Blogger #5

Part I:
Title of the song: Pa'l Norte
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBYO1ZfxxSM
Musician: Calle 13
Genre: Reggaeton

Summary: The song is talking about the emotions and the process of crossing into another country and their struggling process. He is talking about how he is being talked by other people trying to find out how and why is he trying to cross the border to the north. He also mentions how he wants his grandmother to know about how he wears the cross around his neck.

The lyrics are saying how difficult and challenging it is trying to cross to the north.

Part II:
- They're speaking about the social issue because they are always going to be middle class people  or minorities working the hardest and having to deal with issues most upper class people wouldn't, They have a few songs talking about politics and how the government is unfair to minorities
- Calle 13 is a band of brothers from Cuba. So they're brothers lived through similar events in their life with being immigrants and such. The music video really speaks to you because it shows footage of immigrants going to the north and the challenges they face. I feel like the music video and the lyrics are what really bring out the meaning of the song because its very touching and it does get personal to whoever has gone through the expierence.

Blogger #5 Activism in Art & Music

Friday, October 30, 2015

Part 1:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNEyiuUsgjk

Crooked Officer by The Geto Boys/Hip Hop Music

In this song, The Geto Boys are rapping about being fed up with the constant mistreatment of black people. They are tired of crooked police officers beating up black people and then celebrating with high five hand gestures. They are also tired of being falsely accused of crimes they did not commit. Crooked police officers have forced them to dislike all police officers. They plan to take matters into their own hands, especially since justice is blind.  They will shoot to kill any police officer that attempts to mistreat them, even if the crooked police officer is black.

The lyrics are saying that police brutality is an issue in the black community.  Black men are tired of being beat, the way Rodney King was beat by police officers. Black men are tired of being falsely accused and imprisoned for a crimes they did not commit. The Geto Boys plan to retaliate against police with gun violence. It’s time for crooked police officers to choose their coffin because The Geto Boys plan to shoot and kill any officer who tries to mistreat them.  

http://www.activistpost.com/2014/08/police-brutality-continues-unchecked.html

The title of my art piece is Good Cop/Bad Cop by Anthony Freda. The genre is activism. The art piece I chose represents a good cop/bad cop. The police officer in this art piece looks normal on the outside but underneath he has hatred towards people. The skull represents evil and death which is hidden within.

I chose this art piece because it is a good representation of my social issue. I do believe that there are good police officers and there are also crooked police officers.

Part 2:

The Geto Boys are discussing my social issue because they are people of color and they are very aware of police brutality because of the neighborhoods they lived.  The Geto Boys are speaking about police brutality because they have witnessed people of color being brutalized by the police.  They are also speaking about police brutality because they have come in contact with the police and crooked police officers.

The group’s connection to the social issue is the fact that they are people of color and they more than likely know someone who has been a victim of police brutality. I believe the musicians are a credible source to discuss the issue of police brutality because of their current and past interaction with the police.

I don’t believe we should listen to this song or take what they are expressing seriously.  They are expressing their hatred for the police and also expressing how they would like to kill the police. I don’t believe retaliation is the solution to the issue of police brutality. I’m not a fan of rap music and I don’t care to listen to people rapping about murdering a human being. I believe male victims of police brutality would listen to this music because they would be able to relate to the way the artists are expressing themselves.

A total of three people were involved in making the song. Two of the three people are group members. The music video that goes with the song displays real video footage of police brutalizing people of color, which does add meaning to the song. The song was a well known song when it was first released in 1993. The song could have been effective if the lyrics were not so offensive.  The song spotlights a national issue, but at the same time, promotes violence.

Blogger 5

The song whole damn year, hip hop song by Mary J Blige, the song is all about her experience with domestics’ violence. She also describe how many women are being abuse every day, she used three different women as an illustration in her song, and also with her mother’s experience while growing as a child. Mary J Blige putting a spotlight on domestic abuse how it takes whole damn year to repair the body. She is a huge support in raising demotic violence awareness by opening a center for battered women in New York in 2013. Mary J Blige has multi Grammy award as a winning artist. According to her she learn to love and accept herself despite a trouble she has being through.  The lyric Tryna find a way to explain this Why you can't touch me tonight. I can feel you're getting impatient, but really can't let you inside Bad, how deep the pain is, or you just couldn't believe And yes I'm good on the surface, I’m a mess underneath, see winter took most of my heart, and Spring punched right in the stomach, summer came looking for blood, and by autumn, I was left with nothing. She is speak mostly on the gravity of domestics abuse and how it take long time for the victim to get over it. It's been about five years

 Part 2

 The reason why she is discussing  this social issue, because of her mother’s experience on  abuse from her  father, after beating the mother, he left  them when she was 4 years old, but he ‘did  come back from time to time and abuse her the more. There is a saying that experience is the best teacher. She is creating awareness how women suffer in the hand of their male counterpart all in the name of love and marriage and how the healing process take much years.

