More shootings in public schools; more noise about how the music industry promotes violence.
Well, a segment of the music industry really does promote violence. For instance, if Time-Warner--yeah, yeah, yeah, AOL-Time-Warner--has an affiliate recording company which releases an album that has a song on it where the recording artist wants to kill his mother, then this promotes violece. And all those gangsta rappers...all their record companies promote violece as well. Sometimes it's the kind of violence that could be construed to fall under the category of a hate crime. I don't remember who, but some gangsta rapper made a song a few years ago asbout wanting to kill Korean convenience store owners. (As for not remembering who did this song, consider the fact that gangsta rappers, and most in the rock/pop genre today anyway, are "jointly and severally" forgettable!)
So, why did Eminem get all that applause at the Grammys? Because he's good (that is, talented)? No. Because everyone at the Grammys likes Eminem's putrid message? No. Because they all want to kill their mothers? No.
The reason is not because Eminem is so wonderful, but because the usual culprits--the Moral-Majority types--are once again calling for the ban on violence/hate/sex/drugs-type lyrics and want guys like Eminem banned, period. Because the Christian goody-goods--the kind that live in hypocrisy--want to make another stink about, just like they want to blame folks like Eminem (and Marilyn Manson, the guy/girl they love to hate) for school shootings. It is the fact that the music industry and Hollywood in general are fed up with being blamed for all this nonsense that makes them get up and cheer. Believe it or not, and whether you agree with the crap these industries are turning out, Hollywood and the music industry have a right to uphold whatever it is they uphold.
Conversely, is it true that, if the self-righteous Christians and others would stop harping about the likes of Eminem, Eminem and his cohorts would disappear? That might be useful for a future article!
Now, why does the music industry continue to turn out music that promotes violence and other destructive behaviors? I used to think "they"--that secretive, conspiratorial "they"--were forcing record company high-up-mucky-mucks and their A&R men to put out such filth in lieu of nice, good-ole fashioned rock-n-roll or country, as in the days when it was called "country and western" (not the "tear in my beer" type nonsense, not the typical broken marriage stuff they put out now), or uplifting folks stuff. But there is no bottom line in that thinking. So it seems the music industry turns out either trash or cutesy-wootsey stuff (N'Sync, Backstreet Boys et.al.) not because "they" want them to, but because it sells! BECAUSE IT SELLS!
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