Malcolm McLaren

Keynotes by Malcolm McLaren are full of insight and illuminating reflections. Though he died at the relatively young age of 64, McLaren accomplished much in his life. He managed acts such as the Sex Pistols and the New York Dolls, and as a solo artist, helped to introduce hip hop into the United Kingdom.

As a youth McLaren was intrigued by the Situationist movement, an artistic movement rooted in Marxism and early 20th avant-garde fields like Dada. This movement came to its anti-authoritarian head during the 1968 general strike in France. It is no wonder, then, that McLaren grew up to manage bands like the Sex Pistols and experiment with genres like Hip Hop and New Wave.

Though many may look at popular culture as less than serious, Mclaren emphatically disagrees with that view. This is apparent in keynotes by Malcom Mclaren, during which he would often point out that popular culture provides a context in which to learn as well as informs and signals the values of a society.