Music and Politics

Recently everyone was in an uproar when they heard a verse from Nicki Minaj from a mixtape, "I'm a Republican voting for Mitt Romney/You lazy bitches is f---ing up the economy.” Nicki Minaj fans took to Twitter and Facebook to talk about their feelings on the verse. President Obama responded by saying he was sure that she didn’t mean anything by it and was just playing one of her characters. Nicki later went on to say that she appreciated that President Obama understood where she was coming from.

This leads to the question of “How big of an impact does music have in politics?” For years musicians have made music about wars and politics from their points of view. So should artists think about the things they say and how it affects their fans. Nicki Minaj probably thought that no one would take that one line seriously, but it has been the topic of discussion for weeks.

Artists have even supported and made commercials for Rock the Vote to encourage young adults to register to vote. Many celebrities whether Democrat or Republican have used their star power to back their favorite candidate. They know that their fans listen to their music and when they talk about the things they support.

Once you are in the spotlight your words and actions are under a microscope. I think sometimes artist forget this because they are trying to be creative. Their words are powerful especially to their younger fans that look up to them. No matter how much they try not to be, they are role models and need to think about what their music says to their fans.