Credibility is the believability of a statement, action, or source, and the ability of the observer to believe the above.

Common terms include cred, street cred, and indie credibility. The last of which is crucial for an independent band to be critically well received. For example, many critics, such as Stephen Thomas Erlewine in his lengthy review, decried Liz Phair's loss of credibility after the release of her eponymous album, featuring co-production and co-songwriting by teenpop producers The Matrix as well as indie-credible Pete Yorn and Michael Penn.

In music, credibility is an ideological concept and may involve notions of universality, complexity, and originality, and autonomy (Green, 1999). Also involved is authenticity. Financial and artistic autonomy is probably the most vital for indie credibility, the loss of which is called selling out.

In public speaking, Aristotle considered the credibility of the speaker, his character, to be one of the forms of proof. Contemporary social science research has generally found that their are three dimensions of credibility: competence, trustworthiness and dynamism (Berlo & Lemert, 1961).

Source

• Green, Lucy (1999) Ideology Key Terms in Popular Music and Culture. Malden, Massachusetts. ISBN 0631212639.

• David K. Berlo and James B. Lemert, "A Factor Analytic Study of the Dimensions of Source Credibility." Paper presented at the 1961 convention of the SAA, New York.

External links

• DailyCardinal.com: Want to be Indie Rock?: Follow These 3 Steps (http://www.dailycardinal.com/news/2003/09/03/Arts/Want-To.Be.Indie.Rock.Follow.These.3.Steps-456520.shtml) (requires free registration)
• DailyCardinal.com: Steve Albini Dissects His Music (http://www.dailycardinal.com/news/2003/04/03/Arts/Steve.Albini.Dissects.His.Music-408532.shtml)

• WebCredibility.org (http://www.webcredibility.org/)

• QuakerSocialAction.com: StreetCred (http://www.quakersocialaction.com/streetcred.html)