Tag: music

I was at an event some years ago where some of Nigeria’s rave-of-the-moment artistes performed. After one of the performances, the comedian, Tee A, cracked a joke, an ‘expensive’ one at that. He wondered if our artistes really sit down to write their songs. “This song that we just listened to, was it written? If it is, how will it look like on paper?” In the song, the artiste was just mumbling a few syllables until the music ended.

The message Tee A was trying to pass across – which wasn’t lost on me – was this: writing of songs is supposed to be a deep and reflective period where the artiste is expected to sit down and contemplate the message he is trying to pass across. It could be a love, an emotional, a life or even a socio-political message to correct societal ills. Perhaps some in the audience then might have termed him “old school” because the present generation is not concerned about the lyrics or message of a song but the beat that enables them to just dance away their challenges.

Being a chip off the old block, I am among those that take the messages in songs seriously. I am a music lover through and through and I love different genres across board. I do this because of my firm belief that the combination of the right lyrics, rhythm and instruments can build a group identity, stir strong emotions, engage audiences and amass people to take action. This, for example, makes music the perfect partner for social change. It is therefore not surprising that in Africa a variety of NGOs, bands and activists are trying to make a difference through music.

“Now, you see musicians singing about girls, money and fast cars. Not long ago Africa was full of music that made a statement – about government, corruption, things that matter. Our music talks about HIV, women’s rights, recovering from a disaster, xenophobia and much more. It’s not just great music, we’re saying something,” writes Daniel Walter, project leader of Sigauque project, a pan-African music journey on the Mozambique stage. Most of the Sigauque project songs were originally created as part of media for social change projects.

To this end, music remains an important part of popular culture, it entertains us, and so it is a great platform for discussions on social issues. Concerts are particularly effective because artistes have the opportunity to address large crowds. For social messages to take root, they must be accepted by large numbers of people, and individuals are more likely to accept these messages if their peers do. When music is played over the radio, people hear and sing along to the songs, repeating the messages so that they and others really hear them. This gives people an opportunity to understand what messages the music holds and then to speak about them.

Music is equally a means by which people can convey important messages and ideals to others in the hope that they will truly listen and, as a result, come together and bring about social, political and economic changes. When asked about the possible future uses of music, Daniel stressed further: “In many African countries today there exists democracy in name only, criticising the government can lead to a loss of opportunities. I see an important role for music in the coming years using a lot of popular messaging.”

I believe this sounds familiar if you are a close watcher of African affairs. Throughout African history, activism has made use of a wide array of campaign techniques in order to create intended change as well as to set leverage over existing competition. None however can deny the importance of art – music or jingles that is linked to the social, economic and political change.

A classic example here is the Ugandan singer, Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, popularly known by the stage name ‘Bobi Wine.’ This popular politician, businessman, entrepreneur, philanthropist, musician, and actor now serves as the member of parliament representing Kyaddondo East constituency in Wakiso District, in Uganda’s Central Region. Bobi Wine is treading in places other opposition leaders before him had not dared. He was able to achieve this because of the cult like following he amassed during his years as a popular artiste.

He began his music career in 1999. His first singles Akagoma, Funtula, and Sunda (featuring Ziggy D) brought Wine success in the East African music scene. His music connects reggae, dancehall, and afrobeat styles, often with a socially conscious message. He was the leader of the group ‘Fire Base Crew.’ When that group disbanded, he started a new group, ‘Ghetto Republic of Uganja.’ He has recorded more than 70 songs over 15 years. In 2016, his song “Kiwanican” was featured on the soundtrack for the Disney movie ‘Queen of Katwe.’

Bobi Wine is not your normal run-of-the mill musician; he has an agenda, a socio-political agenda. He attended Makerere University in Kampala, where he studied music, dance, and drama, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree. In February 2018, Bobi Wine enrolled for a course – “Leadership for the 21st Century” at Harvard Kennedy School of Government. You can see that this gentleman came fully prepared to effectively engage in what he believes in.

As a result he has been having running battles with the country’s authorities and with President Yoweri Museveni who has been president for over three decades now. It did not come to me as a surprise that long time Ugandan opposition leader Kizza Besigye, has teamed up with Bobi Wine to fight for human rights and social justice in Uganda. As a result, there has been a crackdown on their activities by the authorities.

