friday listening party: Black Eyed Peas and Jason Mraz

I recently polled some tweens and teens on their favorite songs, artists, and why.  Below is a brief run-down on the 2 songs that emerged as clear favorites.  You'll also find 2 themes of pop music and theology that I identified in this little exercise.

Two Popular Songs

Boom Boom Pow by Black Eyed Peas.  This song from the southern California genre-blending supergroup fronted by Will.I.Am and Fergie is actually about... music.  The message is one of superiority in their sound, their group: "they try to copy my swagger," "I'm on that HD flat," "harder, faster, better, stronger," "I be rockin' them beats," and "Here we go, here we go, sattelite radio."  These lyrics exemplify the message of the song.  The video is futuristic and sexy.  It is a huge summer hit from a group that aims to turn out fun and sexy songs while at times tackling issues of justice and reconciliation.  In fact, the group is composed of 2 African-American men, 1 Native-American man, and 1 Euro-American woman.  Diversity is then unavoidably a message of each of their songs.

I'm Yours by Jason Mraz.  This song is especially interesting when set against Boom Boom Pow.  The message of the song is simply that all people have a right to be loved, and by that, the writer is speaking of romantic love.  This sentiment is summarized in the lyrics of the second verse:

Well open up your mind and see like me
Open up your plans and damn you're free
Look into your heart and you'll find love love love
Listen to the music of the moment people
We're just one big family
It's your God-forsaken right to be loved loved loved

The song is not undergirded by a strong and danceable beat.  It's laidback and winsome.  Its strength is in its frolicking rhythm and clever lyrics.

Two Important Themes

The artifact and the artist.  It's interesting that in only one of the surveys was there an overlap between the favorite songs and favorite artists of young people.  Most young people choose songs to like and artists to like for apparently different reasons.  Songs are important because of the way they make you feel, the beat, or a clever lyrical hook or emotional sentiment.  Artists are important because of their persona, their larger-than-life, airbrushed media personality.  Francis Schaeffer admonishes Christians to judge an artist by his or her entire body of work, not just a single artifact.  This disconnection between artist and artifact in popular music is something to note.

The pen is mightier.  Many young people clearly stated that the words were not important to them in choosing favorite songs or artists.  While the two favorite songs I am referring to here, Boom Boom Pow and I'm Yours, are not overtly violent or promiscuous, there are hints of a worldview different than a classic Judeo-Christian one.  Again, not explicity, but Blcak Eyed Peas send the message that Old is bad: "I'm so 3008, you so 2000 and late."  Jason Mraz sees that God forsakes, not gives.  These are not necessarily reasons to discard the contribution of these strong songs and strong artists, but it reveals how important it is to teach young people that words matter.

Everything is a message.  The personalities, rhythms, arrangements, and lyrics of pop music are vehicles of messages.  Some are thoguhtful; others impotent.  Some are hostile; others constructive.  The first step toward incarnational and transformational creation and consumption of popular culture is the simple awareness that messaging moves the world and moves us.  It is important to receive the millions of messages that bombard us each day with eyes wide open to the source and goal of the artists and artifacts, as well as the source and goal of the Creator.

Comments

[Sarah]

I've heard a live version of I'm Yours where Jason Mraz sings "it's our God-intended right to be loved." I wondered why he changed it--why he didn't write that first. Interesting.

And thanks for posting Regina from last week--that was a good one.

On another theme from last week--check out the cover playing on our blog: www.sovietsksupporters.blogspot.com . . . I've been thinking all week of this artist's body of work and the artist as a person, and finding it turning to prayer, as I often do.

Happy 4th!