Revised genre research as my previous one had copywrite issues which I hopefully fixed here.

1. Genre Research
Singer-songwriter
Disclaimer: Most research found on wikipedia.org

2. Introduction
 Singer-songwriters are “musicians who write,
compose and sing their own musical material
including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to
contemporary popular music singers, the
term singer-songwriter describes a distinct
form of artistry, closely associated with the
folk-acoustic tradition.”
 Singer-songwriters frequently perform the full
song themselves, usually playing a guitar or a
piano, with the lyrics leaning towards
contemporary issues such as politics. They
are sometimes introspective, sensitive,
romantic, and confessional.

3. Origins
 “The concept of a singer-songwriter can be
traced to ancient bardic tradition, which has
existed in various forms throughout the world.
(Bardic Poetry refers to the writings of poets
trained in the Bardic Schools of Ireland and the
Gaelic parts of Scotland.)”
 These poems would commonly be executed as a
chant or song, sometimes with a harp or other
similar instruments. “After the invention of
printing, songs would be written and performed
by ballad sellers. Usually these would be
versions of existing tunes and lyrics, which were
constantly evolving. This developed into the
singer-songwriting traditions of folk culture.”

4. History: Folk and Blues
 The term "singer-songwriter" in North
America can be traced back to singers who
developed works in the blues and folk music
style.
 The custom of writing contemporary songs
(songs regarding specific issues of the day,
such as Lead Belly’s “Jim Crow Blues”) was
established by this group of musicians.
Singers would attend rallies for labour unions
and wrote many songs relating to the life of
working class people; as did other folksingers
whereas blues singers wrote songs about
their own experiences in life.

5. History: Folk and Blues
 “During the period from the 1940s
through the 1960s, sparked by the
American folk music revival, young
performers inspired by traditional folk
music and groups like the Almanac
Singers and The Weavers began
writing and performing their own
original material and creating their
own musical arrangements.”

6. History: Folk, Blues and
Country
 “The first popular recognition of the
singer-songwriter North America and
Great Britain occurred in the 1960s and
early 1970s when a series of blues, folk
and country-influenced musicians rose to
popularity.”
 Alternatively to this storytelling approach
of most country and folk music, these
artists usually wrote songs from a
personal point of view. “Confessional"
and "sensitive" were words frequently
used to illustrate this premature singer-
songwriter style.

7. History: Country
 “In the country music field, singer-
songwriters emerged from the 1940s
through the 1960s, often writing
compelling songs about love,
relationships and other subjects.”

8. History: Rock
 “Additionally in the 1930s through the
1950s several jazz and blues singer-
songwriters emerged as well as in the
rock n' roll genre from which emerged
influential singer-songwriters.”
 Rock band members of this era weren’t
typically seen as singer-songwriters on
their own, but many could be seen as
singer-songwriters who created music
with other singer-songwriters, forming a
band.

9. History: Pop and Rock
 “By the mid-1970s and early 1980s,
the original wave of singer-songwriters
had largely been absorbed into a more
general pop or soft rock format, but
some new artists in the singer-
songwriter tradition to emerge, and in
other cases rock and even punk rock
artists transitioned to careers as solo
singer-songwriters.”

10. Examples: Bob Dylan
 Bob Dylan is an American musician, singer-
songwriter, music producer, artist, and writer.
Active from 1961 – present. His most famous song
at this time, "Blowin' in the Wind", partially derived
its melody from the traditional slave song "No More
Auction Block", while its lyrics questioned the
social and political status quo.

11. Examples: Tracy Chapman
 Tracy Chapman is an American singer-songwriter.
Chapman is widely regarded as a politically and
socially active musician. During college, Chapman
began busking in Harvard Square and playing
guitar in various clubs and coffeehouses before
she got her first record deal in 1986.

12. Examples: Barbra Streisand
 Barbra Streisand is an American singer-
songwriter, author, actress, writer, film
producer, and director. As the 1970s
ended, Streisand was named the most
successful female singer in the U.S. - only
Elvis Presley and The Beatles had sold
more albums.

13. Examples: Sheryl Crow
 Sheryl Crow is an American musician, singer-
songwriter, record producer, actress and political
activist. Her music incorporates elements of rock,
folk, hip hop, country, and pop. Active from 1986.
 She has sold more than 17 million albums in the
US and over 50 million albums worldwide.

14. Independence
 Being able to create music and record it
on professional systems became
affordable for people in the late 1990s.
This formed opportunities for people to
independently record and sell their
music. These singer-songwriters are
generally known as "indies" because
they release their records on
independent, self-owned record labels,
or no label at all. Furthermore, recently
the internet has been shown to be a
resource for indies to get their music
heard by a wider audience.

15. Key Instruments: Acoustic
Guitar
 The acoustic guitar is widely used with
singer-songwriters as it gives a simple but
effective sound and allows the artist to
compose the whole song themselves.
Ed Sheeran Gabrielle Aplin

16. Key Instruments: Piano
 The piano is also used because of the
solo aspect of it and its compelling
sound.
Emeli Sande
Elton John

17. Technology: Loop pedal
 The loop pedal is a piece of equipment on
stage with the singer. It is used to record
live sounds and play them back on a loop
overlapping each other so there is no need
for a backing track. It is rarely used but is
most popular with artists of the singer-
songwriter genre.

18. Album Covers
The album covers
are usually very
simplistic, with not
much more than
the artist’s face.

19. Style
 Singer-songwriters usually wear
simple, casual clothes in music videos
and on stage as to not distract from
the brilliance of the song.
Ben Howard Jake Bugg