A Historical OverView of Philanthropy
In Rock from the 1950s to the 2000s
Introduction
Sometimes, the social and political involvement of rock musicians goes
beyond simple songwriting or protest and instead takes the form of concerts, songs
or televised events, for the purpose of fundraising and raising public awareness in
social and global issues. Somewhat lost in these charity performances was the sense
of rebellion, Opposition, violence, or radical politics that have been associated with
rock music by the public.
Even though rock music inherited the folk tradition of protest songs by
making political commentary on topics such as war, poverty, religion, justice, civil
rights, and the environment (Scheurer 170), the social activism in rock music might
have reached a mainstream peak with the “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” single by
Band Aid in 1984 and “We Are the World” by USA for Africa in 1985, but with a
different sense than in the past. Though the two singles were not the first of their
kind, they signaled the arrival of the Philanthropie movement in rock music in a
completely new way, showing that Contemporary music can still carry
compassionate and challenging ideals on a much higher level than anyone could
have ever imagined.
While philanthropy from one field can have an impact on the other fields,
the endeavors in rock music to help the welfare of others have often been overlooked
in the field of academia. Rock music has historically played an important part in
shaping the social, cultural, and political history of the second half of the last
Century, and it has constantly reminded us that it can