Contemporary and Popular Music

Contemporary and popular music is a discipline that takes seriously the music most people actually listen to: the popular song, the recorded track, the live performance in small venues and large arenas, and the digital streams and social platforms through which music now reaches its audience. It engages with the history, theory, and practice of popular musical forms, from jazz and blues through rock and soul to hip-hop, electronic music, and the increasingly hybrid genres of the present, while developing your skills as a performer, songwriter, producer, or industry professional. The discipline acknowledges that popular music is both an art form and a cultural industry, and that understanding it requires both musical knowledge and contextual analysis.

At Newcastle University, this three-year programme includes a sandwich year with work placement and a year abroad, giving you substantial professional experience in the music industry and the opportunity to study or work in a different musical culture. Newcastle's music scene and its connections to the broader UK music industry provide a rich environment for your development. You will develop your performance and production skills alongside historical and analytical understanding of popular music, and you will engage with the practical and commercial dimensions of the industry, from artist management and music publishing to live events and digital distribution.

Graduates move into a wide range of careers within and around the music industry. Performance, songwriting, and music production are natural directions for those who develop their creative practice to a professional level. Artist management, music publishing, record label roles, live events management, music journalism, and music education are further destinations that draw on different aspects of the degree.

The digital economy has created new roles in content creation, streaming platforms, and social media music marketing that suit graduates comfortable in both musical and digital environments. Further study in music, music technology, or music business is an option for those who wish to develop specialist expertise.