Leigh, Melody, Megan
Asian Representation Within the Music Industry
As of 2020, Asian musicians contribute only 4% of the American music industry “compared to the largest group being White at 73% and the second largest, Black, with 13%.” (Tenzin) The lack of Asian representation within the music industry stems from Western society’s preconceived assumptions of the Asian identity that are cultivated from cultural stereotypes and limited narratives portrayed in American media. “Asian-Americans may be expected to play the violin or know kung fu, artists and scholars say, but not necessarily to sound like Kanye West or Madonna, or sell like them.” (Navarro) Because of the single story American society puts on its Asian minority, the idea of “Asian music” is misrepresented. Due to the lack of representation in America’s music industry, the majority of society resorts to mocking Asian languages, dances, clothes, makeup, and more as a means to identify the culture’s music style. The lack of proper representation in the music industry also creates “...no space that is built by and for us.” (CBC Music) The Asian identity is lost in America, and we agree with Kimberly Drew when she writes, “for so many young people of color, we feel like we don’t have the luxury of exploring the liberal arts” because there is no one for young POC people to look up to that represents them (Drew, PG 14.)
To combat this problem, our group drew inspiration from Fluxus movement artists like Yoko Ono, and we transformed the ordinary act of listening to music into our form of activism. Seeing how Ono and Nam Jun Paik used their art to express their Asian and American identities, we used the Spotify app to create six playlists that featured Asian music artists from around the world. The six playlists are:
Study playlist [Genre: classical, traditional, ballads, instrumental]
Titled: Music to focus to
Pop playlist [Genre: pop, dance, hyperpop techno]
Titled: Pov u enter an asian supermarket on a wednesday
Hip-hop playlist [Genre: Rap, hip hop,Trap]
Titled: Pre-exam hype (boy)
Chill playlist [Genre: R&B, Blues, Soul, Jazz]
Titled: Wandering @ 2am in the rain
Indie playlist [Genre: indie,ALT, rock]
Titled: Songs that make u the main character
Rock out playlist [Genre: Grunge, metal, scream, punk]
Titled: Warning, loud noises
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| Design for social media sharing (click the image!) |
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| Design for flyer |
Inspired by Doctor Midori Yoshimoto’s Out of Bounds: Japanese Women Artists in Fluxus Gallery in the Japan Society, we curated a series of playlists that tapped into genres not typically associated with Asian identity in America. Each playlist expands the listener’s mind to different cultures and languages expressed by Asian and Asian-American people, from Priya Ragu to SB19. These playlists are then turned into QR codes that are displayed on our flyer. Additionally, for shareability on the internet, we made a Linktree that presents the playlists as clickable links that direct the viewer to the playlist.
We decided on a digital project mainly because of the Black Contemporary Art blog by Kimberly Drew. Drew was able to curate, publicize, and advertise her art activism using Tumblr. “Using culture and the arts as a form of communication…” is a powerful tool Drew used as she understood her generation’s active fascination with internet culture. (Duncombe & Lambert, PG 116) She understood that the rise of the internet and social media brought new ways for her to express her feelings and ideas or connect with others worldwide. With the help of a few friends, she used Tumblr’s algorithm to grow her small gallery into a thriving resource for Black artisans to see representation within a predominantly White industry. Like Drew, we’ve observed our generation’s [Generation Z] consumption of music. According to Spotify’s 2023 Trend report, Gen Z has become the “...fastest-growing cohort in music and podcast listening…” by listening to “...over 560 billion songs and more than 3 billion podcasts” from the beginning of this year. (Spotify) Because of this, we understood that using Spotify as our outlet for change was the smartest move as it would reach a wider audience. While listeners enjoy our playlists, Spotify’s database showcases two features. The first is the app’s algorithm to suggest songs related to the playlist’s genre/style once the playlist is finished. The second feature is called the “smart shuffle.” If a listener presses on the shuffle icon twice, the algorithm will mix our playlist’s songs with “...new recommendations that match the vibe” of the playlist. (Spotify) As Duncombe and Lambert said, “...one of our goals is to change the way people perceive and understand the world and their place within it.” (Duncombe & Lambert, PG 181.) Together, these features continue our mission of introducing and redefining the Asian identity to the listener within the music industry from more than stereotypical ideals. Moreover, it continuously supports the recognition of Asian and Asian American artists within the Western audience.
To advertise our mission, we reached out to the NJCU Gothic Times team and collaborated with them to write an article about our project and what it stands for. They took the time to listen to our ideas and playlists as they agreed with our intentions. Additionally, they will be posting our Linktree link on their official Instagram @thegothictimes. While they handled the press, we collectively shared the playlists through our Instagram stories using the Linktree link. Our digital flyer and link were also shared with other Instagram accounts, ranging from 500-1,000 followers, to promote our project. Outside of the digital world, we hung up flyers with the QR codes of the playlists inside and outside of NJCU’s campus.
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| Leigh's Insta Story |
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| Megan's Insta Story |
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| EX of Promo A |
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| EX of Promo B |
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| Education building |
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| Science building |
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| Snapdragon Cafe / 190 Monticello Ave, Jersey City |
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| Fries Building |
As of November 28th, 10:45 pm, the numbers of saves for the playlists are as follows:
- Study: 42 saves
- Pop: 40 saves
- Hip-Hop: 80 saves
- Indie: 100 saves
- Chill: 53 saves
- Rock out: 32 saves
Almost 400 total saves across all playlists made, bringing attention to over 180 Asian artists around the globe. Our mission opens the door for our audience to recognize the fluidity of the Asian identity and music created by Asian artists. By collaborating with the Gothic Times, we are furthering our reach on campus specifically so NJCU students can address the Asian under-representation in the music industry by simply listening to artists and thus giving them a platform. We failed at putting our flyer up on the TV. However, we met with The Student Government Association[SGA], and they agreed with our message and are willing to schedule Zoom calls to discuss plans to create organizations and clubs surrounding Asian presentations within our school.
Link to Gothic Times Article:
Link to Playlists:
https://linktr.ee/listen_to_this
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SOURCES:
Drew, Kimberly. This Is What I Know about Art. Penguin USA, 2020.
Duncombe, Stephen, and Steve Lambert. The Art of Activism: Your All-Purpose Guide to Making The Impossible Possible. O/R, 2021.
Navarro, Mireya. “Lack of Asian-American Pop Singing Stars Blamed on Racial Stereotyping.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 4 Mar. 2007, www.nytimes.com/2007/03/04/news/04iht-singer.4792381.html.
“Smart Shuffle Breathes New Life into Your Spotify Playlists.” Spotify, 19 Oct. 2023, newsroom.spotify.com/2023-03-08/smart-shuffle-new-life-spotify-playlists/.
“Spotify 2023 Culture Next Report.” Spotify Advertising, 2023, https://go.pardot.com/l/52662/2023-10-17/ljjlbq/52662/1697542857iszMQs7t/Spotify_2023_Culture_Next_Report_US.pdf.
Tenzin, Choetsow. “Korean: Pop, Originality, Power.” Harvardpolitics.Com, 8 Nov. 2020, harvardpolitics.com/korean-pop/.
“Why We Need to Talk about Asian Representation in Music Right Now | CBC Music.” CBCnews, CBC/Radio Canada, 12 Feb. 2021, www.cbc.ca/music/why-we-need-to-talk-about-asian-representation-in-music-right-now-1.5910102.
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