Behind the Music

Episode Synopsis

It was the year music fans changed the course of the industry. In Seattle, flannel replaced spandex and Nirvana's Kurt Cobain was crowned the king of a sound called "grunge." Nirvana and other rockers like Pearl Jam gave validity to the alienation of middle America and "Generation X" through raging guitars, angst-ridden lyrics and their political stances. In South Central Los Angeles hip-hop artists like Ice Cube, Dr. Dre and Ice-T told of the guns and drugs that were a part of their daily life, creating a hard-hitting genre called gangsta rap. Their music would soon prove prophetic, when the Rodney King verdict set off several days of rioting and violence. Ice-T and Time Warner would soon be taken to task by Vice President Dan Quayle for the song "Cop Killer." Already disconnected from a political system which said they didn't count, the youth and MTV's Rock The Vote helped elect a president - Bill Clinton -- who at least grew up in the rock 'n' roll generation, even if he never "inhaled."