Aren’t we all just remixes?

Earlier this week, I was learning about the theory Kirby Ferguson created that was documented and explained in a three part series called “Everything is a Remix.” In the series, he outlines that he believes music, video, and text is all remixed from previous sources, and anyone that can create something truly original should be deemed a genius. In my thesis today, I will be focusing on the musical aspect of this theory and analyze the difference between remixing, copyrighting and ripoffs.

From a young age, I was always intrigued by genres of music and how different they can be, from rock to jazz and classical to EDM. Unfortunately, even the classic songs I grew up with were ripoffs! As a kid, I remember sitting in the backseat of my dad’s silver Grand Caravan rocking out to Led Zeppelin’s hit song “Stairway To Heaven” only to learn that the iconic rock song that paved a lifetime of appreciation for the genre was, in fact, a RIPOFF of the Spirit song “Taurus”, as you can see in this incredibly funny Stephen Colbert clip that analyzes the 2 songs side by side.

The chord progression at the start of the iconic song that made Led Zeppelin almost $500 million is identical to the one in “Taurus”! Although Led Zeppelin ever so slightly altered the speed at which it was played, it still uses the exact same chords in the exact same order at the start of the song. The unfortunate part about this story is that Led Zeppelin did this their entire career, ripping off numerous artist and never giving credit where it was due! For example, the opening and closing instrumental sections of “Bring it on Home” are lifted from an old Willie Dixon song of the same title. And it doesn’t end there. “The Lemon Song” lifts many lyrics from Howlin’ Wolf’s “Killing Floor”, “Black Mountain side” by Zeppelin lifts its entire melody from Bert Jansch’s “Blackwaterside”. The most notable accusation against Led Zeppelin is the 2010 court case where a song they covered by James Holmes titled “Dazed and confused” appeared on their album as an original of the same title. Confusing right? In the grand scheme of things, this really hurt Zeppelin’s image and could have been easily avoided if they

1) Gave credit to the original artists even if it was just for inspiration

2) Paid royalties to the artists they took from  ($$$)

3) Modified the original instrumental and lyrics enough that so it would be considered something new

In my personal opinion, I believe that Led Zeppelin constantly ripped off and stole from other artists all throughout their career and should be punished for it. People work extremely hard for the art they make and having a major band ripoff the little guy is not right just to make a quick buck.

One way to get around what happened to Led Zeppelin would be transforming and combining existing songs to create something new. In modern day music, this is a common occurrence in many songs. In Kanye West’s “Bound 2”, he remixes the Ponderosa Twins Plus One’s original song “Bound” with an underlying beat and vocals from other various artists to create the beat for his song. In his works, he credits the original artists.

Here is the original song “Bound”:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6mGHwHMB5s

And here is Kanye West’s song “Bound 2”, featuring guest appearances from Seth Rogen and James Franco:

https://vimeo.com/80308252

This is the perfect example of an artist copying, transforming and recombining a song to create something completely new.

Whenever an artist is tasked with creating something new and original, they should have to use the same system that is used to check essays and exams for plagiarism. Furthermore, when borrowing from another artist, whether it be the beat or the lyrics, you must include it in the footnotes of artists featured in the song!

Serial Addiction

I often refer to myself as the unofficial podcast king, seeing as I’ve listened to easily 2000 hours of podcasts in my life. After listening to Serial, I found myself itching to listen to more and see how the story progresses! I found the style of narration to be extremely captivating. I’ve never felt so involved in an audio podcast before. Throughout listening to the podcast, I kept thinking about the Syed’s and what they thought about the amount of attention they’ve got from the podcast. Are they happy their son’s case is getting so much public attention? What if they’re bombarded by hate mail from listeners who think their son is guilty? I personally believe that the family loves the fact that this case has become public once again after more than a decade, although Hae’s family is probably traumatized by the constant image of their deceased daughter resurfacing.

The one thing I like about the podcast is that it’s sensitive, and there are no cameras or pictures, which I’m sure Hae’s family is thankful for. Personally, I think this is the perfect medium for Adnan Syed’s story to be aptly told. A television show like “Jynx” would have been far too invasive for the families involved, and a book wouldn’t pertinently describe the testimonies of the people involved. I think one of the major appeals to the podcast format is that you can take them anywhere on your phone. They’re also 100% free, as opposed to a book, which you have to go to a store and spend money on.

At the start of a podcast, Koenig does a bit about the recollection of memories. This personally got me thinking about how well I could recall my own memories. I tried to remember what I did every Monday for the last month and it proved to be surprisingly easy. Here are my results:

Monday, October 3rd: I woke up at 7am, had a breakfast of scrambled eggs and toast, then drove to school. Once at school, I worked on lithography. I remember a girl named Sarah was absent, and also I whacked my knee on a press bed, and then I printed half of my linoleum. I had pizza for lunch, and I went home early for a doctor’s appointment. Later, I worked on my online English, I fell asleep on the couch and my mother yelled at me to go to bed. 

Monday, September 26th: I woke up at 7 am, had breakfast- a croissant and jam, then I took the city bus to school. I continued working on my linoleum, and I had fresh bread and butter for lunch. I stayed at school until 4:30 working on projects, then went to Bernie’s Bar and Grill to celebrate my best friend’s 20th birthday.

 

Monday September 19th: I woke up at 7am, had breakfast, and stayed at school until 4:30 working on projects.

Monday September 12th: All I know is I woke up at 7am.

It’s crazy to analyze your memories on a weekly basis. I cannot even begin to fathom how hard it would be for Adnan to recall the events of the day Hae was abducted! While working through all of this, I kept thinking of Jay’s testimony against Adnan and how meticulous the detailing of the whole day was. I started to wonder if perhaps he made parts of it up, or even fabricated the whole story to pin Adnan as the murderer, BUT WHY WOULD HE DO THAT?

Do we really NEED English?

I strongly believe that grade 12 university level English is an essential requirement for university programs. The English education system is critical because it teaches students the importance of thoroughly reading and analyzing texts, it provides students with the necessary skills to effectively communicate at a post-secondary level and introduces the techniques to properly communicate using academic language and writing skills.

The ability to thoroughly read and analyze text is essential because all classes require students to exercise these skills at the postsecondary level. For example, in many universities of the arts, colour theory classes require students to thoroughly read and research an essay that analyzes the Pantone Colours of the Year. After reading it the students are expected to construct a written response to the essay. Despite the fact that this is not an English based class. Without the skills acquired in university level grade 12 English, this mandatory assignment could prove to be more difficult than expected. Analyzing and interpreting academic text such as Hamlet and Macbeth in high school is what will pave your way to deconstructing harder literary pieces in the university classroom.

University level English provides students with the necessary skills to think creatively about varying topics while remaining open-minded to multiple interpretations. You are taught to approach topics from a variety of perspectives and use critical thinking to elaborate on texts. For example, in university gender studies classes you are required to look at behavioral studies and respond from a feminist criticism, moral criticism, Marxist criticism, etc. Viewing problems creatively from different perspectives will allow you to uncover deeper more insightful meaning in the works you will analyze.

Grade 12 English lays the foundation of knowledge that is used to effectively communicate at a university level. This includes learning to properly use academic language and writing skills used in both school and everyday life. When speaking with representatives in your field of study, it is crucial to articulate yourself professionally.

The academic language taught in grade 12 English will provide a great foundation for being able to communicate effectively in a university setting. English is essential to being well-versed in the university environment. It not only affects your writing and reading skills but also contributes to your way of thinking, analyzing and problem-solving. Overall, it is clear that having a good foundation for English education goes a long way in the university classroom and in life. Most importantly the skills that you learn from English are transferable into every class in university.