As a communicator, I have observed that over the years, communication tactics are changing to an even more dynamic and interactive style. This shift has resulted in a move from exclusivity of communications as production and dissemination of information education and communication materials, such as traditional posters, t-shirts, brochures etc, to the use of social media and art – mostly music.

The target audience for this change is mostly our youths. It is these youths that have found solace in music. Notably, through the years music has been a major maker of African ethnicity and nationality and an indispensable component of ceremony and spiritualty. When children are born there is song and dance. Song and dance are an integral part of food planting and harvesting. In other words, ceremonies and events are incomplete without music! So nearly every form of African life is complimented by music.

Inevitably, this tradition has raised natural musicians in Africa – whether amateurs or experts. These musicians at the same time live in our times; our times that are characterised by political and economic challenges, chronic humanitarian needs, decreasing recognition and respect of human rights among other challenges. It is no surprise that music has become a tool, tactic and channel through which youths, most of the time unemployed, have found solace and an avenue to exhale from the life’s chocking challenges.

Walking on the streets you can’t fail to notice young people always having phones on their ears mostly listening to music. In short, music should serve as a veritable channel to “wake up” our “sleeping youths” since all efforts are arousing their socio-political consciousness appears to be failing, or has failed. This is in contrast with the developed western world where changing trends perhaps favour use of social media. This is not to mean that our population is new to using social media platforms. Certainly not, social media is viral but music is certainly its major content.

Philosophical questions, however, still surround the power of music. This includes the understanding of the source of the pleasure that music gives and understanding it’s expressive, dramatic and emotion power. What is clear though is the emotional power that music elicits, a music – addicted population, a big population – large enough to bring about social change should be desired. What is incontrovertible is the economic and social injustice which the youth is caught up in. Youth unemployment is way off the roof.

Can we find redemption and a rallying cause devoid of ethnic colouration in music? Can music come to our rescue?

I literally grew up ‘inside music.’ My late father was a strong music lover with thousands of vinyl records – both ‘small plate,’ LPs, cartridges, cassette and Compact Discs – to his enviable credit. I watched, lived and witnessed all the revolutions – technology and artistes – that have taken place in the music industry. From the gramophone technology through the radiogram, stereo, home theater down to the present mobile and digital download technology.

Beyond living and monitoring these trends and developments, music holds a special place in my life because it acts like a living history for me. I can listen to a song and relieve exactly what I was doing and how it impacted my life the period the music was released. In all these years, one fact has remained with me: music has enormous power – both emotionally and physically. Some music – like those of Fela Anikulapo Kuti, Bob Marley Isaac Hayes etc. – were composed and sang to awaken social consciousness of ‘sleeping’ societies.

Starting this week, I will begin a series on how music impacts social change in several age and dispensations, how these changes can be either positive or negative and how our Nigerian music industry are missing out in the intellectual and spiritual aspect of music acting as a social catalyst toward the development of Nigeria. We shall come to this crucial aspect as the series progresses.

But suffice to say that for every major social movement, social change and social upheaval throughout history, music has been present; sometimes driving change, other times resisting change; other times documenting and commenting on that change. Music has played a key role in bringing about global awareness of major social and political causes or health crises around the world. Mass events such as Live Aid, Human Rights Now, and social media campaigns such as the recent Africa Stop Ebola which involved the recording of song in several languages with highly influential African artists, provide a very effective medium in communicating to young people on what they need to know about health services.

So, how do large groups of people transform their values and adopt new patterns of behaviour, or to put it in different terms, through what forms of social movement do cultures rearrange their traditions and resources? To what extent does music lead large groups of people to transform their values and adopt new patterns of behaviour, and why does music seem to effect this change? Music seems to have more influence over large groups of people than nearly any other cultural product.

The 1960s was arguably one of the United States’ greatest eras of political and cultural upheaval. Protest movements such as the Civil Rights Movement, the Free Speech Movement, the New Left, the Anti-war Movement, the Anti-nuclear Movement, Feminism, Environmentalism, and the Gay Liberation Movement emerged in full-force during the decade to cry out against the war in Vietnam, environmental degradation, homophobic violence, sexist oppression, institutionalised racism, and traditional modes of authority.

