Group Six aka The Slick Six (Un)Conference Final Project

Group Members:

Kinsey Eager – Interviewer

Liam Pronovost – Photo Editor, Category Editor

Alexis Griggsby – Photographer, Metadata Editor

Tyler Sphar – Live Blogger

Michael Hinman – Quality Editor

 

Why we selected these photos: Liam Pronovost

The photos below capture the feeling and community of the WWR (un)conference. From interviews with artists to the many archives in the Women Who Rock website, what makes this conference so special is the community it brings. The photos below give examples of artists talking with each other, and people whom they have inspired. The women in these photos are artist who worked toward their goals, and are still continue to inspire young artists. By working together on this project we learned how to work hard toward a common goal, communicate effectively through technology and in person, and solve complex problems while relying on each other for support. The presence of specified jobs and steps to complete helped facilitate the timely completion of the project and keep confusion to a minimum. 

 

Photos taken by: Alexis Griggsby

Women Who Rock (Un)Conference Photography (Alexis Griggsby)

Pictured: Black Mama, Ixtlixochitl Salinas -Whitehawk, Kibibi Monie

Category: Write to Rock

Black Mama is a female artist who isn’t afraid to sing about her culture and story. She is an inspiring artist and hard worker.

Pictured: Kibibi Monie

Category: Reel Rebels.

Kibibi Monie leads the way in storytelling, art, and music going against social norms and working toward her goals.

Category: Making Scenes

Pictured is the WWR Alter. It stands as an example of story of the women who have impacted rock in numerous ways. This archive gives them the attention and acknowledgement that they may have not received due to the culture they were in.  

Pictured: Ixtlixochitl Salinas -Whitehawk

Category: Reel Rebels

Ixtilixochitl is a cultural educator. She was born into an indigenous tribe which sparked her love for art and dance. Her work is ever changing and always inspiring.

Pictured: Black Mama, Ixtilxochitl Salinas- Whitehawk, Kibibi Monie

Category: Building Communities

This represents the WWR (un)conference well. Female artists from different backgrounds and stories coming together to share their experiences and talents.

Pictured: Julie C

Category: Building Community

At the WWR (un)conference, artist are able to share their stories, art, and experience with those around them. Julie C did this wonderfully this weekend.

 

Women Who Rock (Un)Conference Interviews

3/10/18 — 10:15am-12:30pm

(Kinsey Eager)

Interview 1:

Interviewer: Kinsey Eager

Interviewee: Amber Clark

Date: 3/10/18

 

KE: Alright, what does this conference mean to you?

AC: I just think that the gathering of communities is really empowering especially since it fell so close to International Women’s Day

KE: It’s really convenient that that happened actually

AC: I know!

KE: I can’t believe that. And then my second question is what is the most significant thing to you about this day and this conference?

AC: I just‒ I think the fact that women are all coming together to celebrate each other is so important especially for people like me, you know, in their mid twenties, and ready to make a difference in the world and in a position to do that, you know?

KE: Totally, totally! Yeah and I’m in college right now too so it’s like really‒ college is such a big place for that and women empowerment so, thank you so much for talking to me!

AC: Yeah, thank you!

 

Interview 2:

Interviewer: Kinsey Eager

Interviewee: Roshanak Kheshti

Date: 3/10/18

 

KE: Alright so what does this conference mean to you, like why are you here?

RK: I actually was invited by Michelle to come to participate in the longer version. I’m a professor at the University of California San Diego.

KE: Oh cool, wow! So you came all the way up here from California?

RK: Yeah!

KE: Do they come down, like do they have a similar conference down there too?

RK: No, we don’t! This is pretty unique, there’s really nothing else like it.

KE: Yeah that’s really amazing. This is my first time being here so it’s really cool.

RK: It’s a very special thing you have here.

KE: Oh yeah, for sure. And then also, what is the most significant thing to you about this day and about this conference? Like what’s the most important to you about it?

RK: You know, the fact that there’s so many people from the community coming together with artists and using incredible resources like this that the city has. That is not very typical for an academic to experience. You know, I don’t really ever see stuff like this coming together, so that’s definitely very unique.

KE: Yeah and like I said this is my first time I’ve ever been to a conference like this, and it’s really actually been very cool so far like listening to the panels and stuff like that, it was actually really amazing.

RK: What’s your major?

KE: I’m going Nursing or Psychology, either one.

RK: Oh okay.

KE: Yeah, so this is more of an experience, diversity class I’m taking.

RK: Oh I see, I see. What’s this class called?

