Bridging the Divide

Watch The Beatles arrive 1964 JFK:

While music seems like such a universally known and appreciated notion, something so simple such as distance can separate the distribution of music and artists. What does that mean? It means someone who is a household name in the UK has trouble selling a single record here in the States. This means that because of this musical “divide” which exists between nations, people all over the world do not have enough exposure to certain kinds of music, both mainstream and rare. For musicians, “going abroad” is one of the most common expressions yet one of the most difficult feats to accomplish. Take The Beatles. They never thought they’d make it in the United States, even after having so much success in Britain. When they did, it was the next level. For a musician, coming to the US and making it big has been the dream. For some, it remains a distance away while for others, they watch their dreams transform into reality before they can blink. But even forty years after The Beatles first landed in America, artists such as the Australian band Gotye and British teen popstars One Direction struggle to climb the US iTunes Top 100. When and if they do, the world goes wild. Fans, concerts, and ticket sales explode in a matter of seconds. Think about it, what would have happened to music if a band like The Beatles never came to America?