ABSTRACT
This chapter examines and re-evaluates a number of existing theories of music and identity in order to uncover the transformative processes at work in a particular realm of cultural activity. It looks at the significance of the structure of the national and international music industry, which uncovers the pragmatic and contextual processes at work within musical expressions of cultural and ethnic identity. The chapter examines and evaluates the impact of influences and interventions on popular music cultures in the UK during the post-war period and highlights the significance that associated stereotypes of Asian music and culture have had, and continue to have, on contemporary Asian bands. Music, as a mode of cultural expression, is one of the most important and immediate outlets of human social activity. In the context of the experiences of post-war black and Asian settlers in the UK the importance of music as a means of cultural expression and the assertion of ethnic identity became increasingly paramount.
