Music In the 70sBy; Itzel Garcia

What music was being played in the 70s ?● Disco/Club; Funky worm

● Progressive Rock; The Dark

side of the moon

● Punk Rock/New wave; sex

Pistols

● Funk/Soul; Fire and rain

What were some major events in the 70s?● Protest for affirmative action

● Gay rights protest

● Protest against the Vietnam War

● Integration Protest

● Angela davis & the fight to free all

political prisoners

How did these events affect people ?

● To an extent depending on what the situation was, blacks and whites were protesting some decisions that the government was making.

● The continuous fight between Black vs. White lead to major conflicts in society

● The LGBTQ+ community were receiving a lot of hate crimes towards them. This lead to the Gay rights protest

● Since the government wasn't much help to the people, they resorted in taking matters into their own hands

How does music come into play with these issues?● With all the chaos that was occurring

during this time, people wanted to

take time to have fun and enjoy

themselves. Music was a way for

people to escape.

● The easiest and most peaceful way to

express one's beliefs was through the

use of music. In other words

“protesting music”.

How does music help?● Whenever there is a protest involved people

have always resorted to music. ● Music helps bring individuals together● When relating to music about issues people tend

to connect/invest more time with the issue at hand

● Music affects people emotionally & on a spiritual level

Examples of Songs that had an impact on people

YMCA by The Village Peoplethe song “YMCA” was especially popular during this time

since this song portrayed hanging out with the boys. The

way that the song portrayed this was because Y.M.C.A was

a place where it temporarily housed men. In the lyrics

itself it sings about trying to lift up young men who feel

down or unhappy with the circumstances at hand. However

they shouldn't since they have a place to go which is the

YMCA. This shows that music has a big impact on people

and an easy form of connecting others together.

The king by Furious Five

“The king” by the furious five, this song more

closely related to Dr.King's speech and what he

went through during his peaceful protest. However

it does touch on a more political aspect when the

song transitions to wanting a black present where

whites are brought to the blacks side. This song

portrays that having black senators, and black

mayors is not enough.

If I can Dream by Elvis PresleyThis song touches on Dr. King’s “I have a dream”

famous speech. In the song one can hear the pain sung

by Precisely and in the lyrics it expresses that there is

so much pain in the world we live in. The song also

refers back to the speech when Dr. King spoke about

everyone coming together hand in hand. It clearly

shows that the world at this time is struggling between

races. Even though laws were being changed people

were still being judged by the color of their skin.

Changes by Tupac ShakurThe song “changes” by Tupac Shakur, gives insight on the

struggles about being black in a white dominated society. The

lyrics in this song were based on the fact that laws can be

changed all they want but it won't change the mindset of people.

One touching lyric is “we gotta make a change, it's time for us as

people to start making some changes”. When things like this are

said with intention there is no ignoring it. With youth one must be

straightforward and include relatable situations.

Citations● Kaufman, Will. American Culture in the 1970s. Edinburgh University Press, 2009.

● James Robinson, “The evolution of African American music” MA, CSP, MTA AAFSA Historian

● Music and Protest in 1968, edited by Beate Kutschke, and Barley Norton, Cambridge University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook

Central.

● Pearson, Stephen. "The Year 1970." The People's History. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Dec. 2016.

● Sarah Jane, “ the U.S.A from the 1970s to the present” Schomburg center for research in black culture 2011.

● Powell, Catherine Tabb. “Rap Music: An Education with a Beat from the Street.” The Journal of Negro Education 1991