---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Audio virology is not a metaphor. It is…"
description: "\"Audio virology is not a metaphor. It is to be taken literally. It maps real processes of mutation, transmission, contagion and memory within music cult..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22c/kode9-34118_audio_audio-virology-is-not-a-metaphor-it-is-t_2951712.jpg"
---

#  Audio virology is not a metaphor. It is to be taken…

![“Audio virology is not a metaphor. It is to be taken literally. It maps real processes of mutation, transmission, contagion and memory within music culture.” quote by Kode9](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22c/kode9-34118_audio_audio-virology-is-not-a-metaphor-it-is-t_2951712.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22c/kode9-34118_audio_audio-virology-is-not-a-metaphor-it-is-t_2951712.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22c/kode9-34118_audio_audio-virology-is-not-a-metaphor-it-is-t_2951712.jpg)

> “Audio virology is not a metaphor. It is to be taken literally. It maps real processes of mutation, transmission, contagion and memory within music culture.”

[Kode9](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Audio virology literally maps mutation, transmission, contagion, and memory processes within music culture.

**In simple terms:** Music spreads like a virus, literally.

Key Takeaway

Study music’s spread as a biological model.

Themes

cultural transmission memetics musicology

Mood

analytical innovative

Type

academic creative

When to use this quote

- music education
- marketing strategies
- digital platform design

Key Concepts

viral theory cultural evolution

Questions to Reflect On

- What are the limits of biological analogies in art?
- How can this model improve music distribution?

A Different Perspective

Metaphorical language may be misinterpreted as literal.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Contagion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contagion/) [Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) [Memories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memories/) [Metaphor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/metaphor/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Music culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music-culture/) [Process](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/process/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/)

## Related quotes

> [Most music culture these days runs on systems and networks devised to deal with the aftermath of thermonuclear war. Music culture has a habit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/most-music-culture-these-days-runs-on-systems-and-networks-devised-to/)

[Kode9](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/)

> [But know this: as far as a music culture goes, EDM is the one who will accept the kids on the outliers, the ones…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaskade/but-know-this-as-far-as-a-music-culture-goes-edm-is-the-one-who-will/)

[Kaskade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaskade/)

> [I feel like flamenco is part of this Latin music culture. It's from Spain, but flamenco has always been connected to Latinoamerica.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosalia/i-feel-like-flamenco-is-part-of-this-latin-music-culture-it-s-from/)

[Rosalia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosalia/)

> [There should be change - the West should understand our music and culture, and vice versa. With such collaboration, artists can come closer to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nusrat-fateh-ali-khan/there-should-be-change-the-west-should-understand-our-music-and/)

[Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nusrat-fateh-ali-khan/)

> [No matter what culture you're from, everyone loves music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-joel/no-matter-what-culture-you-re-from-everyone-loves-music/)

[Billy Joel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-joel/)

> [When I was little, I was listening to the Beatles, Bob Marley, Janis Joplin, and stuff. I had a big soul music culture, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jain/when-i-was-little-i-was-listening-to-the-beatles-bob-marley-janis/)

[Jain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jain/)

> [I feel like Houston is one of the leading things in music culture. Everyone loves the Houston culture. It needs to have its own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/travis-scott/i-feel-like-houston-is-one-of-the-leading-things-in-music-culture/)

[Travis Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/travis-scott/)

> [Hip-hop is more than music, it's a culture. It's bigger than hit songs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelly/hip-hop-is-more-than-music-it-s-a-culture-it-s-bigger-than-hit-songs/)

[Nelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelly/)

> [I can't pretend that I don't subscribe to Internet music culture in that I discover new music and old music simultaneously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-palomo/i-can-t-pretend-that-i-don-t-subscribe-to-internet-music-culture-in/)

[Alan Palomo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-palomo/)

> [As a New Yorker you can't help but be proud of the fact that so much music and culture started here. Punk rock, jazz,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moby/as-a-new-yorker-you-can-t-help-but-be-proud-of-the-fact-that-so-much/)

[Moby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moby/)

> [People seem ready for a more in-depth idea of folk music, culture and history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhiannon-giddens/people-seem-ready-for-a-more-in-depth-idea-of-folk-music-culture-and/)

[Rhiannon Giddens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhiannon-giddens/)

