Journalism as we know it has transitioned into many different genres and eras over the last 100 years, shaping it into the impactful medium it is today. Early on journalism was for the elite, it was focused academic writing that was about news and politics, but that changed when European newspapers began to introduce critic writers to the public through the world of music. Journalists began to write pieces that included criticism and their own opinions on classical music composers and the opera. This established the foundation for professional
music criticism as early as the 1800s.
American journalists quickly picked up this type of writing throughout their newspapers and began to explore other types of music such as Jazz in the early 1900s, and eventually the era of Rock and Roll starting in the 1950s. Early Rock and Roll was often ignored or dismissed by mainstream press, but eventually the public could not ignore the impact of music as bands such as The Beatles and The Rolling Stones quickly caught the attention of the world with their unique sounds.
The Golden Age of music journalism began in the 1960s as it amplified voices and began to shape artists narratives, music culture and how fans consumed and interacted with music.
The first serious American rock magazine was founded in 1966,
Crawdaddy by Paul Williams at only the age of 17, and a year later the famous
Rolling Stone magazine was founded by Jann Wenner, the two magazines revolutionized the journalism industry. Writers weren't just writing album reviews; they were and still are today living the artists lives with them. Many writers often travel and go on tour with bands, do concert reviews, and personal profiles on artists giving fans an inside look into the Rock and Roll world. Through the 60s and the late 90s music magazines were being established across the world and were the
dominant medium for all things music, turning rock criticism into a literary art and serious profession.
Music criticism gained academic and social credibility during this era as it was a shift in cultural conversation, defined artists careers and
influenced fans and the music they consumed. Writers began to discover other genres of rock as well such as alternative, indie and even folk rock in which kept the public more intrigued as they were able to discover new music every day. Throughout the late 90s and through the 2000s came along a digital shift where writing about music went from print to media as the internet gave rise to blogs, short form content, and freelance writers in which lowered the barriers of publishing and brought more freedom to writers. Today, although still popular, music journalism has transcended into even more genres and had brought a new point of view to the music industry. Though it has gotten harder for writers to gain access to records, concerts and even artists themselves making music criticism a
difficult profession, yet even more impactful.
Rock journalism brought a
new perspective and bigger voices to topics beyond the music world that were still significant, such as cultural and social movement messages artists often put in their songs. It also became a launch pad for artists and their talent, giving the music industry even more credibility not only as a business but as an entertainment field. Music journalism called out to the younger generation and began to shift how journalists write and the lengths they would go to get a good story. The music industry is just one field that often tests writers' morals and beliefs as they often have to decide to publish the truth or just a puff piece as sometimes the artists don't want the honest story published.
Writing about music holds an artistic quality, critical vocabulary and a cultural commitment as journalists have to put their emotions they get from their experience with music into words for readers to admire. Writers began to reach a high level of creativity and freedom within their writing in which made music journalism reach a new number of readerships. It introduced the world of real music journalism and overall criticism and opinion writing, in which opened doors to other types of journalism such as entertainment, film, food and much more. Rock journalism created a world of authenticity, excitement and the crave for something life changing within writing.
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