R E F L E C T I V E E S S AY
Thoughtful music prevails in the post-truth era TEXT BY AKSEL HERMANSON
As the election was looming ahead just one week away, I was
listening to ”30 songs for 30 days”, a playlist consisting of 30 musicians bashing Donald Trump and his hateful ideology. It
made one ponder the significance of politically charged music, and its influence on society today.
Ever since the surging of pop-culture, music throughout
decades has reflected the times and provided criticism of societal problems. Whether it was the anti-war idealism of the 60´s, the punk and anarchy of the 70´s, or the fight against
racial- and sexual discrimination of today, music has always provided a voice for everyone from different walks of life and social status.
Music is an effective platform for expressing views and
feelings because melody has a special effect on the human
psyche. Unlike other forms of art, music can be easily acces-
sible and casually enjoyable. That is why it can reach such huge audiences. I greatly enjoy politically charged music. That doesn´t mean I have to relate to, or even agree with the
message. The importance of music is that it can make the listeners think and weigh in on the subject, whether they agree with it or not.
In 2016, societal views and ideology are still valued in mu-
sic as much as ever. Popular superstars such as Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar have recently made decade-defining musical
projects in Lemonade and To pimp a butterfly, both of which bear strong themes in racial inequalities and self-empower-
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ment. I for one was happy to see Bob Dylan, a legendary musician and an inspiring lyricist, receive the Nobel literature prize for his lifetime work.
Having said that, not every musical piece with a message is
good. The truth is far from it, as songs with pretentious or forced political messages make up for very cringe-worthy and corny music. The likes of Macklemore and Nickelback would be better off sticking with their pop-tunes instead of making
songs with generic meanings. As described above, there is a
fine line between a thought provoking social critique and just a plain cliché.
Record labels have the financial motive not to alienate
some listeners with polarizing topics. Because of this the mu-
sic that reaches the masses has traditionally been dumbed down not to offend anyone. That is why I´m glad to see the
rise of Indie artists in an era where anyone can share their thoughts on the internet. Accompanied by some fine tunes and rhythmic beats, of course.
The weekend following Trump´s election, millions of Ame-
ricans tuned in to Saturday Night Live, a traditional American
Sketch comedy show. The show which had previously used the 2016 election as a punching bag for countless jokes now
had Kate McKinnon, posing as Hillary Clinton, perform a rendition of Leonard Cohen´s Hallelujah. This beautiful perfor-
mance honored the late great musician while using humor to encourage unity and hope to a nation ever so divided. █