> [I think music in itself is healing. It's an explosive expression of humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-joel/i-think-music-in-itself-is-healing-it-s-an-explosive-expression-of-2/)

[Billy Joel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-joel/)

> [Records were vitally important to the development of music and of all music cultures. With that being pushed by the wayside, I can't see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lydon/records-were-vitally-important-to-the-development-of-music-and-of-all/)

[John Lydon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lydon/)

> [In times of totalitarian or autocratic rule, music (indeed culture in general) is often the only avenue of independent thought. It is the only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-barenboim/in-times-of-totalitarian-or-autocratic-rule-music-indeed-culture-in/)

[Daniel Barenboim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-barenboim/)

> [You get below the Mason-Dixon line and you have some of the best music, culture, the two races, the literature, and it's so rich.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-duvall/you-get-below-the-mason-dixon-line-and-you-have-some-of-the-best/)

[Robert Duvall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-duvall/)

## More by Kode9

> [I wrote a short article called "Yardcore" for that issue, too, as an attempt to talk about the Jamaican influence on garage, grime and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/i-wrote-a-short-article-called-yardcore-for-that-issue-too-as-an/)

[Kode9](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/)

> [The sound needed a hub to grow, and that hub was Big Apple.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/the-sound-needed-a-hub-to-grow-and-that-hub-was-big-apple/)

[Kode9](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/)

> [Hyperdub started in 2001 as a web magazine, but we also did a few events in the early days before becoming a label.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/hyperdub-started-in-2001-as-a-web-magazine-but-we-also-did-a-few/)

[Kode9](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/)

> [There is an uninformed myth circulating just now that makes dubstep way too important in the musical universe - don't believe the hype.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/there-is-an-uninformed-myth-circulating-just-now-that-makes-dubstep/)

[Kode9](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/)

> [Technical devices or processes which receive intensified investment during cold or hot wars spread through societies contagiously once their monopoly by the state has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/technical-devices-or-processes-which-receive-intensified-investment/)

[Kode9](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/)

> [When a country is at war or in economic depression, underdevelopment or tightened security, it sets an affective tone or mood, which seeps through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/when-a-country-is-at-war-or-in-economic-depression-underdevelopment/)

[Kode9](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/)

> [Most music culture these days runs on systems and networks devised to deal with the aftermath of thermonuclear war. Music culture has a habit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/most-music-culture-these-days-runs-on-systems-and-networks-devised-to/)

[Kode9](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/)

> [Basically, there were three aspects of dub that influenced dubstep. The most important was playing the instrumental versions of vocal garage tracks, which was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/basically-there-were-three-aspects-of-dub-that-influenced-dubstep-the/)

[Kode9](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/)

> [Both analog and digital developments have intensified the viral nature of sonic culture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/both-analog-and-digital-developments-have-intensified-the-viral/)

[Kode9](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/)

> [A one-word book does appeal to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/a-one-word-book-does-appeal-to-me/)

[Kode9](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/)

> [Dubstep didn't invent bass, it just zoned in on it. Bass, to varying depths, is the foundation to most dance musics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/dubstep-didn-t-invent-bass-it-just-zoned-in-on-it-bass-to-varying/)

[Kode9](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/)

> [Because we live in a condition of ubiquitous music and media, and near infinite technological memory, it is much easier for local cultures to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/because-we-live-in-a-condition-of-ubiquitous-music-and-media-and-near/)

[Kode9](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/)

> [The acceleration and saturation leads to things becoming outmoded, or out of fashion before they've even happened. That's a pretty complicated situation. Hype becomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/the-acceleration-and-saturation-leads-to-things-becoming-outmoded-or/)

[Kode9](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/)

[Explore all 14 Kode9 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/)

## More Audio quotes

> [You must study their deliveries, their use of their bodies, their timing, and their use of audio and vocal effects.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklyn-ajaye/you-must-study-their-deliveries-their-use-of-their-bodies-their/)

[Franklyn Ajaye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklyn-ajaye/)

> [The Huffington Post Investigative Fund's goal is to produce a broad range of investigative journalism created by both staff reporters and freelance writers, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arianna-huffington/the-huffington-post-investigative-fund-s-goal-is-to-produce-a-broad/)

