Argument

Music has an important impact

on people's lives. It doesn't matter what
the style or the genre is, music is still
music. If we are tired and need to relax
or if we want to have a good time on
special occasions we have music. So, the
main reason for having chosen this topic
is its richness and its development
throughout time with the need of people
to listen to it.

Introduction
Music is like technology, it has developed a lot in the last one hundred
years. In this project I will introduce the artists and the bands which have
marked the culture of humanity with their songs and personalities. Most of the
new genres of music appeared in the U.S.A. and in the United Kingdom, before
spreading throughout the world. Music has a great impact on people’s way of
getting dressed and acting. They put make-up on, spike their hair, dread it, dye it
and wear black and extra-baggy clothing just to show people what kind of music
they like. Some people get introduced to a certain type of music and it
completely changes their life, the way they dress, act, speak and the people they
hang out with. For example, Elvis Presley’s costumes, or Michael Jackson’s
gloves and military jackets are the symbols of their music and with any occasion
their fans have tried to look like them, wearing that kind of clothes.

The art of making music is like the art of transforming a piece of rock
in a diamond. There are many singers and bands who have contributed to
changes in music in the last years, that’s why people need it, they can choose
from rock to pop or rap, but no matter the genre, they always find the message
they look for.

I will talk about the artists and bands who have changed the industry
of music with their careers. I am sorry I cannot mention all of them, but the time
is limited and so was the life of some of these great legends.
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 I. The Legends of Music
1.1. Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an
American musician and actor. Regarded as one of the most significant cultural
icons of the 20th
century, he is often
referred to as “the
King of Rock and
Roll”, or simply, “the
King”.

Presley
was a central figure in the development of rockabilly, according to music
historians. He’s rise to national attention in 1956 when he transformed the field
of popular music and had a huge effect on the broader scope of popular culture.
As the catalyst for the cultural revolution that was rock and roll, he was central
not only to defining it as a musical genre but in making it a touchstone of youth
culture and rebellious attitude.

The most famous hits of Elvis Presley: “Heartbreak Hotel”, “Don't Be

Cruel”, “Always On My Mind”, “All Shook Up”, “Jailhouse Rock”,“(You're
The) Devil in Disguise”, “Suspicious Minds”.

“Music should be something that makes you gotta move, inside or outside.”
Elvis Presley

1.2. Bob Marley

Robert Nesta “Bob” Marley (February 6, 1945 – May 11, 1981) was a
Jamaican reggae singer, songwriter, musician, and guitarist who achieved
international fame and acclaim. He is considered one of the most influential

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musicians of all time and credited with popularizing reggae music around the
world.

In June 1978,
Marley was awarded
with the Peace Medal of
the Third World from the
United Nations as the
second man who
received it after Thomas
Jefferson.

The most
famous hits of Bob
Marley: “Redemption Song”, “Three Little Birds”, “Stir It Up”, “Buffalo
Soldier”, “No Woman No Cry”.

“The good thing about music is that when it hits you, you feel no pain.”
Bob Marley

1.3. Michael Jackson

Michael Joseph
Jackson (August 29, 1958 –
June 25, 2009) was an
American singer, songwriter,
record producer, dancer, and
actor. Called the King of
Pop, his contributions to music,
dance and fashion along with
his publicized personal life
made him a global figure
in popular culture for over four
decades.

Jackson explored a variety of music genres,

including pop, soul, rhythm and blues, funk, rock, disco, post-disco, dance-
pop and new jack swing. Unlike many artists, Michael did not write his songs on

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paper and instead dictated into a sound recorder. When composing music, he
preferred to beat box and imitate instruments vocally than use instruments.

The most famous hits of Michael Jackson: “Billie Jean”, “Beat It”,
“Thriller”, “They Don't Care About Us”, “Black Or White”, “Bad”, “The Way
You Make Me Feel”.

“Music is colour blind.” Michael Jackson

1.4. Johnny Cash

John
R. “Johnny” Cash (February
26, 1932 – September 12,
2003) was an
American singer-
songwriter, guitarist, actor
and author, who was widely
considered one of the most
influential musicians of the
20th century and one of
the best-selling music artists
of all time, having sold more
than 90 million records
worldwide.

Although primarily remembered as a country music icon, his genre-

spanning songs and sound embraced rock and roll, rockabilly, blues, folk
and gospel. This crossover appeal won Cash the rare honor of multiple
inductions in the Country Music, Rock and Roll and Gospel Music Halls of
Fame.

The most famous hits of Johnny Cash: “Don't Take Your Guns to
Town”, “(Ghost) Riders in the Sky”, “Hurt”, “God's Gonna Cut You Down”,
“Ain’t No Grave”.

“When I think about country music, I think about America.”

