Is Rock And Roll Dead?

As of late I have heard a lot of talk about how rock and roll has died or is dying. So, is rock and roll dead? I don't believe that to be the case at all. If you look at all the bands that sell out large football stadiums bringing in 60,000-80,000 people it's bands like The Rolling Stones, U2, Dave Matthews Band, Bon Jovi and Bruce Springsteen. If rock and roll was dead would this be happening?

This is not a knock on today's music such as hip hop, country and pop music, who today hold the main stage. However, they still do not bring in the 65,000 fans into a stadium. The artists of today's mainstream music have made their niche in the industry, no doubt about it, and good for them. I'm sure they worked hard to get where they are at. But, if you go through the USA today, every major city has at least one classic rock station, some cities even have two.

Again, if rock and roll or classic rock were dead would this be happening? There must be a market for it. And furthermore if you go to these rock concerts you will see teenagers standing shoulder to shoulder with people in there 40s, 50s, and even their 60s so it's not like it is just old people going to see theses acts, it's younger people who love this music as well.

Why the music industry has tried to kill such a huge market is beyond me. Maybe it's time they take notice and listen to the listeners of music for a change. Maybe they've been in a cubical for too long and need to get out more often and see what common people really like, instead of trying to give us packaged pop music that only twelve year olds might enjoy. But that's okay with me. Rock and roll is a force to be reckoned with. It defies generations, actually, it brings generations together, unlike any other genre of music. Go to a rock concert and see the diversity of ages. To me it's an affirmation that rock and roll will never die!

Here's a few facts: In 2011, 3 of the top 5 grossing concert tours went to rock and rollers (U2, Bon Jovi and Roger Waters) for a combined gross of over $600 million! Add the other rockers to round out the top 25 of the year: The Eagles, Journey, Iron Maiden and Neil Diamond and rock and roll grossed close to $800 million in tours alone. That's far from dead if you ask me.

So, if you're thinking rock and roll is dead, just think about those numbers. Rock and roll may not be in the spotlight but it's influence will be felt for ever in the annals of music history. Believe it or not, you can't have Justin Bieber without Jimi Hendrix. Rock and roll paved the way for everything that came after. It forever changed the way we thought about music, politics, society and ourselves. That's why I started a classic rock blog, to keep the spirit of rock and roll alive and hopefully to turn on generations to come about the true meaning of rock and roll!

Article Source: http://www.streetarticles.com/music/is-rock-and-roll-dead