The rapidity at which these movements incurred change was unprecedented and fueled in large part by music. The emergence of radio, recorded music, and the mixture of acoustic folk, electric rock music, blues, gospel, jazz, and classical music that led to popular music innovation in the 1960s played a huge role in the collective will transformation of this new generation. The politically charged music of the 1960s helped create a new vision for American society that can still be felt in American consciousness today.

Currents of dissent were prevalent in all forms of art and expression throughout the 1960s, but music was at the forefront of protest and change. Songs like “Woodstock” by Joni Mitchell, “The Times They Are a-Changin’” by Bob Dylan, “What’s Going On” by Marvin Gaye (though recorded in 1971, the song reflects the times and sentiments of the 1960s), reflected the general unrest of the era and became anthems of social upheaval. Thus, there is a strong connection between music, history, and social change. Music has long been used by movements seeking social change. This was particularly true, as successful black and white musicians openly addressed the issues of the day.

It was therefore not surprising that popular white singers such as Bob Dylan and Joan Baez lent both their names and their musical talents to the American Civil Rights Movement. In fact, music long assisted those working to win civil rights for African Americans. Freedom songs, often adapted from the music of the black church, played an essential role bolstering courage, inspiring participation, and fostering a sense of community.

Andrew Young, former US Ambassador to the UN and former executive director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, remembered how music helped build bridges between civil rights workers and members of the communities they hoped to organise: “They often brought in singing groups to movement friendly churches as a first step in their efforts …They knew how little chance they stood of gaining people’s trust if they presented themselves as straight out organisers: people were too afraid to respond to that approach. So they organised gospel groups and hit the road.”

Though not writing about music, the words of late Emeritus professor of history, JF Ade Ajayi is apt. In his paper ‘Towards a more enduring sense of history’ he wrote: “Perhaps one reason why there is so much violence, aggression and instability in our day to day life is that we have so little consciousness of a time perspective. We act and react as if there is only today, no yesterday, no tomorrow. We seem to care so little about the past; we have no enduring heroes and we respect no precedents. Not surprisingly, we hardly ever consider what kind of future we are building for our children and our children’s children.”

Words on marble regarding our country you will agree. Not done, he continues: “We lack statesmen with any sense of history. Politics of the moment dominates our life, leaving no room for evaluating achievement and appreciating merit. We, therefore, recognize no permanent values or yardstick of achievement to hold up as a model for our youths. The corruption in our society goes beyond those who steal public funds and pervert justice; it includes those who forget, as we say, ‘the horsemen of yesteryears,’ the individuals and values that sustained us in the past, and applaud only those who for the moment and by whatever dubious means have access to power or money to buy attention.”

He added that the nation suffers which has no sense of history because “its values remain superficial and ephemeral unless imbued with a deep sense of continuity and a perception of success that transcends acquisition of temporary power or transient wealth…”

This, in summary, encapsulates what we are passing through as a country. The morass, like a fast spreading cancer, has eaten deep into our society and consciousness. So it is not surprising that some of our musicians see nothing wrong in perpetually singing about the wrong ways of seeing women, acquisition of wealth without work and even acquiring ‘blood money!’ They are simply mirroring our society and exploiting the depth we have sank. Creativity has gone with the wind and anyone can come and sing whatever he wants and get away with it because there is a ‘ready market’ for all manner of junk in Nigeria.

As we continue next week, I’ll like to give readers a simply assignment. Kindly listen again to “War” by the late reggae legend Bob Marley and “Authority Stealing” by the late Afrobeat maestro Fela Anikulapo Kuti. For the benefit of those who may not know, the lyrics for “war” sang by Marley were actually a speech delivered to the UN by the late Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia. By a dint of creativity, Marley turned a mere speech into an award winning song.

Equally too, when you listen to “authority stealing” by Fela you will know that Nigeria has worn corruption like a garment for a long time. This bogey called corruption has continued to dominate our discourse relegating everything else to the background. Fela did everything within his powers to awaken the consciousness of Nigerians. But unfortunately, majority only danced to the rhythm thereby missing what has now become a prophetic message.

This is wishing you all a happy and prosperous 2019.