Nude & Rude. Models and Rituals of Transgression in Youth Music Cultures

Abstract

The essay explores the extent to which irregular behaviour and the transgression of social norms have been a dominant and structural element of rock music and related youth cultures from the 1950s to the present day, acting as a catalyst for existential and social energies. This strategic model has fuelled a constant opposition between old and new, adults and young people, conservation and rebellion. The explosion of rock 'n' roll with artists such as Elvis Presley immediately sparked "moral panic", triggering censorship and the labelling of musicians as "delinquents", a label that was later overturned and positively embraced as a distinctive aesthetic practice. The phenomenon was accentuated by the Rolling Stones who, unlike the "tamed" Beatles, emphasized their "bad boys" image, transforming rudeness into a fundamental ingredient of notoriety and transgression. From rock counterculture to punk and subsequent genres such as rap and trap, rule-breaking, obscenity, aggression and foul language remain essential and provocative elements that continue to generate scandalized reactions. The article concludes with a focus on the icon Iggy Pop, an artist who, despite spanning generations, has maintained a consistent identity by codifying his own "bad coolness". "Rudeness" in this context therefore appears to be an almost canonical trait, functional to success and artistic output.