Some thoughts from someone who was there, on the fringe of it:
Detroit: is a land of wondrous musical invention, just new trends but whole new paradigms over and over, and it's never credited: Motown, of course; Punk (Iggy Pop & the Stooges, MC5 - name earlier punk!); Funkadelic (George Clinton et al); and Techno. At their heart they are creative, artistic, non-commercial (Motown being a big exception to the latter). Try to name other communities that match it, and give Detroit some due.
Techno: I've heard it described (by someone who would know) as the music of black middle class kids in Detroit. Think of what that means: Think of the historical implications, for the next generation after the civil rights era. Think of how rare that image is - today - in our public sphere, 'black middle class kids'. And from this perspective, to great disappointment, the black musical genre that America embraced was hip-hop, which sold itself as the stereotype many whites have of African-Americans: Poverty, violence, crime, lack of education, acting out, etc. That's what people associate with black kids - and that's what they bought - not futuristic techno; everyone in the world knows hip-hop is 'black' music; few outside techno know its origins. It makes me angry to this day. Here's a bit of that history, from the 313 (Detroit area code) techno mailing list:
Through the 1990s, Juan Atkins, Derrick May, Kevin Saunderson and the other techno pioneers, legends and stars elsewhere, were unknown in Detroit beyond the small techno community. Every summer in Hart Plaza downtown, Detroit hosts various weekend festivals, such as a large country music festival. In 2000 a new one was added to the schedule, the Detroit Electronic Music Festival. I can't express the shock, the bewilderment, of local Detroiters when a million people from around the world showed up - to Detroit? For electronic music? Why??? The visitors knew more than the locals. And I was there - my favorite musical memory - for the moment Derrick May, long ignored in his hometown, at last took to the turntables before a massive crowd in Detroit:
It is not what "poeple associate with black kids", it is what it was and what it is, most black kids are not middle class. The black community first and foremost were the one to adopt hiphop as their "voice".
In general, all types of electronic music thrived in Europe rather than in the US, house, techno, trans, even dub/regeae/jungle etc. not necessarly just the black middle class music.
> It is not what "poeple associate with black kids", it is what it was and what it is, most black kids are not middle class.
What is that based on? What data or experience do you have? It looks to me like your argument is that racial stereotypes are a given truth - a sadly ignorant, uncritical point of view.
Most kids are not middle-class, but the African-American middle class has exploded in size. And middle-class or not, that doesn't make black kids into stereotypes of hip-hop music. I've known and know many (of all classes); they are just people, neighbors, friends, kids. It's bizarre to see people - always people mostly isolated from experience - talking about them like they are anything else.
And where on HN and in most of our lives are African-Americans to speak for themselves, with their own voices, rather than other people talking about them? If any are here and read the parent, would they stick around?
Detroit: is a land of wondrous musical invention, just new trends but whole new paradigms over and over, and it's never credited: Motown, of course; Punk (Iggy Pop & the Stooges, MC5 - name earlier punk!); Funkadelic (George Clinton et al); and Techno. At their heart they are creative, artistic, non-commercial (Motown being a big exception to the latter). Try to name other communities that match it, and give Detroit some due.
Techno: I've heard it described (by someone who would know) as the music of black middle class kids in Detroit. Think of what that means: Think of the historical implications, for the next generation after the civil rights era. Think of how rare that image is - today - in our public sphere, 'black middle class kids'. And from this perspective, to great disappointment, the black musical genre that America embraced was hip-hop, which sold itself as the stereotype many whites have of African-Americans: Poverty, violence, crime, lack of education, acting out, etc. That's what people associate with black kids - and that's what they bought - not futuristic techno; everyone in the world knows hip-hop is 'black' music; few outside techno know its origins. It makes me angry to this day. Here's a bit of that history, from the 313 (Detroit area code) techno mailing list:
http://music.hyperreal.org/lists/313/08.html
Through the 1990s, Juan Atkins, Derrick May, Kevin Saunderson and the other techno pioneers, legends and stars elsewhere, were unknown in Detroit beyond the small techno community. Every summer in Hart Plaza downtown, Detroit hosts various weekend festivals, such as a large country music festival. In 2000 a new one was added to the schedule, the Detroit Electronic Music Festival. I can't express the shock, the bewilderment, of local Detroiters when a million people from around the world showed up - to Detroit? For electronic music? Why??? The visitors knew more than the locals. And I was there - my favorite musical memory - for the moment Derrick May, long ignored in his hometown, at last took to the turntables before a massive crowd in Detroit:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4xqV9_7rf0