Johnny Cash
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 1.5. Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert “Frank” Sinatra (December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998)
was an American singer, actor, and producer who was one of the most popular
and influential musical artists of the 20th century. Sinatra began singing
professionally as a teenager, but he learned music by ear and never learned to
read music.

The most famous hits of

Frank Sinatra: “New York, New
York”, “My Way”, “My Kind of
Town (Chicago)”, “Strangers in
The Night”.

“May you live to be 100 and may

the last voice you hear be mine.”
Frank Sinatra

1.6. Louis Armstrong

Louis Armstrong (August
4, 1901 – July 6, 1971) was an
American trumpeter, composer and
singer who was one of the most
influential figures in jazz. His career
spanned five decades, from the 1920s
to the 1960s, and different eras in
jazz.

The influence of
Armstrong on the development of
jazz is virtually immeasurable. Yet,
his irrepressible personality both as a
performer, and as a public figure later

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in his career, was so strong that to some it sometimes overshadowed his
contributions as a musician and singer.

The most famous hits of Louis Armstrong: “Hello Dolly”, “West End
Blues”, “What A Wonderful World”.

“If you have to ask what jazz is, you’ll never know.”
Louis Armstrong
1.7. 2Pac
Tupac Amaru Shakur (born Lesane Parish
Crooks; June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also
known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an
American rapper and actor.

Shakur is held in high esteem by

other MC’s – in the book “How to Rap”, Bishop
Lamont notes that Shakur “mastered every element,
every aspect of rapping”. Fredro Starr of Onyx says
Shakur “was a master of the flow.”, making him the
most influential rapper ever.

The most famous hits of Tupac Shakur:

“Dear Mama”, “Ambitionz Aza Ridah”, “Life Goes
On”, “Only God Can Judge Me”, “Lord knows”, “When I Get Free”,
“Troublesome '96”.

“Reality is wrong. Dreams are for real. That’s music.”

Tupac Shakur

II. Bands with History

2.1. Scorpions
Scorpions are a
German rock band formed in
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1965 in Hanover by Rudolf Schenker. Since the band's inception, its musical
style has ranged from hard rock to heavy metal.

Scorpions most famous hits: “Still Loving You”, “Wind Of Change”,

“Send Me An Angel”, “No One Like You”, “Rock You Like A Hurricane”.

2.2. AC/DC
AC/DC are an Australian hard rock band, formed in November 1973
by brothers Malcolm and Angus Young, who continued as members until
Malcolm’s illness and departure in 2014. Commonly referred to as a hard rock
or blues rock band, they are also considered pioneers of heavy metal and are
sometimes classified
as such, though they
have always dubbed
their music as simply
“rock and roll”.

AC/DC most famous hits: “Thunderstruck”, “T.N.T.”, “Highway To

Hell”, “Back In Black”, ”Rock’n Roll Train”.

2.3. UB40
UB40 are a British reggae/pop band formed in December 1978 in
south Birmingham, England. The band has had more than 50 singles in the UK
Singles Chart, and has also achieved considerable international success. 

UB40 most famous hits: “Can’t Help

Falling In Love”, “Red Red Wine”, “Kingston
Town”, “Here I Am”, “I Got You Babe”.

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 2.4. ZZ Top
ZZ Top is an American rock band that formed in 1969
in Houston, Texas. The band is composed of guitarist and lead vocalist Billy
Gibbons (the band's leader, main lyricist and musical arranger), bassist and co-
lead vocalist Dusty Hill, and drummer Frank Beard. One of just a few major
label recording groups to have held the same
line-up for more than 45 years, ZZ Top has
been praised by critics and fellow musicians
alike for their technical mastery.

ZZ Top most famous hits: “La

Grange”, “Tush”, “I Gotsta Get Paid”,
“Rough Boy”, “Bad to the Bone”.

2.5. The Highwaymen

The Highwaymen were a Country music band composed of four of the
genre's biggest artists well known for their
pioneering influence on the outlaw
country subgenre: Johnny Cash, Waylon
Jennings, Willie Nelson, and Kris
Kristofferson.

The Highwaymen most famous hits: “Highwayman”, “American

Remains”, “Silver Stallion”.

III. Solo Singers Go Big

3.1. Freddie Mercury (Queen)
Freddie Mercury (born Farrokh Bulsara;
September 5, 1946 –November 24, 1991) was a
British singer, songwriter and record producer,
known as the lead vocalist and co-principal
songwriter of the rock band Queen. In addition to
his work with Queen, Mercury put out two solo
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albums and several singles. Although his solo work was not as commercially
successful as most Queen albums, the two off-Queen albums and several of the
singles debuted in the top 10 of the UK Music Charts.

Queen hits: “Bohemian Rhapsody”, “We Are the Champions”, “We

Will Rock You”, “Don’t Stop Me Now”, “Show Must Go On”.
Freddie Mercury solo hits: “Living on My Own”, “Barcelona”, “Made
in Heaven”.

