20 Protest Songs That Matter: No. 11
- Posted by Spinner Staff
- Comments (20)
--N.W.A. (1988)
Rebelling Against: Racial profiling!
In this searing indictment of the Los Angeles police department, Ice Cube, MC Ren and Eazy-E put the cops on trial, with Dr. Dre serving as judge and jury. The racial tensions on the streets that N.W.A. had exposed to the world on this track came to a brutal head when L.A. erupted into riots after 1992's Rodney King verdict.
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Reader Comments(1 of 1)
STERE0failureat 2-04-2008
And just look at Ice Cube now.
Willat 7-15-2007
What about Bruce Springsteen's 41 Shots ( American Skin)? It is a classic protest against the killing of an unarmed African-American in New York. The lyrics are haunting and truthful,and the whole song is excellent. Another lesser known Springsteen masterpiece.
PnkFloydRockrat 7-15-2007
I know the song your talkin bout Will , great song...
but Fuck the Police is hardcore and gets its mesege across clearly ~~ RIP Easy E
The U is Deadat 7-15-2007
Isn't Ice cube or whatever the hell his name is, making like really bad hollywood movies now? Like a black Ward Clever....LMAO......What a fraud.
rpizz65686at 7-15-2007
How can u put out a review and not a sample of this song. How can u dictate what people listen to? Ohhhh the children !!!!!
Chrisat 7-15-2007
This is directly in response to malicouscoma...but intended for everyone who harbors this pretentious "rap isn't music" attitude.
First of all...I'd like to see you write, mix, and produce a good, legitimate rap or hip hop song. I've tried. It's really, really difficult.
When you turn on the radio, you hear "rap", "rappers" "rapping" about bitchez, hoez, jointz, and 40z. Which truly is sad, because when rap was in its heyday (read:80s through mid 90s), there was so much legitimacy to the rap culture. First of all, there was some dazzling lyricism, and even moreso than that, there was this sense of utter rage and frustration towards the urban Black condition. This surfaced in blatant protest songs, such as this NWA song, but even moreso in artists such as Public Enemy. However, it also surfaced as a scathing mockery of Black culture.
Over the years, the music slowly began to glorify the culture it once criticized. That element of the music is more or less lost. However, if you search hard enough, you can find songs with the beats, lyrics, and, yes, I daresay musicality to make it worth your listen. Mainstream artists such as Kanye West and Ludacris are excellent lyricists, whether you like the music or not, and more lesser known artists such as Jurassic 5, Jedi Mind Tricks, Atmosphere, Common, Lupe Fiasco (who is becoming popular) and my two personal favorites, Mos Def and Talib Kwali.
Just because you don't like it doesn't make it illegitimate or unmusical. It takes talent, ability, and musicality to produce a well crafted rap/hip-hop song.
Victorat 7-16-2007
Yeah,Motherf***k the Police.
Maliciouscoma and all the People that think Rap aint music.
See,Its Poetry,well,Most of it..now we got artists that dont know what they are saying.
Dre and MC Ren and N.W.A Is what Hip Hop is about.
And Kanye West.
If Spinner(or whoever compiled this Ish) Didnt Put Immortal Technique in this List..He doesnt know what He/she Talking About.
Tech is the Ultimate "Im-gonna-say-it-anyway-biatch" Artist.
We need more of that yo.And More of Eminem and Kanye.
Vymizzie
Jordinat 8-07-2007
RAP IS THE MOST POPULAR TYPE OF MUSIC. I HAPPENED TO LIKE IT! WHAT DO PEOPLE DANCE AT THE CLUBS TO...? EXACTLY RAP!!!!! FIRST OF ALL RACIAL ISSUES WITH THE POLICE AND BLACK FOLKS HAVE BEEN GOING ON WAY BEFORE RAP AND MOST OF THE TIME BLACK FOLKS DIDN'T EVEN DO ANYTHING. AND THEY ARE STILL DOING THAT. I'M A WHITE FEMALE AND I LOVE HANGING AROUND BLACK PEOPLE SO FOR YOUR INFORMATION MY BLACK FRIEND GOT STOPPED THE OTHER DAY BY A POLICE OFFICER WHO THAT SHE WAS SMOKING MARIJUANA BUT THERE WAS NO SMOKE IN THE CAR NOR WAS THERE ANY CIGARRETTES OR ALCOHOL OR ANY OTHER TYPE OF DRUG!!!!!!!
PeopleDisapointMeat 8-23-2007
Im not keen on rap. But thats not to say I don't like some of it. There used to be good rap. Back in the day when it actually meant something and it wasn't all about being a "gangsta". Thats the problem with rap these days. They glorify the violent culture that people once used to frown upon. Its sad really.
