Music has always been at the forefront of social change and community consciousness. In fact music is so powerful that musicians and artistes will find themselves banned from entering a nation because of their ideas.

Musicians have an instrument at their disposal which can and often is, used to influence how the people of a nation think.

A song with a strong political message can be used by an established political group in communication for social change. Music can be used to influence voters by planting a message or by encouraging the growth of a seed that was already there.

Rebel music can also be used by musicians with their own political program, to influence the thoughts of the general population.

Cover of Creation Rebel

Rebel music is often used as communication for social change. The music is used to speak out against social ills, which in some ways are accepted as the norm in a society. Trinidadian singer Calypso Rose did the song, “Die with My Dignity”, which speaks out against bosses who try to pressure women into granting sexual favors in order to get a job or keep a job.

Jimmy Cliff, Bob Marley and Mutabaruka are other Caribbean artistes who have written and performed music that speaks out against troubles in the society.

Cover of Rebel Music

Jimmy Cliff’s “Vietnam”, Burning Spear’s “Creation Rebel” and Bob Marley’s “Zimbabwe” are examples of communication for social change. Cliff, Marley and Burning Spear sang protest songs that speak out against problems in the society. Artistes who speak their mind on issues are ostracized on some occasions. This was the result of action by U.S.-based artistes The Dixie Chicks when they spoke out against the war in Afghanistan and Iraq.

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I painted this because I knew that Christian iconography was pretty much obsolete.  When I posted this on an art site I had a comment saying “Who is the guy in the middle.  I know all the others.”  Christians would ask “Do you know Jesus?”  I painted this because I know that people idolise singers, movie stars and athletes.  I painted it because I wanted to portray those who I thought were the top people who were iconised.  I painted them in a style suitable to their era in art.  I hope I did them justice, but Jesus in the middle… who thinks about Him now?  I thought long and hard about who I should include in the painting and at the end of the day… Elvis is still “the king,”  Marilyn Monroe is still beautiful, Ali is still “the greatest” and although I am not into reggae Bob Marley still has fans.

Image via Wikipedia

Have you ever noticed how many great people, cultural icons; great musicians, actors and others died or were killed in a suspicious way or by a “lone crazy guy”…?

Too many in my opinion.

You ever heard about Elvis Presley?

He died aged 42 from the drug overdose, or a heart attack, or a pills overdose…

Doctors ethics have been questioned.

And how about Michael Jackson?

He died aged 50 from the pills overdose.

Doctors ethics have been questioned.

Marilyn Monroe?

She died aged 36 from the cocktail of sleeping pills.

Murdered by the CIA, suicide and other theories have been suggested.

Jimi Hendrix?

Great musician died aged 27, official account says Hendrix died from overdose of a sleeping pills.

Sound familiar?

And what about Bruce Lee?

Lee was 32 years old when he died (or had been assassinated) after he had taken pills to ease his pain.

Many theories surrounding his death has been circulating ever since.

Just to remind you, Bruce Lee’s son Brandon Lee has been killed “by an accidence” while he was shooting the movie “Crow”; he was only 28 years old.

Bob Marley?

Marley died aged 36 after the cancer spread out in his body and he received a controversial cancer therapy…

John Lennon?

Lennon has been murdered by a “lone assassin”, shot in the back four times when he was aged 40.

John F. Kennedy has been assassinated aged 46 by a “lone assassin” and his brother Robert Kennedy has been assassinated aged 42 by a “lone assassin”.

Are you surprised?

I am not and I think it is all connected…

CIA.

Martin Luther King?

King was a great man who was assassinated aged 39 by a “lone assassin”…

And the list goes on.

Kurt Cobain (27), 2Pac (25) and Notorious BIG (24)…

And many others.

Young rebels promoting freedom and free thought, living in the opposition; killed or died in a suspicious circumstances.

There are others who I didn’t mention but who lost their lives because of the way of thinking they promoted.

They had to disappear.

The Powers That Be removed the legends.