KE: It’s a “Music and Social Change” class but it’s mixed with a Gender, Women’s Sexuality Studies class.

RK: Oh very interesting.

KE: Yeah! Well thank you so much for taking the time to talk to me.

RK: Sure, sure! Good luck!

KE: Thank you!

 

Links to Live Blog posts (Tyler):

Post #1: https://womenwhorockcommunity.org/2018/03/10/womxn-who-rock-unconference-live-blog-1-tyler-sphar-group-6/

Post #2: https://womenwhorockcommunity.org/2018/03/10/womxn-who-rock-unconference-live-blog-2-tyler-sphar-group-6/

Response to Black Mama Event

By: Michael Hinman

A lot of what Black Mama talked about that corresponds with the class material has to do with her message about resisting unfair cultural precedents that are set upon you. As an Afro-Latina woman she faced significant discrimination in her community. Instead of allowing herself to be forced down, she fought to express herself through her music and became the person she was meant to be. Decades of African American music shows that music can be extremely honest and expressive and Black Mama taught that the ability to do this can lead to positive movements in society and in yourself.

Movements in Music

Blog Stream Post 4 B

By: Michael Hinman

People such as Mia Zapata can make an incredible impact on their communities in more ways than through their music. Mia Zapata’s murder was a significant tragedy and it hurt and shocked her community. Her personality was described as “brashness, kindness and vulnerability in equal parts” (Bardeen) which drew fans who were already invested in a music scene which supported this type of defiance. Even though her primary connection with her community was through performing, her murder resulted in an “out pouring of grief.” (These Streets) Beyond her music she was seen as an icon of strength and intelligence that resulted in astonishment at the possibility of someone overpowering her. Upon this realization, the people of her community formed the group Home Alive which helped teach women self defense skills. Additionally, there was a call for an end to the violence and criminal justice issues that surrounded the city. This type of influence can rarely be achieved by celebrities. While her death was a significant part of Zapata’s legacy, what was more important was the way in which she lived. Her outward appearance of judgement rejection gave inspiration and an attitude to the music scene of the time. Zapata’s death was a wake-up call to the community which had been successfully ignoring the problems at hand. It pushed them to start seeking solutions to the problem in the form of education for those at risk. While the way Zapata died was important to the future of the city, the way she lived was critical to her legacy.

The first link I have chosen is “Love Kills” by Queen. The song features Freddy Mercury, who upon death, inspired a movement in the fight against AIDS. The second link is to Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power” which is more aggressively geared toward starting a movement of resistance to injustice.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3X6KtQ7nxQ

Questions for Black Mama

By: Michael Hinman

In your career have you ever witnessed the idea of love and theft in practice? Love and theft is when white artists unintentionally or otherwise take music from white artists. This phenomenon contributes to black artists being underrepresented in music movements.

What challenges have you experienced in your path to becoming a successful musician? What advice would you give to aspiring musicians that might be facing hardships in their journey?

Critical Karaoke Project

By: Michael Hinman

Jackie and Wilson – 3:43

Album – Hozier

Artist – Hozier

Starting off with drumstick clicks and a wailing electric guitar, Jackie and Wilson wastes no time with delicate or forgiving introductions. This song is based on emotion and the incredibly unique and almost mournful tone produced by Hozier’s voice as well as the accompanying instrumental and background singers creates a song that is neither happy nor sad. In both lyricism and a unique combination of rock and blues, this song stands out as one of the most important in my lifetime.

Jackie and Wilson provided a new type of blues mixed with Indie rock that would grow in my mind as one of the best genres available. The hard-hitting guitar mixed with the soothing background musicians and wavering lead singer created a song that was anything but common. At an early age my dad taught me to love blues music through his own experiences playing and listening to artists such as Eric Clapton and Robert Johnson. He taught me that blues provides artists the opportunity to express their emotional toils in a way that’s impossible in other genres of music. In Jackie and Wilson, Hozier uses blues with more playful meaning while maintaining the soulful tone he is known for and creates something else entirely. This manipulation of music taught me that genres of music are never absolute, and the only boundaries are those you set for yourself.

I first hear this song at a critical and deciding moment in my life. As a high schooler I spent more time looking to the future and dreaming about what it would be rather than living in the present. In this song, Hozier seems to be doing just that. He presents a view of how his life is in the moment. He is tired, and the repetitive nature of his days begins to ware on him. Suddenly a girl appears and he cannot help but fantasize about the exciting, adventure filled life they could have together. Hozier is not trying to present a real vision of their life might be, but rather an easygoing fantasy to break free of the normality where he decides “We’ll steal a Lexus, be detectives / Ride ’round picking up clues”.

