Popular Culture Pop Music

Q1 Describe the cultural activity and briefly outline its place in

contemporary Australian society
Music has always has always been a part of Australian culture. Constantly
evolving and changing with the surrounding society, music reflects the
social atmosphere of an era. The idea of Pop Music emerged after WW2
with the constant societal change and upheaval of the 50s and the 60s.
As time progresses the genres within pop music change, so unlike the
genre of rock or classical, pop music in the 50s is very different to that in
contemporary society, although they are technically in the same genre of
music. Australian pop music plays a very powerful role in contemporary
Australian society as pop artists such as Sia and 5 Seconds of Summer are
extremely influential figures, holding celebrity status. Pop music is often
how people connect, share emotions and ideas and can link generations of
Australians. Almost every Australian is exposed to pop music via radio, T.V
or internet every day. Music is a central part of Australian culture, and
Australian contemporary pop music reflects globalisation of this era. Pop
music connects Australians with those across the world. Music can be
used to reflect Australian attitudes on current world events. For example
Sias new music video for her song The Greatest exposes thoughts and
emotions regarding the recent Orlando Nightclub shooting.

Q2 Indentify a specific individual group or event relevant to your

cultural activity and explain their contribution to Australian life
The band AC/DC is Australias most popular music export, gaining
international success that continues four decades after the band was
formed in 1973. They have sold over 220 million copies of their albums
and are recognised across the globe. Their album Back in Black is the
second highest grossing album of all time, beaten only by Michael
Jackson. AC/DCs contribution to Australian life is considerable, although
many may not think it. Almost every Australian knows their songs and
their name suggesting they have reached nearly every person in
Australia. This is mostly due to their continuing success and popularity
over 40 years. AC/DC is one of the only bands that is popular with
younger and older generations and has therefore encouraged cross
generational interaction. Their Black ice world tour brought millions of
people together over the love of a band. It is rare to see Australians come
together over a singular passion. When AC/DC broke the international

scene a sense of national pride was developed that Australia was

contributing to the world pop scene. The words and music of AC/DCs
songs express the thoughts and feelings of many Australians. For example
Living easy, living free season ticket on a one-way ride. Asking nothing,
leave me be. Taking everything in my stride from Highway to Hell is a
popular attitude in Australia.

Q3 Discuss the impact of technology in shaping popular culture in

Australia
Australian popular culture has largely been shaped by the changing
technologies key events occuring at the time. Due to introduction of
radio ,television, computers, the internet and advanced transportation,
Australian pop culture, and in particular Australian pop music grown in its
reach across Australia and the world. Since the 1950s the instruments
used in Pop music have progressed with new technology. In the 50s pop
artist Johnny OKeefe for example used a large band with horn sections
and all instrumentation was acoustic. If you then look at the rock and roll
era of the 70s and 80s most instrumentation was electronic electric
guitars, keyboards etc. In contemporary Australian pop music a significant
portion of the sounds are computer generated, with use of synths, midi,
auto tune etc. This shows the impact of technology in shaping the music
industry in Australia. Advanced transport allowed for bands in the
geographically isolated nation of Australia to do tours, and gain popularity
outside of Australia. Radio allowed music to be transmitted throughout the
country, meaning bands could gain nationwide popularity. T.V introduced
the idea of the music video and film and music became connected. It
also connected the world and was a driving force behind globalisation.

Q4 Analyse the ways in which the popular culture has contributed

to social continuity or change in Australia with specific reference
to your focus area
Popular culture is a massive contributor to the social outlook of an era.
There are elements of Australian culture that have continued to thrive
throughout the decades, and some parts have developed and changed.
Australian popular music has followed similar trends to Australian pop
culture in terms of social continuity. Australians have always enjoyed
music and its influence dates back to before British colonisation, with
music an integral part of Aboriginal culture. British influence has been
consistent since their colonisation of Australia. Over the decades

Australians have enjoyed British artists such as the Beatles, the Rolling
Stones, Pink Floyd and Adele. Australia has also always been an outdoors
nation, with a love for the beach and sport. This is reflected in Australian
pop music especially the surfer era of the 60s (eg BeeGees). Another
ongoing Australian past time is attendance at outdoor music festivals such
as The Big Day Out and dancing to music at parties while consuming
alcohol.
Popular culture as expressed through music has contributed to social
change in Australia. The whole idea of popular culture is that it is
constantly changing and evolving, influencing the culture around it. The
emergence of the American influence has contributed to the globalisation
and connecting of Australia with the rest of the western world. An example
of this is many Australian musicians moving to America to seek fame and
produce music. New technology has allowed the spread of Australian pop
music and changed the sound of pop music in Australia. The globalisation
of popular culture has been driven by T.V and now the internet has meant
popular culture has changed Australia from an isolated nation to one that
is connected and influenced by the rest of the world. Attitudes of
acceptance and equality have become more prominent over the last few
decades. The Aboriginal band Yothu Yindis popular song Treaty is an
example of this.
Q5 evaluate the impact of popular culture in shaping and
reflecting Australia in the post WW2 world
As stated in the popular song T.V. the drug of a nation, popular culture
both shapes and reflects society: is it the reflector or the director, does it
imitate us or do we imitate it?.
After WW2, Australian popular culture began to reflect American popular
culture due to the positive influence of America during the war. In the
1950s the American TV show I love Lucy featured a woman with short
hair. This shaped popular fashion in hair styles throughout Australia.
Another example of this is the super model Twiggy popularising mini
skirts. In sport, Australian attitudes to particular sports following WW2
have been shaped by migrant influence and globalisation eg increase in
soccer popularity.
Our dry sarcastic, humour together with a relaxed outlook on life, has also
shaped the perception of Australia. This is reflected in popular culture
such as our TV shows, for example Lano and Woodley. The drinking and
partying aspect of popular culture has shaped us into a nation renowned
for its drinking culture and alcohol. Aboriginal music broadening into
popular music has allowed our immense cultural history to be displayed to

the world. Australias high migrant population has brought many aspects
of foreign popular culture to Australia. Australia is, and is reflected as a
multicultural nation in the post WW2 world. Australia is also seen as a
beach, surf water nation, as reflected by our tourism industry. This is due
to the popular cultural activity of swimming, surfing and going to the
beach.
Today Australian society is heavily influenced by not only popular culture
of the USA and the UK, but of the popular culture of the world. Fashion,
ideas, experiences, music, technologies are all shared through global
communications and social networks. Previously Australias growth as a
nation was hindered and stifled by its geographic isolation, but now due to
changing technologies Australia is now contributing to and being
influenced by popular culture on a global scale.