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Bob Marley – Redemption Song with Google Guitar.

To Play Bob Marley’s Redemption song with Google guitar, simply hit the following keys on your keyboard:

• AASDAF HHGDSA ASDG DFDS

Or

• ZXCZVNBC ZXCB BVCXZ

Metallica – One with Google Guitar.

To play Metallica’s One Song with Google guitar, simply hit the following keys on your keyboard.

• DJDG AJAG DJDG AJAG K and repeat.

John Lennon – Imagine with Google Guitar.

Play The Godfather with Google Guitar!.

• 3687 6867 6453 

What is law? Law is defined as a system of rules that a community recognizes as regulating the actions of its members. Sometimes it is necessary to break these laws and answer to a higher moral authority, one that a human feels ethically obligated to assist. An example could be found in the book 1984 by George Orwell. The protagonist in this novel is called Winston, who lives in an era where the autocratic government controls all aspects of life. Winston however is different from the majority of the society, and still retains a rebellious mind. He is soon forced into a position to join an undercover “brotherhood” to overthrow the government run by Big Brother. Winston breaks many laws, such as loving someone, holding two opposite beliefs simultaneously, and joining an illegal underground resistance. Winston’s acts are for a noble cause, because he wants to participate in the freedom and liberation of his country from tyrannical rule. He finds it necessary to disobey the law, essentially putting his life at risk for the greater good, or what he finds to be a more profound moral authority. 

Bob Marley once said that “everyone is going to hurt you, you just have to find the ones worth suffering for.” This relates heavily to Antigone because she is faced with the choice to break the law and listen to her conscience, or to live the rest of her life wishing that she had done the right thing. Antigone knew Creon’s law was hurting and oppressing her self ethics, and had to think is Polyneices worth suffering for enough to risk my life and engage in something that is lawfully unjust, but morally correct? I believe that in many cases it is acceptable to disobey the laws of the land and answer to your own self conscience and obey a more profound moral authority.

  To Break A Law

What is law? Law is defined as a system of rules that a community recognizes as regulating the actions of its members. Sometimes it is necessary to break these laws and answer to a higher moral authority, one that a human feels ethically obligated to assist. An example could be found in the book 1984 by George Orwell. The protagonist in this novel is called Winston, who lives in an era where the autocratic government controls all aspects of life. Winston however is different from the majority of the society, and still retains a rebellious mind.                                                  He is soon forced into a position to join an undercover “brotherhood” to overthrow the government run by Big Brother. Winston breaks many laws, such as loving someone, holding two opposite beliefs simultaneously, and joining an illegal underground resistance. Winston’s acts are for a noble cause, because he wants to participate in the freedom and liberation of his country from tyrannical rule. He finds it necessary to disobey the law, essentially putting his life at risk for the greater good, or what he finds to be a more profound moral authority. 

Bob Marley once said that “everyone is going to hurt you, you just have to find the ones worth suffering for.” This relates heavily to Antigone because she is faced with the choice to break the law and listen to her conscience, or to live the rest of her life wishing that she had done the right thing. Antigone knew Creon’s law was hurting and oppressing her self ethics, and had to think is Polyneices worth suffering for enough to risk my life and engage in something that is lawfully unjust, but morally correct? I believe that in many cases it is acceptable to disobey the laws of the land and answer to your own self conscience and obey a more profound moral authority.

February is celebrated in Jamaica, Caribbean and the Americas as Black history month. It is a month dedicated to recognizing the struggles of our ancestors in enslavement for centuries, celebrating the accomplishments of black people and championing the endeavors, aspirations and ventures of today’s black aspirers for greatness.

I find the way Black History Month is celebrated in Jamaica as having shortfalls because there seems to be an overemphasis on the struggles of the black race and slavery. This creates a shadow of gloom despair and Movies about slavery (such as “Roots”) reignites hatred for the white race among the black populace.

