Music Is Life

Tag: reviews

  • Blues Journal

    Hello classmates, My name is Jean-Karlos

    One of my pressing issues I’m going through right now is being homesick, so the song titled ” Evil is going on” by howling wolf resonated with me. In the first verse he said that if you’re a long way from home and can’t sleep at night, something just ain’t right. I also have an aging mom so on a macro level I always feel like she would be much better if I was home because I know I’m her favorite. There is also a conversation that involves my home of the Virgin Islands being traded for Greenland. This is very frustrating because we are not property of Denmark or of the United States and the idea of trading us like we’re some damn baseball cards in 2025 is just a lot. A song comes to mind as I think about being free and I’ll share it with you all. 

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhKU-IWADo4

    The second issue Ive been dealing with lately is how self concious I have become. I can’t help but wonder what people think about me when I walk in a room filled with people that don’t share the same hue as me. So the song titled “Is It Because I’m Black” really resonated with me. I never used to care about what people might think of me but now I wish I had the superpower of reading peoples minds, even if it was just for one day. I’ve heard a sample of this song which made me appreciate it more. It’s from one of the best rap groups in the world and I’ll share it with you all. 

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

    Lastly I’ve been talking to friend of mine in Atlanta who has been on the verge of being homeless. He’s on probation for being caught with a little bit of herb in Mississippi which has made it very hard for him to get a job. Concerning this matter in the Shitstem we live in the song Titled “Talking Blues” came to mind because we find ourselves literally talking blues. One of the lyrics in this song speaks about cold ground being his bed and rock stone being his pillow. He also mentions being down so long that he seems to wear a permanent screw which is short for screw face. The thought of my friend having to live like that is stressful.  Let me know what you all think about these songs.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtK7XN8S8AE

  • Choose Your City/Soul Analysis:

    The city I chose is one of the best in the world. New York City is a vibrant multicultural city and it is also the birthplace of hip-hip. The rhythms in the songs I chose are filled with the heavy bass which is reminiscent of the hearts of all residents of the barrio’s who’ve been pushed out of their neighborhoods due to gentrification under the guise of redevelopment.  Families that are affected by political betrayal from their local representatives end up in a generational cycle deep despair and it gives birth to poets who publish their work through rap songs with funky beats. The lyrical content of the artist I chose to showcase are filled with conversations about integrity and respectability. When we consider Lauryn Hill’s song titled Doo Wop, she cautions young girls to watch out for men who only want to use them for instant gratification. She also implores black women to embrace their natural beauty rather than assimilating to the beauty standards of Europeans.  Her lyrics are heavy laden with themes of protest that stand up to social oppression against women. Queen Latifah song U.N.I.T.Y is an ode to black women to remain unified in demanding respect from a world that sees them as less than, her song is very empowering. Many clubs and block parties played a major catapulting these genres because they served as agents that provided a platform to showcase artists that weren’t usually invited to bigger clubs with established artist. The Apollo was one of those Talent shows that helped to propel many artist to  notoriety. 

    Connect Music To City History&Culture/Resistance, Empowerment&Social Change:

    The industrialization and racial inequality played a major part in the mood of the music that came out of New York City. Within the Ghettos and the Barrio’s displacement was rampant. Events like the Puerto Rican Day and the West Indian Day Parade were marketed to future investors so they could spend dollars to boost industries like tourism within the city. Neoliberalism manifested into urban renewal and the branding of ethnic neighborhoods like Spanish Harlem. The economic hardships that came from this sort of predatory behavior gave rise to artist like Gangstarr who often took pride in his lyrical swordplay in opposition to selling his soul for Mass Appeal which meant monetary gain. Overpolicing and systems of surveilence caused a lot of harm to communities like Queensbridge Projects where many Ghetto superstars like Nasir Jones, Mobb Deep and Ron Artest were born. Pete Rock and CL Smooth gave us a beautiful ode titled “They Reminisce Over You”. This song addresses single parenthood and the way in which family units mend brokenness. Pete Rock reminisces about his uncles who stepped up and filled the void of fatherlessness within the home as he celebrates his mother for having the strength and fortitude of a Queen. The group Digital Planets gave us the right dose of Funk, Jazz and Hip Hop blended into one and the song titled “Rebirth Of The Slick” is a testament of the fact that Jazz and Funk travel with us perpetually throughout the generations. The subjects within a lot of the songs that I chose are a raw commentary of urban struggle because they are reminiscent of old slavery systems like surveillance and economic hardship due to segregation caused by displacement. Many of the families that are affected by these issues are forced into the black market to make money due to economic shifts because the benefits that they should reap from their neighborhoods are often stolen when investors take over the neighborhood. After that point they are left powerless while the politicians that represent them sell them out for their own personal enrichment. Beautiful music is born from these types of social conditions and this is what makes New York City such unique place with many poets who spill their pain over beats of rhythm and blues and funk.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6QKqFPRZSA

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cM4kqL13jGM&list=RDEM-7dEKSqVvHeM9IhpCTdyfQ&index=8

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6mdRv0ZdR8&list=RDEM-7dEKSqVvHeM9IhpCTdyfQ&index=8

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3_dOWYHS7I

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9lNbNGbo24

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8cHxydDb7o

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0d2wH-7wyY&list=RDQ0d2wH-7wyY&start_radio=1