The 1960s pop culture was a decade of turbulence, protest, and disillusionment. It was also a time of great change in American society characterized by ethnic consciousness and civil rights, women rights and female liberalism, and anti-war demonstrations. These events affected people’s attitudes, music, fashion, and education and would pave the way for positive effects in decades to come. The hippie’s counterculture were a large part of the 60s and took on a significant role, bringing about many new reforms. A counterculture is the rejection of conventional social norms – in this case the norms of the 1950s (Bruce J. Schulman, 2001). The counterculture rejected middle class values, opposed racial segregation and initial widespread support …show more content…
In fact, it was referenced as one of the most productive, prolific and exciting decade in the history of the music (Tom Hawking, 2012). Music was how the hippies expressed themselves and shared their values with the rest of the world. Genres such as Folk and psychedelic were popular during the time. Folk music expressed their love of the earth and nature while psychedelic music was highly articulated as sexual and highly involved with drugs. The Psychedelic drug culture—and may, in some ways, be understood as a product of that subculture—it was still, like folk music, a genre of protest, but it was a specific form of the protest distinct from the lyrically domineering folk music. As Nicole Smith wrote, “The new psychedelic music registered a protest of form rather than substance. Psychedelic music was sexual, highly creative, nonconformist, and clearly in protest of white middle class America” Nicole Smith (2012) later emphasised. The lyric used in these styles of music’s indicated peace, freedom, social protest and civil right. The imitated the sound, style and beliefs of the previous decades and united people especially young people and the way they entertained themselves. The sound was heavily influenced by Eastern and Indian music. The music was driven by, among other factors, Vietnam War protest and the new drug and counterculture scene. This music was thus a response to dominant concerns of the day and also a reaction that would shape the way people thought and responded to their society. Many popular rock bands experimented with this genre, including The Beatles, The Doors, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Jefferson Airplane, Cream and Pink Floyd (The History People, 2004). Moreover fashion trends, several art movements and the incredible outpouring of musical talent in the 1960s were directly due to the impact of psychedelic