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Raphael Navarro

Judith. R McCann

ENGL 1302 - 213

06 March 2023

Music In Adolescents

In this day and age, music is seen as a more significant part of our society. Everything

that is put in front of our eyes and ears has some form of music whether it be a jingle or a song

by a mainstream artist. With music being a part of our everyday lives, it is sure to make an

impact. People have very different views towards music and the influence that music has on our

younger generations. Some side with the idea that music is rotting our children’s brains while

others say that music allows our children to freely express themselves in ways that they find

entertaining. Most parents don't want their children listening to “gangster music” which includes

mature and adult topics like drugs, sex, crime, and guns. These parents tend to say that their

children will turn into “thugs” with this type of music. On the other hand, parents can view this

music in a lighter tone, if they teach their children better, then they will know that it is not smart

to do things in the song. With that being said, music can be seen as either a positive or negative.

Some research articles point out that music can be an influence that is as bad as drugs.

Music associated with violence, drugs and crime are said to be very dangerous. Kids whos brains

are still developing can start being influenced by these songs and can start following in their

steps and become bad people. Social media has become an integral part in the lives of young

people within the UK, and those that are involved or subscribe to street gangs are increasingly

using social media as a platform to communicate. An example is Reial Phillips from

Birmingham, who was sentenced to 27 years in prison for conspiracy to possess a firearm with
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intent to endanger life, possessing ammunition without a firearms certificate and further charges

of possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence (McCarthy, 2016). The second

example is Winston White, Akyrie Palmer and Mark Oduro who were sentenced to a total of 51

years for 2 counts of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life and three charges of

ammunition possession (Bullen, 2016). Crime and the expression of crime through means such

as social media is arguably utilized more frequently by new millenniums. (2017) argued that

criminology has leant far too heavily on media concepts that are binary in orientation and in the

main operate as independent variables, without acknowledging that crime has now firmly moved

into a digital, virtual and online mediated space. This paper explores gang research in relation to

the “mediatisation of crime” with specific reference to gangs and social media. Lilleker (2008)

further argued that mediatisation shapes and frames the processes of social, cultural and political

communication in the society in which that mediatised communication takes place. Mediatised

communication is clear, with the proliferation of online blogging, high-performance phone

cameras with easy access to digital platforms, and examples include the extensive blog written

by Norwegian mass murderer Anders Brevik and recent graphic depictions of beheadings.