Now listen to this. If you were to ask what someone's favorite music is, what would be the likely answer? It is impossible to say. The levels of variation within the music provide a huge range of options. We could like acapella, afro-jazz or even heavy death metal. Music has become the cornerstone of entertainment across the world due to all its variations. This allowed music to develop in many different aspects, leading to frequent discussions about the industry as a whole, particularly its relationship to society. An intriguing and bold opinion on music from an earlier era, around 400 BC, comes from the Chinese philosopher Mo Tzu. His writings highlight his belief that music should be completely abolished and that it serves no purpose to society. Mo Tzu's view that music is not beneficial to man can be used as a lens to view the music industry in today's society, which ultimately calls for to the need to remove music from the world. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essayA bright problem in the music industry is the decline in artist salaries in recent years. In Mo Tzu's play, "Against Music," he asserts, "they must impose heavy taxes on ordinary people before they can enjoy the sound of big bells, drums, zithers, and bagpipes" (Mo Tzu 237). He believes that men of higher power must raise money so that others can have music. Therefore, music should be eliminated because ordinary people must support music through taxes. Today's artists figuratively act like ordinary people of Tzu's time. They work hard for their music but see little or no reward. On the surface, falling artist salaries appear to be contributing to the permanent suppression of music, but the bigger picture shows otherwise. The industry is being placed in the hands of those with power, like labels and big corporations. This reflects Mo Tzu's era, where power was in the hands of the rich. Music definitely needs to be suppressed if it continues to divide our society into lower and upper classes through the hard work of musicians. They feed and line the pockets of record labels while receiving little or no benefit, as demonstrated in the words of Paul Weller, a prominent member of The Jam: "I can't think of any other job or art form where people don't get paid. for what they do” (Timburg 1). On the other hand, it can be argued that some gangs are making millions of dollars, which destroys the whole argument. It is true that some artists earn a lot of money, but only a tiny population does. According to Tunecore, “99.9% of all artists cannot make a living from their music” (Resnikoff 33). Therefore, less than a tenth of a percent of musicians make enough money to support themselves, so relatively no one makes a lot of money. This shows that there is barely a middle or upper class for musicians and that lower class musicians do most of the work but receive little or no reward. As recording revenues continue to decline and the music industry continues to move society further away from a democracy, it should be scrutinized and ultimatelyeradicated. Looking at music from Mo Tzu's perspective reveals serious moral issues in today's industry that are often overlooked. Mo Tzu's question, referring to music: "Does this do anything to save the world from chaos and put it back to order?" » reveals a big problem (Mo Tzu 238). Not only is music not doing anything to save the world, but today it is doing the opposite by pushing the world towards chaos. This combination has been particularly evident in the last two decades, where music has quickly turned towards extreme immorality and vulgarity. A recent song, titled "My Nigga", peaked at number nineteen on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, while simultaneously selling over a million copies to go platinum. Besides the title, the song contains many swear words that should not be repeated. This would not have been tolerated in the past and illustrates the music industry's moral push towards extinction. Another wild example of immorality occurred at the VMAs in 2013. Miley Cyrus displayed racy behavior in her performance so much so that it garnered national attention. Actions like these are prime examples of why music should be abolished, just as Mo Tzu warned. This essentially pushes our society towards blurred and difficult-to-resolve lines. Another moral problem posed by music is corruption. Many companies in the industry care more about their well-being than individuals and go to great lengths to ensure their own success. One example is Spotify, one of the fastest growing and biggest names in the music industry. There are numerous rumors and reports that Spotify is short-selling artists who release music on its platform in order to maximize the initial deal with Sony. Taylor Swift and Rihanna, two of the most popular musicians today, have both removed their music from Spotify, further reinforcing the idea that Spotify is corrupt. The calculations indicate that the suspicions are correct and that in the coming years the public will have a definitive answer as to whether or not Spotify has sold millions of dollars (Ulloa 8). Even if Spotify later proves innocent, there are still enough obvious problems to maintain the cloud of uncertainty engulfing the industry. Examples include piracy, intentional music leaks, inflation, chart manipulation, and more. Examining the question posed by Mo Tzu reveals that music in no way succeeds in getting the world out of disorder and only makes the problem worse. The music must be stopped before the world descends into disaster and increased corruption where morality no longer exists. Today's companies and services, like Spotify, are dramatically increasing the availability of music. Music is accessible everywhere, on almost any device, and all at an affordable price. One can buy CDs, music on iTunes, buy a streaming service or download illegally. The latter options are inexpensive and allow more people to listen to music at a higher frequency. This sounds like a unique opportunity, but it's a problem. Mo Tzu argues this question with a specific scenario: "Now, if those who occupy the position of rulers and ministers love music and spend their time listening to it, then they will not be able to exhaust the strength of their limbs" (Mo Tzu Tzu 239). He goes on to show all the other tasks that would be neglected because they love music. Thus, with the increase in opportunities to enjoy music in the world, there will be a neglect.