[SuchFriendsAreDangerous]

this is a question from WorldFocus.

"Which artist/musician has most profoundly affected world events?"

my pick:

1) Michael Jackson:
There has never been a bigger artist period. He is truly worldwide. People from unimaginably different places and circumstances mutually share an experience with Michael Jackson, the image, the music, the style, the culture etc etc. Michael Jackson is an experience like Jesus.. billions of people share this experience.. it is beyond scale. No one could possibly come close..


2) the Beatles
Huge band, biggest perhaps aside from Jackson in worldwide popularity, and even more crucially significant, they were popular in a truly revolutionary age of progress and change, and helped to spread the vibe of change inadvertantly across the globe. The Beatles were not really activists, but their music spread culture and ideas with it.. where the Beatles records went across the world, change came with it. I don't even like the Beatles or Lennon solo stuff, but I must always give maximum RASpect to those who earn it so highly

3) Bob Marley
Same scale as the above two but more powerfully direct in promoting change. Bob Marley gave the third world the language it needed to proclaim its revolution, to bring about change. To this day, across the world and especially South America and Africa, Bob Marley is a major influence amongst the entire spectrum, extreme leftist militants to rightist intellectuals and everyone in between. Bob Marley is a force of change across the world bigger than Ghandi!

4) Tupac

Underrated in his international appeal, Tupac is one of the most popular rap artists across Africa and South America. They like ALL american rap in Africa and South America, but it doesn't get much bigger than Tupac.. He is like the Michael Jackson of Rap music internationally.. kids who carry guns in Sierra Leone bump 2pacalypse Now and All Eyez on Me is blaring in the favellas of Rio.. it is surreal actually.

5) Nirvana

In South America and Europe especially Nirvana was huge. They are the beatles of our generation. They brought about the third revolution if you ask me.. lets see if we can keep it kindling.

[Dead-Air]

Barry Manilow. He wrote the "You Deserve a Break Today" jingle for McDonald's.

[Rob Instigator]

Johannes Sebastian Bach

[SYRFox]

1) mise en abyme
2) dragons of zynth
3) mesak
4) calmer
5) nirvana

am i doing it right

[Keeping It Simple]

Morrissey.

[gualbert]

Bill Clinton, probably.

[Genteel Death]

None.

[the ikara cult]

David Hasselhoff brought the Berlin Wall down, history lies in state until someone equals this feat

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zXiC...om=PL&index=27

[demonrail666]

 

[Seandi]

What, no Hawkwind ?

[SYRFox]

Kanye West
for real he affected the MTV Video Awards
now that is a world event

[SuchFriendsAreDangerous]

the question is affect on world events, not your favorite band. Which artists have made the largest impact globally? Have been a cultural phenomenon, have profoundly altered events, etc etc?

for example: The British Invasion and in particular the Beatles was a MAJOR catalyst for what happened in the 1960s, people from all across the spectrum were inspired by the Beatles to be themselves and this helped bring a lot of revolutionary change to the world, its impact is almost immeasurable.

Bob Marley wrote a protest song called "Zimbabwe" and three years later he performed it at the first Zimbawean Independence Day celebration in 1980, that is almost mythical!

Now do you get the idea?

Think of artists that have brought about some kind of change, and it can be good or bad..

[SYRFox]

Originally Posted by SuchFriendsAreDangerous

the question is affect on world events, not your favorite band. Which artists have made the largest impact globally? Have been a cultural phenomenon, have profoundly altered events, etc etc?

for example: The British Invasion and in particular the Beatles was a MAJOR catalyst for what happened in the 1960s, people from all across the spectrum were inspired by the Beatles to be themselves and this helped bring a lot of revolutionary change to the world, its impact is almost immeasurable.

Bob Marley wrote a protest song called "Zimbabwe" and three years later he performed it at the first Zimbawean Independence Day celebration in 1980, that is almost mythical!

Now do you get the idea?

Think of artists that have brought about some kind of change, and it can be good or bad..

i was just kidding
but yeah
kanye west man

[viewtiful_alan]

The Ramones
I'll type why later.

[automatic bzooty]

the beatles. but only for the five minutes i was a member.

[SuperCreep]

boner?

[acousticrock87]

I'm just going to go on the record and say, although I do like Nirvana quite a bit, they did not affect any goddamn world events. They just slopped up the music a little.

[Dead-Air]

Very few have impacted world events outside of pop culture. That's why I was serious about Barry Manilow. That song sold Billions and Billions of burgers.

Being influential to other bands is not about World Events. Even the Beatles had little impact on global politics or the way society is structured. Michael Jackson deserves more credit in influencing the world by selling the Beatles musical catalog to advertising companies than he does for anything he did musically himself.

[acousticrock87]

Originally Posted by Dead-Air

Even the Beatles had little impact on global politics or the way society is structured.

I sort of agree with that, but with such a thin pool to choose from I think I would give it to them. They're as global as music gets, and they did extend somewhat beyond music.

I think the topic is just too specific to get many contenders. Even artists like B.B. King--he broke boundaries, but that was still mostly an American thing.

I don't think there are many musicians who have "profoundly" affected the world, but I would still nominate Bono. Sorry.

[akprodr]

I just saw a promo on PBS--aparently the Beatles are responsible for the fall of communism. Watch WNET monday night for details.

Otherwise, you got Willy Nelson and farm aid, whatshisname and Live aid...

Bono sure has a lot of face time with world leaders--dunno what the actual effects have been