Studio Soundtrack features five songs selected by a student at Waterloo Architecture. This week’s student would prefer to remain anonymous.
I WAS THERE. Three words that transform you from a mere spectator of musical history, into a part of musical history itself. As society progresses, so does music – and not just what we hear in our headphones, but music as an industry. People don’t buy albums anymore. They buy into a brand associated with ‘said’ album. For example, you’re not buying the new Drake album. You just like Drake’s brand. This is why now more than ever, artists cannot rely solely on releasing an album. They need to create an album world. As an artist, the only way the general public will want to spend money on you is if they are in turn benefited from your brand. Therefore the live show has never been more crucial to an artist’s success. It’s their chance to let their fans into this world that they have created. Kanye West has been doing this for years and it has played a very key role in why he is so influential as an artist. Kanye sells more than records – he sells experiences. Experiences you can post to Instagram and brag to your friends that you were there and they were not. So as the tides of the music industry turn, let’s take a look back at 5 live musical performances that left me speechless. 5 musical performances that left me wishing I could say,
“I WAS THERE”.
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1. LED ZEPPELIN – BABE I’M GONNA LEAVE YOU (LIVE DANMARKS RADIO 1969)
Led Zeppelin is considered by many as the best band in history. They had one thing that no amount of creative genius can make up for – chemistry. They were somehow always on the same page, knowing exactly how to react to each other. This led to many unforgettable live shows, each one different from the next.
2. J. COLE – BE FREE (LIVE ON LETTERMAN 2014)
J. Cole is a rapper from North Carolina and, along with others such as Kendrick Lamar & Joey Bada$$, is believed to become the new face of hip hop. He brings an extreme amount of emotion to his performances, blowing audiences away with his passion.
3. SIMON AND GARFUNKEL – THE SOUND OF SILENCE (LIVE IN CENTRAL PARK 1981)
Paul Simon’s lyrics and Art Garfunkel’s voice serve as an almost perfect combination. The harmony that exists between their two voices, complimented by the subtlety of Paul’s guitar provide for an almost haunting experience for the city of New York.
4. EMINEM AND ELTON JOHN – STAN (LIVE AT THE GRAMMYS 2006)
Eminem’s delivery is near perfect in this extremely dark rendition of his song Stan. Sir Elton John provides the instrumental and hook for this beautifully disturbing performance.
5. NEIL YOUNG – MY MY HEY HEY (OUT OF THE BLUE) (RUST NEVER SLEEPS 1978)
My favorite song from Young’s legendary Rust Never Sleeps tour, which was one of the first to attempt a more theatrical approach to performing live music. He paints a stunning portrait of how rock has changed over the years and how it’s better to quit while you’re ahead than fade slowly into obscurity.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QeH8s_RAuTI
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