was centered in New York.
Song producers and writers played piano in one geographical part of New York which got the name, "Tin Pan Alley." \
Most pieces were performed in AABA form.
Broadway Musicals became popular. -
Blues
R&B became popular after WW2, sung by black musicians. Was also a result of racial segregation.
The roots of blues is unclear, but years after WW1, blues did have years of popularity. "Memphis Blues" was a national seller.
Many blacks moved to urbanized areas to continue their career in blues. (1930s)
White teenagers had been drawn to rhythm and blues, parents worried the effects R&B had on their children.
Most songs had double meanings, mostly sexual.
Whites rewrote R&B to fit their culture -
Rise of the Youth
After WW2, parents saw their children must assimilate into adults once they left high school. Parents wanted to focus on family life and the happiness of their children.
Teenagers listened to R&B and it sparked rebellion into them. Many short films had exposed teens to wanting to become rebellious, they didn't want to become parents. They wanted to stay in their teenage years as long as possible. -
Crossovers and Covers
Billboard charts were created to show the top songs of the year.
Where you lived depended on the charts you focused on most.
Songs that held a top position in 1 or more charts, that is called a crossover.
The song sung by another artist is called a cover.
Covers and Crossovers were the exception to the music culture.
The more crossovers a singer had, the more popular in music the singer was. -
Rockabilly
Many artists started to cross over into rock genre.
Johnny Cash's songs became top 40, and then he signed a contract with major record labels.
New rockabilly artists developed as years go on, Elvis Presley scored 3 spots in the top 40 for his new songs.
Along with male singers, lady rockabillies became present, too.
Little Brenda Lee and Janis Martin were two females known for rockabilly.
One more singer, Buddy Holly, was influential to to later rock songs and artists
