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Halle Evans
L.M. Raymond, MA
UWRT 1103
23 July 2015
Writing Prompt #7: Views on the Evolution of Music
After putting thought into my views on the evolution of music, I decided to find out what
others thought. After asking four participants, Trey Bradshaw, Chiagoziem Ngwadom,
Thomasina Pearce, and LaVell Williams, I found different perspectives on music and how others
think that it has evolved (questions and answers are all color-coded).
After being asked what their thoughts on the evolution of music over the last several
decades (70s to now) were...
Trey Bradshaw said: Since the 70s, things are very different. Music has gotten a lot
worse along the lines on censorship. I would say that over time music has become a lot more
beat centric from a Hip-Hop standpoint.
Chiagoziem Ngwadom said: I know this isnt in the 70s but the Beatles led the way for
many artists. Led Zeppelin was getting popular. A variety of innovative type music was born. A
lot of people think that its become more hardcore but music is evolving the way that it should. It
relates to how the people at that time feel and how they progress into another time. I feel that
music represents our soul so basically, everything that we are, music is. People may get offended
at todays Hip-Hop, which glorifies drugs, sex, and violence, but to some extent, hasnt every
decade and genre done that? Grunge music (Nirvana, Pearl Jam, etc.) glorified sex and drugs.
Even Elvis who shook his hips showed many sexual innuendos and people were even offended
by that.

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Thomasina Pearce said: I feel like the music has gotten more vulgar and sexual, more
explicitly sexual to be exact.
LaVell Williams said: I feel like every generation has their own sound. I really dont feel
like its degraded like some people think. I think every generation is unique and represents what
is going on in that time period.

After being asked what artists they think of when they think of the evolution of music...
Trey Bradshaw said: I think of Biggie, Tupac, and Run DMC just because they
influenced a whole lot of the Hip-Hop/Rap that we hear today.
Thomasina Pearce said: I think of Beyonce because she is timeless. I think of Nicki Minaj
because she transferred from a weird type of music to the normal. I think of Bobby Shmurda
because someone like him wouldnt have made it in the 70s, 80s, 90s, and early 2000s.
LaVell Williams said: There are so many artists; it just depends on the genre. For pop,
Michael Jackson is obviously an icon throughout several generations. If youre talking about rap,
people like Jay Z are icons even from the 90s to now and thats a long span of time for a career.

After being asked what genre of music they think has evolved the most...
Trey Bradshaw said: Because of the fact that I am a Hip-Hop-centric person, I think that
Hip-Hop has definitely evolved the most. Just by listening to artists from past decades rap and
then listening to them now, the difference is extremely noticeable.
Chiagoziem Ngwadom said: I would say Electronic music because its given more power
to the producers and not just the artists. Artists would be nothing without producers and now the
producers are stepping out and claiming their own. We are evolving into a more diverse industry.

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Thomasina Pearce said: I think Hip-Hop has become more vulgar and explicit than it was
in the 70s, 80s, 90s, and 2000s.
LaVell Williams said: Well, just listening to old Hip-Hop, I think that it has evolved the
most. Sometimes it evolves in not such a good way just because its lost a lot of the original deep
context. People used to rap because it was the only thing they had to get out of certain situations
and to make money for poor households. Either way, I still like the music of today.

After being asked how they think that the messages songs portray now are different from
the messages of songs from past decades...
Trey Bradshaw said: Music now is Trap music that deals with drugs, gangs, and
violence. In past decades, Rap was fun, it occasionally talked about things like this but it told
more of a story back in the day than it does now.
Chiagoziem Ngwadom said: Different sound, different lyrics, same message. The
meaning is always the same it just has different words and different beats used to portray that
message.
Thomasina Pearce said: The music from past decades was more related to real life
whereas now I think that people just make music that will appeal to audiences. As long as a song
has a hype beat it doesnt matter what the meaning is.
LaVell Williams said: I dont feel like people have been portraying that many different
messages but things are just said differently. Like, when I listen to my parents old records,
theyre still talking about the same things that are happening today but back then, they were just
saying it in a cleaner version.

After being asked what they think has caused such a change in the messages in music...

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Trey Bradshaw said: Well, I think that people now are concerned about their image. Back
in the day, it was more about the story and now people are more worried about representing the
gang that they are associated with and glorifying the drugs and sex that come with that lifestyle.
Before, it was about having fun.
Chiagoziem Ngwadom said: Being progressive. Music is very youth based and younger
people are more tolerant to different views. What has to be said and what wants to be said can be
said with less prejudice towards it.
Thomasina Pearce said: I think because the younger generation is growing up, people
make music that will catch the eyes of young people and nowadays young people are focused on
sex and trapping (selling drugs).
LaVell Williams said: Because of things that happen in different times, different people
have different things to rap about. So I guess time periods are the biggest reason.

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Works Cited
Bradshaw, Trey. Personal interview 23 July 2015.

Ngwadom, Chiagoziem. Personal interview 23 July 2015.

Pearce, Thomasina. Personal interview 23 July 2015.

Williams, LaVell Personal interview 23 July 2015.