Music in Film and Television

by Daniel Jaramillo

Ever since MTV was brought to the masses music has been a visual medium as well as auditory. Movies have been made about great musicians and TV series have tried to re-create historic periods in music culture. Documentaries are also very useful in getting the real participants involved in discussing and arguing what happened historically and what it was like to be a participant. In 2016 music has been documented, gone to hollywood and arrived on HBO and Netflix.

Earlier this year the music documentary Soundbreaking was premiered on Channel 9 in Australia and on NBC in the U.S. Soundbreaking is an 8 part series that explores the art of popular music recordings. It starts by investigating the early records of the 60’s and 70 interviewing legendary producers such as George Martin (The Beatles’ Producer) and getting the opinions of music journalists and artists themselves. The series then proceeds to talk about the new innovative technologies used by musicians and music producers such as the synthesizer, the drum machine and what hybrids in music came as a result of these new technologies. There is also an entire episode on how sound and vision become one and finally it reveals how the digital age of downloading and streaming music overtook records, cassettes and CD’s. Soundbreaking is the first documentary to analyze popular music in a critical and historical way, which in my opinion no series has yet explored in so much detail. It also isn’t limited to one type of music genre as it brings the producers of Hip-Hop, Jazz, Funk, R’N’B, Rock, Pop and EDM to discuss and analyze the music that we all grew up on.

HBO is also responsible for premiering the series Vinyl, the first period drama about the music industry of New York in the year 1973. Martin Scorsese and Mick Jagger were the executive producers and with those two household names it was only natural that it was highly anticipated by many music fans. The series reveals just how corrupt the music industry was back in the 70’s but it also brings to light the birth of the punk movement in New York. The characters are full of flaws and that’s what makes them very real, from the head of American Century Records Richie Finestra to Kip Stevens the singer of the Nasty Bits (played by Mick Jaggers son, James Jagger) a punk band that has signed a deal with American Century. There are also cameo interpretations of rock stars of the time such as Robert Plant, Alice Cooper and David Bowie. After the series ended the critical reception was divided and HBO was originally planning to make a 2nd series but pulled the plug after some believed the series had not been a big enough success. Despite the negative reaction to Vinyl it still showed the willingness and desire to tell an audience about music culture from another period and showed that great bands live on after they are done.

When Hollywood tries to do biopics of legendary artists it usually is felt with disappointment in its portrayal and historical relevance yet some biopics have proven to gross very high such as last years box office hit Straight Outta Compton. However when you have a Hollywood actor who is willing to make a film about a musician he is a lifelong fan of and is willing to direct and fund the movie himself you know it is going to be authentic. Don Cheadle did just that with his portrayal of the late Miles Davis in the film Miles Ahead. The Davis’s family gave Cheadle the permission to make this film the way he envisioned it to be. It was not suppose to be a documentary about Miles Davis rather it was a fictional story with some real events in Davis’s professional and personal life. The movie has car chases, gun violence and drug-induced parties. Davis did indulge in cocaine in real life but the movie also shows us flashbacks of when miles was a young man with a suit and tie recording Kind of Blue. Miles Davis of the late 50’s and early 60’s is a very different musician to the mid 70’s and 80’s. By this later stage he had become a Jazz superstar and he was also experimenting with electric guitars and keyboards, being heavily influenced by Jimi Hendrix and James Brown. Another important character in the movie is a young music journalist by the name of Dave Braden played by Ewan McGregor who follows Davis around town and goes along to all his house parties providing he can lead Davis to where there is cocaine. Cheadle studied Davis very carefully and showed his temperament and character flaws but also his more vulnerable side and the love he had for his music. This film did get a worldwide release in movie theatres and film festivals and most critics including myself think it is one of Cheadle’s finest performances to date.

The last music show to come out this year is a brand new series that was premiered on Netflix called The Get Down. The series is all about Hip-Hop and Disco and takes place in 1977 in the Bronx - the birthplace of Hip-Hop. The main character is Ezekiel a young man who is an inspiring wordsmith and meets a young street man of the name Shaolin Fantastic who is an inspiring DJ; they both dream of starting their own hip-hop shows and crews. Ezekiel is also talented at school but is afraid to show off his talents in front of his classmates, it is his friends on the streets who introduce him to the underground parties where DJ’s such as Grandmaster Flash are scratching records and rocking crowds in abandoned buildings. The other main character is Mylene a young woman who has dreams of being the next Donna Summer but is not supported by her religious father who wants her to be a good Catholic girl and sing religious hymns. Mylene’s uncle Francisco ‘papa fuerte’ Cruz is a hustler and a political boss who has ties to New York’s big business firms and the owners of the major record labels. Francisco makes Mylenes dream come true by getting her Jackie Moreno (a big time disco producer) to record her in a professional studio and to help her get a hit record by his songwriting and signing her to a record label. Baz Luhrmann who is known for his musical films created the series spending over ten years developing the concept and executively producing The Get Down with the help of Nas who co-produced. The series also does a great job in showing us the Bronx in the late 70’s and how an entire youth culture was emerging in the cities corruption and crime. Will Smiths son Jaden Smith also makes an appearance as one of the graffiti artists and it is very apparent the series showcases the art of rhyming, scratching records, tagging on trains and tunnels and breakdancing crews. A second series is expected early next year and there is no reason why it won’t go ahead as this first 6 episodes series has been a success as a Netflix production.  

In conclusion the film and television industry has been trying to find new audiences to keep itself afloat. The success of long form television has made big time film directors like Martin Scorsese and Baz Luhrmann become interested in producing and creating television series. As with movies, actors are interested in playing real life characters that people know well and can relate to. Musicians are people that are fascinating for us because they inspire creativity and show us how to be individuals. Documentaries are also still great at educating us about any topical issue especially when it comes to historical events like the recording of a classic album or how artist’s ideas can change the world.