Boom_Box

Unit 5 Individual Project Boom Box Desiree DuBose American InterContinental University Author Note Desiree DuBose, Department of Information Technology, American InterContinental University Online This research was supported by Yahoo Search, AIU Library Resources Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Desiree DuBose, Department of Information Technology, American InterContinental University Online, Hoffman Estates, IL 60192 Contact: desiree.dubose1@aiu.edu Abstract This paper will explore the role that a cultural artifact played the part in the culture we live today. This paper will present a detailed description of this artifact. This paper will analyze how this artifact relates to the values, beliefs of the culture. We will discuss the deep cultural root of this artifact. What historical roots allowed this artifact to come into being' This paper will discuss the cultural periods that might have influenced its development. This paper will discuss how this artifact will be passed to future generations. This paper will discuss what evolutions might this artifact undergo. The 1980’s were the beginning age of Hip Hop. Hip Hop was and is the music of the young, old and disappointed. They were seeking a voice in the crowd of society that seems to want to drown them. They needed a way to raise their voices and be heard in the society. So this is how the Boom Box was born. No one knows for certain who invented the Boom Box, (aka: The Ghetto Blaster). There are however a few manufactures that help to pioneer its growth. Sanyo, Panasonic and Marantz are given credit for the continued development of the Boom Box (Who Invented the Boom Box, 2013). The Boom Box represents a cultural artifact that exists alongside the Hip Hop culture. The two are mutually exclusive. In fact it can be argued that the Hip Hop culture would not have risen so fast or even got going had it not been for the use of a portable music player. Today you can’t imagine a Hip Hop unrehearsed dance throw down without a Boom Box blasting its musical aids around. In the world of Hip Hop, the Boom Box is vital to its way of expression. The Boom Box started its life as an extension for the radio cassette player. It was a way for anyone to listen to their favorite radio station on the go. In the 1970s the cassette recorder became popular. The manufactures made to combine the two together. The basic Boom Box consisted of at least two speakers and an amplifier with the AM/FM radio tuner added. Like a stereo system, the Boom Box had equalizers, toner and balance adjusters. They also came with Dolby noise reduction and bass controls. LED sound level meters were added to add to the appeal of the Boom Boxes. The Boom Box pervaded a way for the new culture or whoever wanted to take part in it express themselves. The loud base beats pervaded the foundation to build the voice of the music with existed alongside the dance of the Hip Hop nation. The music coming from the speakers of the Boom Box was one of joy, hope and pain. The youth wanted to tell the world of life they were living. They wanted to tell the world of joy they were feeling when they danced. They wanted to tell the world of what they wanted for their families. They wanted to have a voice in the world. The Hip Hop song by Grandmaster Flash titled “The Message” is a prime example of the voice that was crying out to be heard. The chorus “Don’t push me, because I’m close to the edge. I’m trying not to lose my head. It like a jungle sometime it makes me wonder how I keep from going under”. (http://www.youtube.com/watch'v=BN9-K0aZXRg) This is the message that was blaring for the speakers of the Boom Box that the youth of the Hip Hop nation embraced as a representation of what they were feeling as a collective. Hip Hop, as we know it, didn’t just come out of nowhere. It had a beginning just like anything else. Hip Hop started out with no vocals. It was purely an electronic. The influences of African-American music pervaded the roots of the spoken Hip Hop, similar to the Griots of West Africa Culture. The Griots of West Africa were a storyteller, singer, musician, and oral historian (Denton,2013). The Griots also keep records of all the births, marriages, and cultural tradition throughout the generations of the village or though the family. This is just one of the many influences of Hip Hop. To use words to paint a picture that is both plain and clear also with an equally clear alternate meaning. This style of speaking was also known as verbal boxing or the dozens. The religious influences are also evident. The call and response patterns of African and African-American religious ceremonies were also a part of the Hip Hop vernacular language. Soul Singer James Brown as well as comedy acts like Rudy Ray Moore and Blowfly, are considered the “godfathers” of Hip Hop music. They are some of the artist that has remained to this day, a great influence on the culture of Hip Hop. The Last Poets, Gil Scott-Heron, and Jalal Mansue Muriddin have also had a significant impact the culture of Hip Hop. And they remain a great influence on the culture to this day. The 1960’s and 1970’s was a time of great social change. Civil rights was the social change that the African American culture was pushing for. Hip Hop was born out of these stormy times. The music of Hip Hop and the culture of Hip Hop were formed during the 1970’s when block parties became increasingly popular. This particular form of celebrating was practiced among the African American and Latino communities in Bronx, N Y. The DJ’s pervaded the music, which was a mixture of Junk and soul music. By popular demand, the DJ began separating the beating breaks of popular songs. Since the beating breaks were short the DJ began to use two turntables to extend the beating breaks. Some techniques used to extend the beating breaks were scratching, beat mixing/matching, and beat juggling. These techniques helped in creating a base that could be rapped over, in a manner similar to signifying as well as the art of toasting. Signifying was the practice in African American cultures involving a verbal strategy of indirection that exploits the gap between the denotative and symbolic meanings of words. As long as there is Hip Hop there will be a way to play it. Hip Hop is here to stay. The Boom Box is here to stay as well. The cultural artifact known as the Boom Box is still here, with us. It has evolved. Gone are the large heavy electronic devices that sometime took up to 20 D-cell batteries in order to play. There was a new technology that would make it easier to both carry the music and the music players. Compact Disk (CD)’s and MP3 music compression have replaced the cassette types, but the Boom Box still exists. It has just evolved to match the era we live in. Hip Hop has evolved as well. Boom Boxes can now play hundreds of songs on a single disc. Some of the Boom Boxes sold today come with a iPod dock and satellite radio capabilities. MP3 players continue to dominate, the final chapter on the history of the Boom Box is still not yet written. But the impact of the lifestyles and cultures of this country and the world can never be taken away. In some non-descript park in any city of the world, you can find a group of people standing in a crowd listening and watching a troop of young dancers. They are dancing to the music of a segment of society that is crying out to be heard. The music both speaks of the historical past and the hopeful future. The music speaks of pain, joy and hope. And it all is broadcasted on a now small device known as a Boom Box. References Discovering the Humanities, author Henry M. Sayre. Published by Prentice Hall, Copyright 2010. By Pearson Education Inc. Who Invented the Boom Box. (2013). Who Invented the Boom Box. Retrieved from http://www.whoinventedit.net/who-invented-the-boom-box.html You Tube, (2007). Grandmaster Flash-The Message. Retrieved From: http://www.youtube.com/watch'v=BN9-K0aZXRg Denton,D. (2013). Griot A West African Tradition. Retrieved from http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art19696.asp Wikipedia, (2013).Deejaying. Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deejaying Wikipedia, (2013).Signifying. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Signifyin%27