Popular Music History

About the Journal

News from the forthcoming Editors, Beate Peter and Patryk Galuszka

As we thank the outgoing editors-in-chief, Catherine Strong and Shane Homan for their six years of dedicated service, we would like to take this opportunity to outline our vision for the journal’s future. A change in editorship often brings a temptation to radically overhaul a journal’s direction. However, recognizing the journal's strong track record, we propose only minor, evolutionary changes.

Popular Music History has already distinguished itself by publishing articles from diverse regions, including Eastern Europe, Indonesia, and Portugal. We aim to continue this trend while upholding the high editorial standards set by our predecessors. We also acknowledge the significance of decolonization in popular music historiography and the importance of addressing representation in music history. To further enhance geographic diversity, we encourage submissions and special issue proposals from scholars in underrepresented regions.

In addition, we invite high-quality contributions exploring the history of technologies related to popular music production, distribution, and reception. Topics might include the role of digital media in shaping popular music narratives, innovative creative methods, and the impact of AI on songwriting practices. This focus could attract scholars from adjacent fields, such as the history of technology or economic history, broadening the journal’s interdisciplinary reach and enhancing its citation impact.

We remain open to new ideas, special issue proposals, and other innovative collaborations with the global community of popular music scholars. Any quality submission addressing the broadly defined history of popular music, irrespective of its geographic origin, will receive due consideration. To ensure a smooth transition, the four editors will collaboratively produce a special issue on the theme of popular music and violent conflict. Please refer to the attached Call for Papers for further details. Learn more about this journal.