The song was written by Sande Emeli/Mary J Blige/ Brown Knox, the meaning is the information is passing across and the song is well know because of the artist involve and is was a collective effort.

http:// YouTube/smarturl.it/thelondonsessions

Blogger5

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYa1eI1hpDE

In the song Country-esque Pop song, "Mean", by Taylor Swift, it begins by describing the way the words are like "Swords, knives and weapons that are used against me" used to make someone "feel like they are nothing. The song continues to describe the way that bully's affect a person by effecting their self-esteem or confidence. It brings up a positive note that the the victim of the bully will "Be big enough not to hit me" or "Live in a big city, while all you are going to be is mean.". Taylor talks about trying to block the bully's out and trying to ignore them but also trying to be proud of herself. The lyrics speak volumes to what a bullying victim may hope for after they escape the torment of their bully. Also, the lyrics speak about the bullying issue in a way that alludes to Taylor Swift also being bullied, possibly leading to why she created the song. Finally the song speaks about the way you can beat bullying by aspiring to do big things and eventually accomplishing those goals.

Part II.

Taylor Swift does have a relationship with the problem because she herself used to be bullied. She speaks about it because she wants to show if you aspire enough you can eventually make your dreams come true much like she did. Finally her connection to the social issue is that she was bullied while she was in junior high. (Source: http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/entertainment/2014/09/read-taylor-swifts-message-to-fan-being-bullied/)

We should listen to Taylor Swift because she has gone through the same thing that other bullying victims have gone through. Taylor is someone we would listen to because not only is she a popular pop-artist but also she is an activist in anti-bullying.

The song was written by Taylor Swift herself and there is a music video that enhances the meaning of the video showing some people being bullied but eventually making it out of that situation to do big things much like the song says they would. The song is very well-known as it was on the top 100-billboard for some time. The song is effective because it is catchy but also very deep in the meaning.

Blogger #5 Song and Art

This beautiful song is called I Ain't Goin' Down by Shania Twain, has a lot of thoughts and feeling involved. A young mother pregnant she’s all alone people tell her to give away the baby but deep inside her knows is not right. She decides to keep the baby but her family is disappointed, the father is nowhere to be found and she knows her life is going to change. However, she wants to keep this baby and give her as much as she can it doesn’t matter the sacrifice and hard work the stuff she would have to give up as long as she’s with her daughter and see her grow and know in her heart she did the right thing.

The song is interconnected to my social issue of teen pregnancy. A young teenager who gets pregnant at a young age She does not know what to do, because her parents do not support her, the baby father has disappear and she feels very alone just like the millions of teenagers that don't have the support. With this organization we can provide for them with our professional facilities across the United States. These teenagers can feel safe and secure at all times.

http://www.metrolyrics.com/i-aint-goin-down-lyrics-shania-twain.html

The art picture i'll be using for this project is of a young teen pregnant mother that looks in her last term of pregnancy. the young girl  is sitting down with her legs wide open her full belly is exposed her private parts are being covered with a giant world globe that i believe signifies her new world as a mother and the changes and sacrifices  that baby will bring to her. This art work is unique and very powerful it has a lot of thought to it. the pictures has two different colors black and white which i think means the good and the bad. The Black means bad and the white means good.

Blogger #1

Homeless in California

 The example of the vet who lives in the streets of a LA he served in the Vietnam War after losing his family in the tragic death. U.S. veteran living in the streets has the headlines of the past couple years. It seems that we have been ignoring our fighting warriors to find a decent fight. I have seen veterans living in the streets of LA asking for money. Wondering how they will get their next meal of the day. These brave veterans have been ignored when it comes to getting a job. They get past or ignored when it comes to their job application. They are not good enough for jobs to get hired and make a living on their own. Many vets of today live in the streets like this guy in the wheel chair asking, begging for change. We as Americans haven’t done anything haven’t said anything haven’t they done enough for us. They have put their live at risk for us. So we can live in a better country.

Blogger Entry #5: Activism in Art & Music

Due: Friday, Oct. 30th 

Part One: Looking at the Product

Find a song and piece of art related to your issue.  Include the links to these songs and art pieces in your entry.  For your song and piece of art, write a response paragraph that includes the following:


Response Requirements

• title of song/art piece, musician/artist, genre of music/art 
• summary of song/art piece *what is it about based- do not include your opinion (3-7 sentences)
• what are the lyrics or instrumentals saying about the social issue? (3-7 sentences) 

Part 2: Looking at the Composer 

Look into the musician of your song and the artist of your piece.  You are going to do some research to find out two things  1) their credibility-  ETHOS and 2) their PROCESS.

Response Requirements (2)

3-5 sentences per question:

• Why is this person discussing your social issue?  
• Consider: the musician/artist background to see if they have some type of personal relationship to the issue. Why are they speaking about it? What is there connection to the social issue?
• Is the musician/artist a credible source to discuss the topic and make comments about it?
• Consider: why should we listen to this person or take what they are expressing seriously?  what makes that person someone you or others would listen to? 
•  How was the song/art piece was made? 
• For the song consider: did the musician write the song? are there other people who are involved in making a song? is there a music video that goes with the song and does that add to the meaning? is the song well known? what does it take to make that song EFFECTIVE?
• For the art piece:  what types of materials were used? how long did it take? is the piece well known? what does it take to make this piece EFFECTIVE?