Compact discs: A Case History
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Compact discs are so much a part of our everyday world that we rarely stop to think about the process of how they come into being: They appear to have sprung forth ready made like Athena being born in her armor from the head of Zeus. But, of course, CDs are made and not born, and understanding the who-what-where-when-and-how behind a CD's development and release not only helps us to understand more about the CD itself and to place the music on that particular album within the context of the artist's work as a whole but helps us to understand the role that popular music plays in our culture in general. Although pop music, and especially some forms such as rap and hip-hop, are designed to express social dissatisfaction and even rage, they are produced and distributed within a framework that in many ways resembles the ways in which cars, dentures, or Viagra is produced and marketed. This paper examines the history of one particular recnt CD, "The Eminem Show" by Eminem as a way of understanding the overall social and artistic context of album.It is impossible to understand a solo album without understanding the artist at the center of it even as we also remember that every album is very much the production of dozens and even scores of people. "The Eminem Show" could certainly not have been produced without Eminem. At the same time, he could never have produced it alone. Eminem, as is probably known to most Americans, even those without the slightest interest in rap music, is
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ol and released his first album in 1996. However, in large measure because it was in many ways a derivative album, "Infinite" received less than glowing press, which prompted Eminem to produce his next album himself as he tried to refine and become comfortable with his own style (www.eminem.com). He has seen more or less uniform success with his albums since that underground one - "5 Star Generals", which helped to establish his reputation - based on what has become his distinctive style - m in Japan as well as New York and Los Angeles. This album, which earned him a spot on the first Lyricist Lounge tour, which in turn substantially increased his profile, helped solidify his current success, from which "The Eminem Show", arose.
Having looked at the "why" of this album, we may now look at the "what". This album, like others that Eminem has produced, features his own work: He is the star of this show. In the case of this CD, he is the star not only because he is the performer of the works but also because they refer back to him and his life. This album has been one of his most controversial because in it the violence that he advocated in a more abstract or general way in his earlier work he now makes more personal and more concret
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Approximate Word count = 1878
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page)
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