Baila and calypso, music styles traditionally used as vehicles for social commentary, are changing in response to new recording and distribution capabilities in developing countries. Traditional lyrics, which typically conveyed a message about local issues, are being replaced by nonsense lyrics or more general content to satisfy a larger, more diverse audience. Lyrics also are losing significance as instrumentation grows more complex, in response to such influences from North America as jazz and soul. These changes suggest that traditional music styles may lose their concrete communicative properties as they are adapted to the recording industry.
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