2020 has been a wild year so far. Unless you have been living under a rock, you might feel like the world is on the brink of well and truly falling apart. The music industry is crippling alike most industries. What happens next?
Songwriters, it’s time to put your skills to good use; society is looking for a narrator in this story. Who do we turn to for inspiration? What is the soundtrack to societal structures collapsing before our very eyes? Will the music industry change for the better as we start to shout about what matters to us most?
The Marriage of Music and Politics Throughout Time
I’ve always been a fan of artists who are explicit about the beliefs they hold in their music. It takes some digging around to find the real origins of what we now call ‘protest music’; some being written as far back as the American Revolutionary War in the 18th Century, and also throughout the 19th Century, with powerful African American protest songs soundtracking the movement for the abolition of slavery.
Like most people, I was brought up on a lot of pop and rock music from the 20th Century. My Dad is an avid Beatles fan, which opened me up to so many bands and singers from the ’60s, like the incredible wave of artists who openly backed the civil rights and the anti-war movements in their songs. I was never exposed to much of the Punk Rock music of the ’70s, but it would eventually make its way onto my iPod and then onto my Spotify playlists. As I came to understand the extent of decimation in post-industrial, Northern working-class towns, I connected with a lot of '80’s alternative music who’s inspiration is often associated with Margaret Thatcher and the Cold War.
Protest music has been around for as long as popular music and albeit with even older origins, shaping the way that historical events are observed. Although the fundamental topics change, the two intertwine with each other to give us a tangible form of what is going on at that moment.
Songwriting: The Perfect Medium for Intersectionality
Most people don’t have the time to question societal structures in their everyday lives. Before I delved intensely into social and political issues, I was working a Monday to Friday, 8-5 full-time job on minimum wage. People work tirelessly to get by and make a living, albeit within that very flawed structure. However, everyone has, or at least everyone should have, access to music and media. Throughout my life, I’ve been lucky enough to experience both happy and challenging moments, where music has enriched or intensified those experiences. A song can paint a thousand pictures, and when it comes to intersectionality and societal structures, there are much more than a thousand pictures to paint.
There is often an absolutist view on the purpose of music throughout the industry; that it is there to entertain and to entertain only. Ironically, political music is only widely accepted if you can exploit it for money. But it can be difficult for songwriters to deviate from regular topics, even if it's an issue that they care about. I spent the majority of my songwriting journey writing lyrics about being young, confused, and in love.
Now is the perfect moment NOT to be confused. There will be people that come out of this messy moment in time as positive catalysts for society; there will also be those who will stand their ground and look to preserve power at everyone else’s expense. If there was ever a right time to take a leap and lead the way, it’s now. Are you up for the task?
As the Music Industry decays, a new perspective on the art of songwriting is necessary. We must actively look for different ways of serving the people with our art - localising music again through community projects, open mics, supporting small music events and shifting our perception of success away from “how big a gig can I get?” to “how can I use my music to enrich my community?” I’ve experienced both dynamics and found the most joy out of the latter.
Dismantling Expectations Starts with Owning Your Music
It's easy to forget that there are humans involved in the problems and solutions that society creates. As someone with rapid cycling bipolar disorder, I have first-hand experience of feeling as though finding the right support and healthy connections in the music industry is like shouting into an empty room. If the Music Industry is serious about tackling mental health, it needs to take a hard look at its working structures and toxic culture. It bewilders me that an industry which survives off the expression and beauty of others can be so apathetic to human needs. To humanize artists, we must get rid of the unhealthy expectations we project onto them, and as artists, ourselves.
To start; managers, labels and music fans, please bear this in mind; an artist doesn't always have to write about political issues. Just because they write political songs, doesn't mean they must deliver political content every waking hour of their career. Do the right thing and stop exploiting serious issues. Artists; if you want to write, you can write about whatever you want. If you're serious about expressing certain views in your music, the first step is to own it. You make the rules on the music you write. You can write about love, sex, or psychedelic experiences, and that's okay. Would you expect your local MP to be thinking about how he can transform the local political landscape every waking hour of their life? If the answer is no, then put this into the persective of someone who isn’t directly involved in our political system - songwriters.
What Now?
We must admit that the music industry is but another vehicle for mass consumerism that has peaked, now surviving precariously at the expense of those lower down in its economical hierarchy. In these times of uncertainty, as artists we must make an important decision - to retreat into an uninspired existence of disillusion - or to burst out of the gates with passion; with a determination to lift people's spirits and to galvanize our communities to come together to share in our grief, our happiness and our future - or lack thereof.
Write songs that align with your morals and values, and less so in line with the expectations of the unethical music industry. You will always be judged on the public stage; as a person, as a songwriter and as a member of society, regardless of what you do. The lesson I want to offer from this is as simple as being honest with yourself and acknowledging, but declining societal expectations of what you should be writing about.
Political issues never go away. When social issues mobilize, artists must help in whatever way they can. The future is bleak, but it's a future nevertheless, and as songwriters, we must do our best to express the social narrative of this brave new world.
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