[Arianna Huffington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arianna-huffington/)

> [I'm kind of old-school and love nothing more than sitting, opening a book, and reading it. But I also love listening to audio books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/i-m-kind-of-old-school-and-love-nothing-more-than-sitting-opening-a/)

[Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/)

> [I created an online program that has audio lessons and PDF worksheets and two hours of video. So it's like a course you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-pais/i-created-an-online-program-that-has-audio-lessons-and-pdf-worksheets/)

[Josh Pais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-pais/)

> [I use a laptop more as a tool, as sort of the central artery. Everything goes through the digital audio card of my computer,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-fullerton-whitman/i-use-a-laptop-more-as-a-tool-as-sort-of-the-central-artery/)

[Keith Fullerton Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-fullerton-whitman/)

> [What is the ideal audio atmosphere for creativity and it turns out it is not complete silence, and it is not a very loud…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/what-is-the-ideal-audio-atmosphere-for-creativity-and-it-turns-out-it/)

[Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/)

> [When I'm in my car, I'm listening to books, audio books, always.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/when-i-m-in-my-car-i-m-listening-to-books-audio-books-always/)

[George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/)

> [I am a musician who stopped working with music. Now I work with visual music, or audio-visual music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-ralske/i-am-a-musician-who-stopped-working-with-music-now-i-work-with-visual/)

[Kurt Ralske](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-ralske/)

> [My books are offered through Podiobooks.com and the iTunes Music Store as free audio downloads. I don't sell them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-lowell/my-books-are-offered-through-podiobooks-com-and-the-itunes-music/)

[Nathan Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-lowell/)

> [For some years now, I've been doing a program called "Sinatra Sings Sinatra." It's been going on virtually since the end of '98. Nineteen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-sinatra-jr-2/for-some-years-now-i-ve-been-doing-a-program-called-sinatra-sings/)

[Frank Sinatra, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-sinatra-jr-2/)

> [The biggest surprise watching video on the tiny, 2.5-inch screen (320 by 240 pixels) is completely immersive. Three unexpected factors are at work. First,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-pogue/the-biggest-surprise-watching-video-on-the-tiny-2-5-inch-screen-320/)

[David Pogue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-pogue/)

> [I hate when there's a deleted scene on a DVD with no explanation, or you have to go out of your way to find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peyton-reed/i-hate-when-there-s-a-deleted-scene-on-a-dvd-with-no-explanation-or/)

[Peyton Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peyton-reed/)

> [I love Logic Audio and have been using it for years. All my track outputs used to come up on my old board in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-visconti/i-love-logic-audio-and-have-been-using-it-for-years-all-my-track/)

[Tony Visconti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-visconti/)

> [The Fugazi Live Series site, when we realized the Internet, the way it works - the speeds and its development - made it possible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mackaye/the-fugazi-live-series-site-when-we-realized-the-internet-the-way-it/)

[Ian MacKaye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mackaye/)

> [I think that audio and video over the internet in the sense of teleconferencing and telephone calls. Maybe we'll actually have picture phone through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-postel/i-think-that-audio-and-video-over-the-internet-in-the-sense-of/)

[Jon Postel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-postel/)

Browse all 154 Audio quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Audio virology is not a metaphor. It is to be taken literally. It maps real processes of mutation, transmission, contagion and memory within music culture.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Kode9"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/audio-virology-is-not-a-metaphor-it-is-to-be-taken-literally-it-maps/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Audio"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/audio-virology-is-not-a-metaphor-it-is-to-be-taken-literally-it-maps/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22c/kode9-34118_audio_audio-virology-is-not-a-metaphor-it-is-t_2951712.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22c/kode9-34118_audio_audio-virology-is-not-a-metaphor-it-is-t_2951712.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22c/kode9-34118_audio_audio-virology-is-not-a-metaphor-it-is-t_2951712.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Audio virology is not a metaphor. It is to be taken literally. It maps real processes of mutation…” — Kode9",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Kode9",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kode9/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Audio virology is not a metaphor....",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/audio-virology-is-not-a-metaphor-it-is-to-be-taken-literally-it-maps/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kode9/audio-virology-is-not-a-metaphor-it-is-to-be-taken-literally-it-maps/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