My biggest fear growing up was falling into a normal, adventure deprived life. Hozier’s lyrics managed to relieve my mind of these concerns by allowing me to understand that nothing in my life had to be a certain way. I began to fear normality less because I realized that, like Hozier’s fantasies and bending of the blues genre, I could make life what I wanted it to be. No matter where I end up I can always seek adventure in day to day life by viewing everything that is considered unchangeable as nothing more than perceived boundaries.

In the song, Hozier speaks of a “mid-youth crisis” coming from the stress he felt as an aspiring musician and how he “never felt young” because of it. In high school I felt tremendous pressure from the need to maintain my academic standing and set up a promising future. I was not academically inspired and this pressure to hold myself to a higher standard, while paying off in the end, pulled much of the joy associated with youth from that portion of my life. Hozier’s song helped me understand that despite the pressures and discomfort associated with school or work, joy can always be found in the smaller things like the people you know and love.

As a high schooler, I did not realize the true nature of this song. I believed it to be nothing more than Hozier dreaming about changing his life once he met a girl who broke him from the monotony of his tired life. Upon further analysis, I realized that in the song the girl he is fantasizing about becomes involved with him briefly before leaving and forcing him to return to his prior state. In a way this realization coming later in my life was almost fitting. Like the song, this idea of changing my life in spectacular ways helped pull me from the life I was living, but upon maturation I returned to living in the present.

Jackie and Wilson might be considered a less than joyful song, but the lessons and happiness I pulled from it during this portion of my life helped me become what I am today. I once believed Jackie and Wilson was the best song ever. Upon studying it for this project, I realized the musical complexity and lyricism make it a great song, but the intense impact it had on that period of my life is what made it so important to me.

Jackie and Wilson Audio – https://youtu.be/YKhYsp3uyGk

Commentary Reading – https://youtu.be/wFevKAUcyt4

Social Statements in Popular Music

By: Michael Hinman

Music, while pleasing to the ear and sometimes thematically empty, can contain critiques on society that strive to use the artists’ influence to create change rather than please their audience. In many of the popular songs played on the radio, meaning and deep values are sacrificed for the sake of appealing to a wider audience. For example, artists such as Avicii have been known, at times, to rely on simple beats that are known to inspire engagement from the audience while filling the lyrics with hollow meaning and catchy choruses so that it can be picked up quickly and memorized. While this is a disturbingly common theme in today’s society, occasionally a renowned artist will break the trend. The artist will move to make a statement through their work in an attempt to affect change in a societal problem they care about. While this can be a dangerous move for their career, when it is done it is massively influential.

In Beyonce’s recent release of her visual album Lemonade, Beyonce took such a risk in an attempt to combat social injustice surrounding the common mistreatment of African American women and bolster the Black Lives Matter movement. Beyonce faced a less than enthusiastic response from her massive following with people claiming things such as “It’s not for me” (Bradley). While this was most likely the predicted outcome considering the album’s variation from Beyonce’s common work, she chose to utilize her influence to create change despite the damage it might do to her following. However, Beyonce was not alone in her brave venture. Artists such as Kendrick Lamar have followed the tradition of black artists throughout history who have “spelled out black music as break-the-chains resistance” (Brooks) to the oppression of African Americans.

The first song I have included below is “Fight the Power” by Public Enemy. Similar to Beyonce’s album, this song was an anthem crying out against racism and a lack of social progress in the U.S., inspiring people to fight back. Additionally, I have included “A Change is Gonna Come”, in which Sam Cooke sings lyrics inspired by his own experiences with social injustice.

https://youtu.be/Kj9SeMZE_Yw

https://youtu.be/wEBlaMOmKV4

Daphne Brooks, “How #BlackLivesMatter Started a Musical Revolution,” The Guardian, March 13, 2016 https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/mar/13/black-lives-matter-beyonce-kendrick-lamar-protest (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

NPR Conversation about “Lemonade,” https://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2016/04/26/475629479/close-to-home-a-conversation-about-beyonc-s-lemonade (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