As to the issue of racial profiling. I'm all for it. If its nothing but black people commiting the crimes. Then why the hell would you pull over a chinese person? You wouldn't. Its just using common sense. And frankly I'm rather sick of black people going on and on about their rights. Its been years. Move on. Plus half the time with the slaves it was their own fellow africans selling them. Just from other tribes. When nations are conquered this is what happens.. Gosh..
marleymagicat 9-30-2007
number three is a complete fool. knows nothing about this world, and its 'authorities'. so many people bring so much trouble into this world.
kirstenat 10-12-2007
First of all,I am glad that this song is on the list because it speaks
the truth about something. Second of all most of the people that
aren't happy with this song on the list have no clue about what goes
on now-a-days- and in 1988, therefore how can you speak against
something that you don't know about. Granted that "we"
(african-americans) commit many crimes its not always us. Some black
people may steal cars, money,etc. But its the white people that steal
the stuff that matters such as, elections and stocks. We just get
blamed for everything meanwhile white-collar crimes are totally
ignored. The song is speaking about police brutality and profiling.
It's not right to assume someone has commited a crime because of the
color of their skin. Just like you cant say all white people can't
dance,all chinese people cant drive, all arabians drive cabs in nyc,
all spanish people are illegal aliens. It's jsut ignorant and stupid.
Gizmo30at 10-14-2007
I am a Black male. I have no criminal record. I am a professional musician. I am STOPPED an a weekly basis by the so-called 'Law Enforcers' who ask me if my guitars are mine, or if they're stolen. I was pulled over and told to speak to a suspect 'because she could only recognize the Black man who robbed her by the tone of his voice,' which, by the way, wasn't mine. Back in Boston, 1991, a White man killed his pregnant wife, and 'blamed' the murder on a Black man. The cops rounded up HUNDREDS of young Black men in the predominatly Black Roxbury area, my cousins were among them. So to number 9, who probably has NO IDEA what it's like to be accused of a crime based on skin color alone, F*ck You. To those 'Law Enforcers' who willingly desecrate ANY race's rights SIMPLY BECAUSE of their race, F*CK YOU, TOO.
Mr 101at 10-17-2007
Really racial profiling? No got to disagree with ya Spinner Staff. Its about the history of racism in the LAPD and the frustration of the minorities that had their civil liberties trampled on repeatedly.
Stevieat 11-25-2007
okay. whoever says rap music isn't musi is most inaccurate. Most good rappers make their beats, and write their own music, You have never had to deal with racial profiling (malicouscoma) like the African Americans. I mean really. Who's to say that country music isn't wrong, i mean i specially remember the Toby Keith song about Uncle Sam, Alan AJckson's song about God and how helet horrible things happen to the world, AC/DC talking about doing dirty deeds cheap, there really is no difference. I would like youto make a rap and try to make it out there. And as for the slap in the face to the police, if they would stop being so damn racist we would not have this problem, just because A black person MIGHT kill someone doesn't mean that they all do, HELL I see like four white men onthe news about killing their moms, most African American rapers talk about how much their mothers have influenced them.
Scott McKinstryat 12-01-2007
Springsteen's "41 Shots" was inspired by the shooting of Amadou Diallo by NYC's Street Crimes Unit. I realize that Will's statement that it involves the shooting of an 'unnamed black man' refers to his being unnnamed in the song, but we do know his name. And need to say it over and over again.
Kellyat 12-12-2007
Ok, I agree with the black standpoint. I'm white. But I disagree with the hatred for white people that "sold the slaves", that was YEARS AGO! Me, nor my family have employed a black slave. Anyway, the whole police thing is very horrible. I liked comment #11 and 12. They say everything I want to say. The only thing I don't like about this song is the end, about redneck whitebread chickenshit. I ain't no hillbilly hoss. Sorry had to do that! :) Another thing, why do black people talk about themselves as "n*****s" but when a white person does, they are called racist? We are all racist.
Jeanat 12-12-2007
If one would only but take notice, they will find that all of these so called "entertainers" are nothing but trash!
Willat 12-12-2007
Scott thanks for mentioning Amadou Diallo's name in reply to my post from July...I hold this song very dear to me as my son was a victim of police brutality in Denver. I am a white man but to me the color of someone's skin should not make any difference to how they are treated. Only if they commit a crime, then they should be prosecuted. For war songs lets not forget Devils & Dust either. We need to take our country back folks...Ron Paul is the only candidate who follows the Constitution of the United States.
wayneat 12-12-2007
here goes people there is still racism right now..people just conceal it better..deep in your hearts there still is,,mr white man will you ever let a black man marry your daughter??plus wat can we listen to old 80's rock band they all were coke up anyway..
plus lets face it rap will never go away like most of you guys want it to
yuckfooat 1-12-2008
Who ever picked these 20 Protest songs are smoking too much crack! If you want to hear good protest songs, you look into 60's and 70's music.