You Can’t Judge a Teen by Its (Album) Cover

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Music’s been blamed for all sorts of things, from infecting teens with devilish sexual urges to causing them to commit murder. Yet, rarely has anyone suggested that what a teen listens to is indicative of any deep-seated disorder–until now.

According to’ a recent study by the Australasian Psychiatry journal, a teen’s music tastes can be a useful diagnostic indicator for mental health and behavioral issues, from sexuality (pop) to violent tendencies (rap) and suicide & depression (heavy metal). Doctors are being urged to ask teens what their tastes are, to determine if they’re at risk. Read More →

Teens Presenting at Annual

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Two of my favorite presentations were given by teens while in Anaheim. Seth Cassel with Flamingnet Book Reviews presented as part of the YALSA Outreach to Young Adults with Special Needs panel presentation on Hyperlinks: Reaching Teens Outside the library as well as the YALSA Technology for Young Adults poster session. He is a true entrepreneur, appeared to enjoy presenting, and has such a fantastic product which started grassroots and has grown into such a rich community.’  Check out his article in YALS from last summer. Read More →

President’s Post

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Whew! What a busy, exciting, thoughtful, fun, educational conference! It definitely takes a few days to settle back into “real life” after a conference.’  My head is always spinning with new ideas, my mind is filled with thoughts of people I’ve met and conversations we’ve had, and my imagination has undoubtedly been captured by lots of new books. Read More →

Teen Music Media Interest Group @ ALA Annual

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Are you passionate about music? Or are you interested in sitting in on discussion from some of YALSA’s most music-focused librarians? Finally, are you going to ALA Annual? If so, YALSA’s Teen Music Media Interest Group has a few things planned for you.

First will be the YALSA Music Interest Group social event on Sunday, June 29 from 7-10pm at The Grove in Anaheim. Official “National Rock & Roll Library Tour” band The High Strung will be playing

The YALSA Music Interest Group’s official meeting will take place Monday the 30th from 4-5:30 PM. It is taking place in the Hyatt’s Imperial room and will consist of interest group business mixed with lively discussion about teens, music, and how they matter to your library.

~Joseph Wilk
Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh – Teen

Where Is Music Headed?

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The way music can be made or listened to’ may soon go through some radical changes.’  What might today’s teens have in store for their musical landscape?

South Korean engineers at the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) have developed a new audio format, MT9, in which listeners can exercise greater control over their music.’  Is the guitar too much?’  Turn it down.’  More drums?’  Turn it up.’  Want to’ mute the vocals and do it karaoke-style?’  Sure thing.’  That’s because, unlike MP3s, MT9 files are comprised of six audio tracks that can be mixed independently by the user.’  For teens who grew up in the age of mash-ups and Guitar Hero, this is a logical progression.’  It will be interesting to see how long it takes before this concept’ becomes more widespread in how music is distributed.
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Musicians Turn to Video Games… Teens Can, Too!

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A recent news article demonstrated how video games are fast becoming an international platform for musicians to showcase their work. If your library is using free software like Game Maker or the RPG Toolkit to develop games with teens, consider partnering them up with teen artists to develop the soundtrack.

Teens have access to a number of resources to help them understand where video game music comes from and what makes it successful. Read More →

The Hip-Hop Chronicle Enriches Teen Lives Through Reading & Hip Hop… For Free at Your Library!

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A recent press release clued me into the mission of the Hip Hop Chronicle, a newsletter designed to bring teens and literacy together through hip hop. Along with hip hop news, reviews, and some exclusive interviews, The Hip Hop Chronicle presents teens with intriguing information life, literature, and other important topics that will carry teens through to adulthood.

When I noticed that The Hip Hop Chronicle was available for free to partnering public schools, I called to ask if libraries also could tap into this new resource. In response, founder DeNea R. Conner developed a set of partnership guidelines by which you can make The Hip Hop Chronicle available at your library.

A sample issue is available at this link. If you like what you see, you can download the Hip Hop Chronicle Library Partnership Form and fax the completed form to DeNea Conner at 1-866-810-8524. The Hip Hop Chronicle is a quarterly publication, with the next issue coming out this month.

Dancin’ in the Stacks

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Remember Footloose? While getting recent news about high schools banning certain types of dancing at prom, I was reminded of Kevin Bacon’s struggle against the town’s ban on rock ‘n roll music and dancing. Banning dancing–or certain kinds of dancing–has long been a way to control “undesirable elements” within public space, long before Elvis Presley’s gyrating hips were censored for the good of teen girls all over America (not to discount teens of any other gender who might have found Elvis’s pelvis alluring). Read More →