The U.S. music industry keeps close ties to the generations of music fans it caters to and methods of music distribution. As the decades roll along, industry trends change with each generation’s tastes. Recording artists and technology both play critical roles in industry evolution.
During the post-World War II era for the industry, stars of traditional radio variety shows generally made up the bulk of music sales. In the 1950s, radio stations diversified for the next generation of teens, and more radio disc jockey personalities took to the airwaves. These radio personalities grew in fame alongside the emerging rock and roll industry. Top 40 record charts became an important measurement of success in the music industry.
When you think of modern-day MP3 players, remember that back in the day of Top 40 charts and DJ-personality driven radio, transistor radios made the most of that era’s technology for portable music. Hearing radio promotions on transistors at the time, teens would flock to stores to purchase singles of their favorite stars.
In the 1950s, the U.S. music industry, still following the traditional model of radio promotion, was typically focused on solo vocal stars. The rise of Elvis Presley, for example, closely followed in the mold of Frank Sinatra and before that, Bing Crosby. In the 1960s, the solo star gave way to groups, particularly after the British Invasion caught on with U.S. teens.
The music industry was quick to capitalize on the popularity of British artists, and groups emphasizing singer/songwriting talents became the mainstays of the popular music charts of the 1960s both in the U.S. and overseas. These stars also adapted more to the rise of television, starting in the 1950s and carrying through to the popularity of color television in the 1960s. Televised variety shows worked in tandem to promote artists, and the music industry benefited from and learned early lessons about the power of visuals in selling music. In the late 1960s, music festivals became an attraction for many teens in America, and movies made to capture these festivals later became hits at the box office, along with the accompanying album soundtracks of festival artists.
The music industry found itself a new crop of stars, particularly from the Woodstock music festival. For some of the artists, this was their first exposure to a national, if not global, audience. The following years through the early 1970s allowed these artists to flourish from their newfound multimedia fame. A new generation of artists took shape that appealed to boomers coming of age.
In the mid-1970s, the music industry again evolved to promote the rise of dance music, which was gaining favor in nightclubs. What is today’s techno/trance music can be traced back to the early days of disco. Some radio stations devoted their entire playlists to nonstop disco.
Soon, the airwaves were filled with dance music, as were the music charts. The music industry again faced a swift transition at the end of the 1970s with the rise of another British music invasion, this time punk rock. U.S. music executives, looking for an American version of the punk movement, explored the clubs of New York and signed up artists who became the first generation of New Wave. Sales still typically followed the standard lines of radio and record store promotions, along with tours and TV appearances.
The 1980s saw the first real technology transition for the industry in decades. First, the Sony Walkman introduced a new demand for small portable cassette tape players for teens. Compact discs soon followed to replace vinyl records. This began the slow march toward a complete digital transition for a former analog industry, as personal computers gained market share in the mid- to late-1990s.
The music industry soon found that there were many methods of introducing new music to the masses. MTV, introduced in the early 1980s, expanded on the early lessons of television music entertainment, and the industry soon included videos as part of promotions for new music releases.
As videos shaped the direction of music, so did changing technology. Traditional music labels quickly saw that people were getting their music through nontraditional marketplace methods. The recording industry took a tough stand against what it considered online piracy, and soon official venues for buying music on the Internet were established.
Today, disc jockeys and Top 40 lists are no longer the harbingers of what sells nationwide. Lists drawn from online store downloads and YouTube viral sensations have redrawn the curve as to what takes off in sales among the current generation of music fans. This interactive spirit also has taken hold of music on TV, with shows geared toward audiences choosing the next stars of the U.S. music industry. As each emerging generation finds different ways to enjoy music, the industry evolves with different methods of delivery.
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