The connection between music and politics, particularly political expression in music, has been seen in many cultures. Although music influences political movements and rituals, it is not clear how or even if, general audiences relate music on a political level. Time has shown how music can be used in anti-establishment or protest themes, including anti-war songs, although pro-establishment ideas are also used, for example in national anthems, patriotic songs, and political campaigns. Many of these types of songs could be described as topical songs.
Unlike many other types of music, political music is not usually ambiguous, and is used to portray a specific political message. Even in the case of overtly political pop acts like U2, the Clash, or Rage Against the Machine, while political message in their music is apparent, it is usually in the political context of the time it was made. This makes understanding the historical events and time that inspired the music essential to fully understanding the message in the music. Since political music is meant to be heard by the people, it is often meant to be popular.
Furthermore it is extremely difficult to predict how audiences will respond this kind of music, sounds, or even visual cues. For example, Bleich and Zillmann found that “counter expectations, highly rebellious students did not enjoy defiant rock videos more than did their less rebellious peers, nor did they consume more defiant rock music than did their peers." The difficulty in predicting and understanding an audience is partly due to the fact that there is an extremely diverse range of styles, and structure involved in musical production, and marketing.
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