Intended Meaning

By: Michael Hinman

In both “Let’s (Not) Get it on” by Sean Nelson and “Ladies First: Is Homophobic Hip-Hop So Anti-Woman That It’s Homophilic?” by Stasia Irons and Catherine Harris-White, the authors depict how music struggles to convey the emotions of the communities they represent yet reveal deeper truths about those that listen and create it. In “Ladies First”, Irons and Harris-White describe how some mainstream hip-hop songs are so anti-homophobic that they tend to have the opposite connotation upon delivery. These songs, while attempting to bolster the artists’ confidence in their heterosexual masculinity, come off as “an anthem for man-love” (Irons and Harris-White) through their lyricism. While this phenomenon can misrepresent the artist’s intentions, it may reveal deeper truths for creators and listeners. For example, in “Let’s (Not) Get it on”, Nelson depicts an emotionally hollow movie character who may enjoy certain songs because “he can’t understand a woman unless she’s a stripper.” (Nelson 2) While it’s easy to assume that people enjoy certain songs because of the beat or catchy chorus, there is often more going on. While the music can be the only contributing factor in a song’s draw, music more often appeals to specific people because it speaks to them on a personal level. Whether in an obvious sense such as in lyrics that hold meaning for a person’s life or, such as the case of the movie character, in a way that may not register on a conscious level. The first link I have included below is to “Animals”, in which Maroon 5 uses lyrics that may have a deeper meaning relating to the need for romantic love but comes off as nothing more than sexual desire. The second link is to “U.O.E.N.O”, in which Rocko openly raps about sexually assaulting women. While the intent was most likely to project a persona of dominance and power, the lyrics do nothing but make the artists seem immoral and criminal.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpgTC9MDx1o

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tg7K6qiK92w

Acid Rap Album Review

By: Michael Hinman

In the mixtape Acid Rap, Chancelor Bennett, otherwise known as Chance the Rapper, utilizes a playful tone while packing his lyrics with meaning that cover a wide variety of topics from the crime problem in Chicago to his own childhood nostalgia. In addition to discussing the different elements seen throughout the mixtape, I will draw upon class readings and concepts to adequately describe Bennett’s critique of other musicians’ tendencies to pander to larger audiences.

From start to finish, Acid Rap draws in audiences with its unique combination of musical influences while delivering impressive amounts of meaning and references through its lyricism. Elements of the unique music style ‘acid jazz’ can be heard throughout the mixtape, which is characteristic of combining several types of music such as funk, soul jazz, and disco. This form of music is interesting in that most of the types of music described in the African American stream in class are represented, and perhaps this type of music is carrying on the tradition of revolutionary new music. Bennett’s individualistic style is true to the foundations of hip hop and rap music which, according to Larry Starr and Christopher Waterman in “American Popular Music”, was born from musicians that were attempting to “[develop] their personal styles” (Starr and Waterman, 83). Acid Rap is truly a unique listening experience, and its reliance on acid jazz makes its influences clear.

The first track on the mixtape, appropriately named “Good Ass Into” starts the set off well with lyrics that flow seamlessly and paint a portrait of who Bennett is now and what the audience can expect from the mixtape. Following the release of his previous breakout mixtape 10 Day which he wrote during a ten day high school suspension, Bennett has gained significant popularity among his community and peers which he alludes to in lines such as “How many lab partners have I fucked since I got suspended?” in which he is most likely referencing his high school classmates. Bennett is still young and relatively inexperienced but there is no sense of modesty in lines such as “This your favorite fucking album, I ain’t even fucking done”. Moving on in the mixtape, Bennett explores a variety of topics. Most of the references are lighthearted such as in “Cocoa Butter Kisses” when he raps “Used to like orange cassette tapes with Timmy, Tommy, and Chuckie”, referencing characters from Nickelodeon shows of his childhood and plays on nostalgic elements despite his young age. Several times throughout the album he uses personal experience to reference the crime issue in Chicago. In the song “Juice”, Bennett raps “I ain’t really been myself since Rod passed” and references his childhood friend that was stabbed to death in front of him. In the final song of the mixtape titled “Everything’s Good (Good Ass Outro)”, Bennett begins by playing a touching telephone conversation between him and his father to which they say goodbye with “Thank you, love you” and “Alright, son. Love you too, take care”. This portion of the song contrasts with the rest of the mixtape in that it is not rapped at all. It is an incredibly heartfelt phone call that sets up the laid-back tone for the ending of the album and delivers a message of family love which is often lacking from music of this genera.

