Who Will We Hear it From?
Music has been utilized as a vessel for an artist’s thoughts and feelings since the dawn of time. It is both an expression of the world inside of the artist’s mind and a reflection of their external environment. This form of art is also a powerful tool for social and political change. Catchy rhythms and influential lyrics have been integral to countless political movements, as they captivate the general audience and draw them in to evaluate what the artist is trying to convey.
I recently watched the Netflix documentary, “What Happened, Miss Simone?”, and I was immediately reminded of the power that a musician holds when they have an audience, and that when an artist uses their platform to discuss serious topics, it is not always well-perceived. The documentary follows the life and career of Nina Simone, who rose to fame with her velvety baritone voice and masterful piano playing. Despite the heavily prejudiced climate of her time, she was able to achieve great success through the genre-bending of classical, jazz, and blues. She was a strong-willed, ambitious woman but her lofty goals coupled with the lack of compassion offered by her husband/manager left her severely overworked. Throughout her career, Nina became friends with black rights activists such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Stokely Carmichael. She had been exposed to racial injustice since she was a young girl, but these friendships opened her eyes to the depth and severity of it. Following the murders, attacks, and a bombing of a church in Alabama, Nina wrote the song Mississippi Goddam in protest. This was one of her first songs with heavy themes of upset with the social and political system. She became a voice for the black rights movement, and nearly every song she wrote and performed after this had similar themes.
Once the music that Nina released shifted to a political nature, her reputation and success began to dwindle. Boxes of her records would be sent back with all the records smashed, and venues did not want to have her perform unless she adhered to a list of songs, they chose for her.
This story of Nina’s career made me question the way that audiences respond to serious topics in mainstream media, particularly in music. Her political activism severely damaged her career because the general population did not want to hear what she had to say about the state of racism in America. In contrast, Childish Gambino’s song This Is America was the 4th most popular song on Spotify in 2018. Obviously there has been a great deal of change in people’s attitudes between 1964 and 2018, however music with political undertones still receives a great deal of backlash. The song This Is America is a heavy critique of the United States with respect to consumer culture, racism, and the corrupt justice system. That song and its music video were a topic of conversation for months after their release, as they were rich with metaphors and double meanings. Overall, Gambino’s song was highly rated.
Political themes in music can be welcome with open arms, especially with artists such as Kendrick Lamar. He has made a career for himself by exploring the experiences of racialized youth in America through albums that read like a story. With almost 38 million monthly Spotify listeners, it’s no secret that he reaches a large audience and is quite popular. The same cannot be said about a lot of female artists who critique the social or political state. An example of this is Florence + The Machine. Lead singer, Florence Welch has been open her left-leaning values, and support of the feminist movement through her music and interviews. She also articulates the ugliness of toxic masculinity and rape culture. While Florence + The Machine is quite popular, they have nowhere near the same amount of success as Kendrick Lamar or Childish Gambino.
This all goes to say that there is a gender bias in the sphere of political activism in music. It can be said that when a female artist’s work becomes more political in nature, they fail in the public’s eye, whereas when a male artist does the same, they are praised. Music can be a pure form of expression, and artists should not feel afraid to express their feelings on injustices that they face/observe. As listeners, we have the ability to promote artists and ideas. What we like, as media consumers, is directly tied to the success of the media. Gifted with the power of a listen, we should lend our ears to a greater variety of artists and seek to close the gap in who’s messages we allow to be heard.
Header by: Aglaia Joithe
