1980s American Music and Fashion

1980’s AMERICAN MUSIC AND FASHION

The 1980s was filled with popular U.S culture this included over-the-top fashion, the commercialization of music and film, and musical bands with big hair. The disco years of the 70s began to die off, and a new form of music began to rise. Punk rock, which was fractured, produced a new form of music known as ‘New Wave music’. This new term ‘New Wave music’ described vast ranges of music styles that were popular in the 80s; these were arty punk (Elvis Costello) to bands such as ‘Talking Heads’. Various popular music throughout the 80s were pop, rock, new wave, punk, country and hip hop/rap. Rap was new in the late 80s and 90s. “It started in prison 20 years earlier by jailed black inmates who, in the absence of instruments, turned poetic meter into musical rhythm”( ‘Lets Party, New Orleans’, modified 2008, viewed 13th of April 2008,http://www.decadesmusic.net/zz/HomePage/HomePageFrame.html). Rap was herd continuously on streets; these songs were often formed with lyrics that had hostility towards society. Some of the most famous groups during the 1980s were Mili Vanili, M.C Hammer, Vanilla Ice and L.L Cool J. New wave music became the single biggest mainstream market, with heavy metal, punk rock and hardcore punk, and hip hop achieving much success.

The 80s brought about a lot of punk and rebellious music styles such as punk influenced styles like gothic rock, post-punk, alternative rock emo and thrash mental. “House music also developed in the 80s in Chicago, techno music developed in Detroit which also saw the flowering the Detroit Sound in gospel” (‘American Cultural History’, modified 2008, viewed 13th of April 2008,http://kclibrary.nhmccd.edu/decade80.html). African American music in the 80s focused on two developments. The two different developments in black music were a smooth, ballad-oriented pop-soul fusion and a labeled contemporary R&B. Some of the famous singers during that era were Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston and Prince. Hip hop became commercially based during the 1980s and has internationally become used across various forms of media.

Fashion during the 1980s was inspired by famous figures such as Princess Di and Nancy Reagan. These famous figures inspired power dressing within the 80s due to their authority and power throughout this period. Music icons were a powerful influence on fashion, such as Madonna being a big influence on young teenagers. Some of the designers of the 80s included Anne Klein, Perry Ellis, Donna Karen and Calvin Kline. Films and Movies were highly inspirations for clothing design; Flashdance proved that tank tops, tight- fitting pants or torn jeans and leg wormers were for people of any age. Teens that could not afford designer labels opted for Michael Jackson’s glove or Madonna’s fishnet stockings, leather, and chains. Older women were often inspired by Meryl Streep. Tanning became popular and shoe prices soared. “Sneakers were so popular (and necessary) and the price so high that the Los Angeles Police Department accused shoe companies of cashing in on the easy drug money picked up by inner city kids. The shoe companies, like Nike, claimed the cost of high technologies needed to create the shoes was responsible for the huge jump in price”( ‘American Cultural History’, modified 2008, viewed 13th of April 2008, http://kclibrary.nhmccd.edu/decade80.html ). The 80s was a time for rebellion, when the clothes taste didn’t match and were based on radical forms of expression.

Entertainment history was beginning to be based around the new 1970s invention of the computer game which has been revolutionized for the new century. Pac Man, Mario bros and Donkey Kong became among the most well known and very first games to be played during the 1980s. “The golden Age of Arcade Games reached its full steam in the 1980s, with many technically innovative and genre-defining games in the first few years of the decade” (‘Classic 80s games’, modified 2008, viewed 13th of April 2008, http://www.80smusiclyrics.com/games.shtml). While some early 80s games were simple clones of existing arcade games, the relatively low publishing costs for personal computer games allowed for many bold, unique games. Nintendo’s Game & Watch line began in 1980. “The success of these LCD handhelds spurred dozens of other game and toy companies to make their own portable games, many being copies of Game & Watch titles or adaptations of popular arcade games”( ‘Classic 80s games’, modified 2008, viewed 13th of April 2008,http://www.80smusiclyrics.com/games.shtml). Gaming was a popular form of entertainment during the 1980s, which transformed the way we interacted with each other and new media being introduced.



REFERENCE LIST:

‘American Cultural History’, modified 2008, viewed 13th of April 2008,
http://kclibrary.nhmccd.edu/decade80.html

‘Classic 80s games’, modified 2008, viewed 13th of April 2008,
http://www.80smusiclyrics.com/games.shtml

‘Lets Party, New Orleans’, modified 2008, viewed 13th of April 2008,
http://www.decadesmusic.net/zz/HomePage/HomePageFrame.html