The whole Occupy Wall Street has me digging around listening to Rage Against the Machine, Jefferson Airplane, etc. So, I'm wondering what songs over the past 10 years have been popular and socially conscious? Is that a lost art? Will pop acts of today dare to make that kind of music?

[Edited 10/10/11 9:41am]

alphastreet said:

You would think so, but it isn't really. I don't listen to lil mama and lil Wayne , but some stuff has been socially conscious.

No one listens to Lil Mama!

alphastreet said:

I certainly don't either. But people do put out socially conscious music, yes even those we don't particularly take seriously.

I totally agree with you. The only thing is it's not what you hear in the mainstream anymore. It's sad that the majority of today's younger generation are not exposed to these types of songs.

^ And if they are, they're pulling the Marvin card or Dylan card...

Yes it is dead... for now, and it has been since the best era in Hip-Hop - 1987-1994, where it was commonplace AND in the mainstream.

The major record companies tends to shun protest music, because they want to sell records to please stockholders. Socially conscious music was more popular in the 1960's and early 1970's, because the hippies and people fighting for civil rights made it so. A lot of the audience today (in the US) only care about celebrity gossip and bling, so there is less of a mainstream audience, and protest music is more underground. If people are living good with 200 channels of nothing and surround sound and texting, what do they have to protest? Also, the US media tends to put out propaganda that everything is all good and that only other countries have problems that is our responsibility to fix (aka "but in" because they have something we want). Protesting is not shown, when in the past, the news programs were more serious and would show footage of protestors getting beat up by police or have dogs and firehoses used on them like with Bull Connor. They rarely, if ever, reported about celebrities and entertainment like now. Charlie Sheen rants would not have been seen.

Giovanni777 said:

Yes it is dead... for now, and it has been since the best era in Hip-Hop - 1987-1994, where it was commonplace AND in the mainstream.

People are still doing it though. If you mean dead in the mainstream then I agree somewhat. Remember some folks have been trying to pass some songs as socially conscious when they're not.

NaS ....

Thibaut said:

NaS ....

I wonder what he'll do in tribute to the whole Occupy movement happening right now. Should be interesting.

Did anyone mention "protest music?" There is a difference.

Someone likes to always go on a tangent over things... "protest" music and socially conscious music are indeed two different things.

[Edited 10/10/11 10:35am]

Country music has always dealt with social issues. Ronnie Dunn's "Cost of Living" could be a socially conscious song.

Merle Haggard put out an album talking about stuff he didn't believe in - like conspiracy theories but I don't know if that's socially conscious or just angry.

daPrettyman said:

Country music has always dealt with social issues. Ronnie Dunn's "Cost of Living" could be a socially conscious song.

That's a good one.

SeventeenDayze said:

The whole Occupy Wall Street has me digging around listening to Rage Against the Machine, Jefferson Airplane, etc. So, I'm wondering what songs over the past 10 years have been popular and socially conscious? Is that a lost art? Will pop acts of today dare to make that kind of music?

[Edited 10/10/11 9:41am]

(I only went back two years and these are off the top of my head)

Socially conscious and popular are usually an oxymoron. Some slip through the cracks but overall, the last thing the powers that be want you focusing on is social consciousness. Ask yourself why you need to qualify social conscious with popularity. Numbers don't validate or invalidate a message.

[Edited 10/10/11 11:27am]

Thibaut said:

NaS ....

Lupe.

BlaqueKnight said:

SeventeenDayze said:

The whole Occupy Wall Street has me digging around listening to Rage Against the Machine, Jefferson Airplane, etc. So, I'm wondering what songs over the past 10 years have been popular and socially conscious? Is that a lost art? Will pop acts of today dare to make that kind of music?

[Edited 10/10/11 9:41am]

(I only went back two years and these are off the top of my head)

Socially conscious and popular are usually an oxymoron. Some slip through the cracks but overall, the last thing the powers that be want you focusing on is social consciousness. Ask yourself why you need to qualify social conscious with popularity. Numbers don't validate or invalidate a message.

[Edited 10/10/11 11:24am]

Great choices. I forgot about "Bulletproof."

BlaqueKnight said:

Thibaut said:

NaS ....

Lupe.

Forgot about him. Plus Bulletproof was real good too.

Timmy84 said:

BlaqueKnight said:

Lupe.

Forgot about him. Plus Bulletproof was real good too.

Raheem stays on point. He tries to keep a balance on his records and not just focus on love songs.

Luda is like Tupac - he seems to be torn between wanting to say something and wanting to wild out.

Remember:

Luda and T.I. both seem to have that complex. Its like they want to go conscious but they are afraid of losing their street cred (aka big paychecks) if they do.

BlaqueKnight said:

Timmy84 said:

Forgot about him. Plus Bulletproof was real good too.

Raheem stays on point. He tries to keep a balance on his records and not just focus on love songs.

Luda is like Tupac - he seems to be torn between wanting to say something and wanting to wild out.

Remember:

Luda and T.I. both seem to have that complex. Its like they want to go conscious but they are afraid of losing their street cred (aka big paychecks) if they do.

YEP! I noticed that. Luda actually shocked me with "Runaway Love" - in a good way.

Wow, that Lupe Fiasco song I had totally forgotten about but wow, GREAT song. I'll listen to the others a bit later, thanks

SeventeenDayze said:

Wow, that Lupe Fiasco song I had totally forgotten about but wow, GREAT song. I'll listen to the others a bit later, thanks

That's one of the best songs of any genre I've heard in a while too. The video was nicely done too.

Lupe was the first to pop in my mind he got heat from the fans on his recent release because it was too pop/mainstream but he saying more than most rappers. J. cole talks about some real life situations as well (his mixtapes)

NYOil, anyone?!?

No. Most of it is being made by artists who don't sell. In any event, there have been at least a handful of popular albums over the last decade or so -- American Idiot being the most notable perhaps.

first 2 off the top of my head

I was at Occupy LA for a bit, and they played some classic protest music like RATM, Dylan, Marley, Joni Mitchell, Jefferson Airplane, CCR, Billie Holiday, Tracy Chapman, The Fugees, Mos Def, Tom Robsinson etc.

Also there is a few great artists from last decade who are socially conscious like Paris, Le Butcherettes, The herd