“I'm not married to music, I'm married to love.”

Freddie Mercury

3.2. John Lennon (The Beatles)

John Winston Ono Lennon (October 9, 1940 –December 8, 1980) was
an English singer and songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as a co-founder
of the Beatles, the most commercially successful band in the history of popular
music.

The Beatles hits: “Here Comes the

Sun”, “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds”, “Hey
Jude”, “Hello, Goodbye”, “A Day in the Life”.

John Lennon hits: “Love”, “Imagine”,

“Woman”, “Starting Over”.

“Music is everybody's possession. It's only

publishers who think that people own it.”

John Lennon

3.3. Alice Cooper (Alice Cooper)

Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier; February 4, 1948) is an
American singer, songwriter, musician and occasional actor whose career spans
over five decades.  “Alice Cooper” was originally a band consisting of Furnier
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on vocals and harmonica, lead guitarist Glen Buxton, Michael Bruce on rhythm
guitar, Dennis Dunaway on bass guitar, and drummer Neal Smith.

Alice Cooper (band)

hits: “I’m Eighteen”, “Schools
Out”, “Halo Of Flies”.

Alice Cooper hits:

“Poison”, “Hey Stoopid”, “House
of Fire”.

3.4. Annie Lennox (Eurythmics)

Ann “Annie” Lennox (born 25 December 1954) is a Scottish singer,
songwriter, political activist and philanthropist. After achieving moderate
success in the late 1970s as part of the new
wave band The Tourists, she and fellow
musician David A. Stewart went on to
achieve major international success in the
1980s as Eurythmics. Lennox embarked on
a solo career in 1992 with her debut
album, Diva, which produced several hit
singles including “Why” and “Walking on
Broken Glass”. To date, she has released
six solo studio albums and a compilation
album, The Annie Lennox
Collection (2009).

Eurythmics hits: “Sweet Dreams”, “There Must Be An Angel”, “Here

Comes The Rain Again”, “Would I Lie to You?”.

Annie Lennox hits: “Walking on Broken Glass”, “Why”, “Little

Bird”, “No More I Love You’s”.

“I think music is the most phenomenal platform for intellectual thought.”

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 Annie Lennox

3.5. Eminem (D12)

Marshall Bruce Mathers
III (born October 17, 1972), known
professionally as Eminem, is an
American rapper, songwriter, record
producer, and actor
from Detroit, Michigan. In addition to
his solo career, he is a member of D12,
and with Royce da 5’9” is one half of
the hip-hop duo Bad Meets Evil.

D12 hits: “One Shot 2 Shot”,

“Under The Influence”, “When The
Music Stops”, “My Band”.

Eminem hits:“Lose
Yourself”, “Till I Collapse”, “Rap
God”, “My Name Is”, “The Real Slim
Shady”, “Not Afraid”, “ When I’m
Gone”.

“I always say this about my music, and music in general: Music is like a time
capsule.”

Eminem

Conclusion
These were few of the artists, the bands and members of bands that
embraced solo careers that marked the history of music. No matter what artists
have risen in the musical world, we, the lovers of music, will know and learn
about the kings of every music genre. And those kings will inspire and mark
both our work and of the future musicians.

Music is not just music. It has history, feelings, facts, stories, life
experiences and so on, in its lyrics. It's something memorable that will last
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throughout the time. And it is something from which we can learn a lot of things
if we listen to it carefully.

When you listen to a song, no matter to what genre it belongs, the

lyrics must deeply touch your heart, you need to understand it, to really enjoy it.
The best thing about music is that it will forever live, even when the artist dies
his music keeps going and people can still play it.

Music is important and so are their creators, developers and listeners.

Bibliography

1) Gaar, G., 2010, Return of the King: Elvis Presley's Great Comeback,
Jawbone Press

2) Hombach, J., 2012, Bob Marley: The Father of Music, Lulu

3) Campbell, L., 1993, Michael Jackson: The King of Pop, Branden

4) Hilburn, R., 2013, Johnny Cash: The Life, Little, Brown and Company

5) Howlett, J., 1980, Frank Sinatra, Simon & Schuster

6) Cook, R., 2005, Richard Cook's Jazz Encyclopedia, London: Penguin Books

7) Hoye, J., and Ali, K., 2006, Tupac, Atria Books

8) Anderson, J., 2010, John Lennon: Legendary Musician & Beatle, ABDO

Publishing Company

9) Encyclopedia, 2004, Bands Going for Stars, Art Books

10) Sutherland, B., and Ellis, L., 2002, Annie Lennox: The Biography,
Omnibus Press

11) Molanphy, C., 2011, Introducing the King of Hip-Hop, Rolling Stone

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