CEAS 285 – Pop Music Revolutionaries in Modern Japan

How do musicians, fans, industry stakeholders, and holders of political power use music to tell stories of everyday life? How does music become a means through which different visions for social, cultural, and political life are imagined and articulated, especially in moments of crisis and upheaval? This course introduces the work of influential musical figures in modern and contemporary Japan-from rock stars to folk singers, enka crooners to “idols”-and considers trends and topics in modern Japanese society through the lens of different forms of musical expression. By considering the work of these figures in their own historical contexts and in light of relevant scholarship, the course provides an opportunity to learn not only about songs and artists not often encountered outside of Japan, but also about the everyday historical, social, and political contexts within which they are embedded-and to which, often, they aim to speak back.