There are several important messages in Acid Rap, but the one Bennett is most clearly trying to leave his audience with is individuality and self-expression in ways that are true to oneself rather than in an attempt to gain fame. Bennett delivers this message in many sections of the mixtape, both implicitly and explicitly. In the song “Good Ass Intro”, Bennett raps “Twerk, twerk, merge, swerve, dang, pick a lane” and discretely bashes on other artists that do outrageous and out of character things for attention. By telling them to “pick a lane”, he is stressing the importance of finding what you’re good at and letting the audience come in time. In the article “Why We Fight About Pop Music”, Ann powers argues of those in the pop industry that “major players in creating mainstream pop don’t care about integrity” (Powers, Part 3) and they are instead only “interested in making money” (Powers, Part 3). While wanting to make money in the music industry is not an inherently negative trait, Bennett makes a good point that when they sacrifice the critical nuances of making music for more media attention and neglect to add meaning to their songs in favor of simplistic crowd pleasers, it degrades the value and integrity of the art. While the depth and artistry delivered in Acid Rap tears down the argument behind rockism, popular artists begin to lose their evidence for the existence of poptimism when they neglect the important artistic elements. History has proven that Bennett’s method of honest creation over flash wins out in the end. In addition to his own success, further proof can be found in the article “Music in the Shadow of Doubt”, in which Eric Weisbard writes about an album by Metallica which “plodded ahead…decisively” (Weisbard, 2), beating out a less meaningful album by Shania Twain.

Laced with important messages and playful references, Acid Rap by the Chance the Rapper is not only a joy to listen to, but delivers a critical example for future musicians to aspire.

https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/18105-chance-the-rapper-acid-rap/

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/review-the-rolling-stones-blue-and-lonesome-w453332

 

Works Cited

“Chance The Rapper (Ft. BJ The Chicago Kid, J.P. Floyd, Kiara Lanier, Lili K., Peter Cottontale & Will Miller) – Good Ass Intro.” Genius, 30 Apr. 2013, genius.com/Chance-the-rapper-good-ass-intro-lyrics.

Starr and Waterman, Hip-Hop: The “Rapper’s Delight” American Popular Music (2008) online access at UW Libraries http://permanent.access.gpo.gov/gpo1267/american-popular-music.pdf

Weisbard, Eric, “Introduction.” Pop When the World Falls Apart: Music in the Shadow of Doubt (Duke 2012) (PDF)

Weiss, Jeff. “Chance the Rapper: Acid Rap.” Pitchfork, Pitchfork, 7 May 2013,

pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/18105-chance-the-rapper-acid-rap/.

Wilson, Carl, and Ann Powers. “Why We Fight About Pop Music.” NPR, NPR, 15 Apr. 2014,

http://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2014/04/15/301440765/why-we-fight-about-pop-music.

 

Music by a Different Artist

By Michael Hinman
One of the central themes discussed in this class up to this point has been the misallocation of credit for revolutionary movements in popular culture. In the article ”How Rock and Roll Became White”, Hamilton discusses an excellent example of this in the prevalent rock and roll movement of the 20th Century. Hamilton argues that although rock and roll was heavily dominated by white men, much of the shape of the genera was created by black innovators that are easily looked over upon reflection. One of the most compelling arguments in this article is that this phenomenon is a small example of a larger trend, or “one more iteration of a broad historical phenomenon of white-on-black cultural theft” (Hamilton). Additionally, in the article “A Spy in the House of Love”, Powers gives her insight into how the “marginalization of those people of color, women, Jews, and young people so frequently behind its innovations” (Powers) and discusses how this phenomenon affects various groups of people in addition to those black musicians repressed in rock and roll. A good example of this larger view is found in the film 20 Feet from Stardom. In this film it highlights many black female background singers whose careers are not remembered because of the position they played in their respective jobs, despite the massive contributions they made to the soul and technical quality of the music. Both 20 Feet from Stardom and ”How Rock and Roll Became White” draw on the example of the Rolling Stones. They drew heavily on black musician influence to create their music and hired several black female background singers to add soul to their music. While they did not intentionally suppress the influence of these musicians, years later much of the contribution from those key players are forgotten.

Below I have provided two examples of music that was originally created by black musicians and were recreated by white musicians, unintentionally or otherwise, in renditions that gained significant popularity and influence. The first is a comparison between George Harrison’s “My Sweet Lord” and the Chiffons “He’s So Fine”, which was written first and bears significant tune resemblance. The second is a video of Chuck Berry’s “Sweet Little Sixteen” which likely influenced the Beach Boys’ Surfin USA.

Photo Tags – Michael Hinman

http://digitalcollections.lib.washington.edu/cdm/ref/collection/wwr/id/350

http://digitalcollections.lib.washington.edu/cdm/ref/collection/wwr/id/208

http://digitalcollections.lib.washington.edu/cdm/ref/collection/wwr/id/53