Pop Conference 2024 is underway at USC, bringing to campus legendary funk musician George Clinton, celebrated musical duo Wendy and Lisa, documentary producer and author Dream Hampton and more for the three-day event.
This year’s edition, with the theme of “Legacy! Legacy! Music, Collections, and Archives,” is an homage to singer-songwriter and poet Jamila Woods’ 2019 studio album, ‘Legacy! Legacy!,” which highlighted artists of color from different disciplines and genres.
“It’s to understand American culture generally, and to understand how women and femme people, queer people have always been at the forefront in pop music,” Michelle Habell-Pallán, Program Chair for PopCon, said. “Really trying to understand pop music as a place where all these important questions around power and politics get played out in the realm of music.”
The event is curated by USC Thornton School of Music Dean Jason King in collaboration with USC Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism and will feature over 30 panelists including Grammy Award-winning musicians, award-winning journalists and renowned scholars.
“It’s an unparalleled opportunity to engage in sustained, thoughtful discussion on pop music over the course of a weekend,” King said in a press release announcing the event. “This year’s theme—all about music legacies, archives and collections—is a topical one, given that we’re living in a moment where we are witnessing polarizing cultural debates around the value of history, memory and the past.”
One panelist, Tamara Palmer, a DJ, writer, zine publisher and three-time PopCon presenter, spoke about her experiences at PopCon, and how special this year’s theme is in particular.
“I was really excited about this theme. It really fits into my work,” Palmer said. “I’ve been following it around the country. It’s consistently a wonderful experience.”
The Museum of Popular Culture, founded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, is a nonprofit museum that started public programs including its annual Pop Conference, which has been running since 2002 to provide “discussions and performances about popular music,” according to the event’s website. This is the first time the conference is being held at USC after being held at Tisch School of the Arts at New York University for the past three years.
“I think PopCon helps enrich that story of ‘why does the music matter,’ and that’s why it’s important,” Habell-Palláns said. “It’s about sharing resources for the greater good.”
Critical Minded, a “grantmaking and learning initiative that supports cultural critics of colors in the U.S.”, has sponsored the event in previous years.
“We believe cultural critics and cultural criticism plays a key role in our understanding of the world,” Critical Minded Executive Director rashid shabazz, who asks to be referred to in all lower case, said. “Making meaning not just of art, and culture, but also how our culture intervenes and speaks to larger issues, both social justice and otherwise.”
Ray Carroll, a USC alumnus, and MFA student at CalArts who attended Thursday’s events said he was excited for the opportunities provided by events like this.
“I’m definitely going to try to come back tomorrow and Saturday,” Carroll said.”I’m definitely hoping to make these sort of circuits a more regular part of my writing career.
“Tomorrow, I’m looking forward to seeing if I can meet more new people and make more connections,” he continued.
Thursday’s attendees heard from Clinton, famed “pioneer of funk” who is part of the music collective Parliament-Funkadelic (P-Funk). The group was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1997.
Grammy, Oscar and Emmy-winning musical duo Wendy & Lisa will headline Friday. They were part of legendary artist Prince’s band The Revolution before branching out and forming their own duo.