Can popular music ever really be unplugged?

In the current twenty-first century popular music without technology appears impossible, with the constant use of amplifiers, microphones and even the musical equipment itself. Technology rules all contemporary music, Théberge suggests that technology is also an environment in which we experience and think about music; it is a set of practices in which we engage in making and listening to musical sounds. Through the history of technologies that are used in music making and distribution it was clear to see that the sole intentions weren't how it actually ended up. Théberge suggests that pop practices constantly redefine music technologies through unexpected or alternative uses. From microphones, instruments and amplifiers to recorders to C.D.'s and mp3, music wouldn't be able to reach the ears and hearts of the millions of fans without these, the only way for people to hear or create music would be acoustically in a bedroom or small area with a very small fan base.

What is popular music?

To understand what popular music is it's essential to know what popular means. A dictionary definition may include, well-liked, sought-after or even commercial which means goods, often refined, produced and distributed in large quantities for use by industry. This idea suggests that popular music is unrefined and created in large quantities, popular music is music that has a mass and wide appeal. Middleton observes that the question 'What is popular culture?' is 'so riddled with complexities'. If we concentrate on the commercial aspect of popular music this places a greater concentration on the charts, however this may eliminate certain genres of music that do not appear in the charts, but they may still be popular in certain subcultures. Shuker suggests all popular music consists of a hybrid of musical traditions, styles, and influences, and is also an economic product which is invested with ideological significance by many of its consumers.