I believe the month should be spent commemorating the achievements of Bob Marley, Marc us Garvey, Martin Luther King and Paul Bogle. There is a deluge of information available on the struggles of blacks for Jamaicans but very few about the accomplishments of blacks except for household names such as Barack Obama. A few may know Ben Carson or TD Jakes.

I believe it is this lack of information about the success of Black men why young black men in Jamaica do not aspire to greatness. There is an overwhelming amount of attention given to the unfavorable deeds of black men and Individuals in Jamaica yet very few available literature and media accounts dedicated to informing youngsters on the accomplishments of the black race outside of emancipation from slavery.

Few Jamaican youths know about a black scientist or a great black educator. Ian Boyne’s weekly programme “Profile” highlight the accomplishment of blacks particularly Jamaicans as a means of enlightening the masses on the accomplishment of black Jamaicans.

It is high time; black history month is celebrated instead of regurgitating the past. Marcus Garvey said that a man who does not know his past is like a tree without roots but black people in Jamaica have spent enough time dealing with the past. It is due time, Black History Month is celebrated by paying homage to our heroes and fashioning a programme, system and faculty for the black men in our society: who are lost in today’s world to become better men and women.

Many people are of the impression that there is little more to Rastafarianism than smoking weed and growing your hair into tangled locks. This however is not the case.

Interestingly enough, the Rastafarian religion draws its central belief system from the Christian bible. They believe that the bible has been incorrectly translated from its Aramaic roots and therefore contains mistakes. A Rasta believes that one can use experience and intuition to discern the truth and interpret the words in the bible correctly.

The belief System

At the core of the Rastafarian belief system is the doctrine that black people are the descendants of the early Israelites and were exiled because of their transgressions against God. Their salvation will come through Haile Selassie I (the last crowned black Emperor of Ethiopia) who, they believe, is God and their savior, the incarnation of Jah -or Jehovah. Haile Selassie I is seen as the reincarnation of Christ, the one who will bring them to the Land of freedom, to Africa. For them, Africa and, more precisely Ethiopia, is the home of all Black people, the place where they can be saved. This salvation comes through repatriation. The meaning applied to repatriation varies among those who are believers. For some, it means a physical return to Africa; others, however, think that the return to Africa does not need to be a physical return; most important is to become aware of their African identity, to re-establish their identity undermined by the different kinds of power, and to immediately start changing their reality right where they are now.

Although they believe in reincarnation they are not overly concerned with the after life, as salvation happens here in their search for their home, in the search for Africa which is for them associated with heaven, while Babylon (that is the place of the white man, the white man’s society) is associated with hell.

Dreadlocks and Identity

Growing one’s hair into dreadlocks is also a belief that stems from the bible. The dread locks are one of the ways Rastafarians use to emphasize their identity. It is related to the lions and inspired in the bible. Cutting one’s locks is strictly prohibited in the Rasta culture hence some Rastafarians have hair that is past their waist. To be a Rasta is to live in accordance with the laws of nature, in other words is to live in an African way.In their diet they avoid meat, and above all, pork, alcohol, and food of unknown sources.

Some of them make use of smoking ganja (marijuana). There are no strict rules concerning its use. A true Rasta however believes that the overuse of this potent herb might turn into an end in itself if not used properly and in sessions to give thanks and praise unto Jah. Reggae music is an integral part of a Rastafarian’s lifestyle as well. This music is empowering to a Rasta and also allows him to give thanks to Jah for what he has in this life, and what he will have in the life to come. Its mix of deep of bass, simple guitar, and rhythmic drumming is reminiscent of something that is an inherited form of African music.

Another important Rastafarian identification is with the colors, red, gold, and green from the Ethiopian flag. They are a symbol of the Rastafarian movement, and of the loyalty Rastas feel towards Haile Selassie I, Ethiopia and Africa rather than for any other modern state where they happen to live. These colors are frequently seen on clothing and other decorations. Red stands for the blood of martyrs, green stands for the vegetation of Africa, while gold stands for the wealth and prosperity Africa has to offer.

There are over 100,000 Rastafarians in Jamaica alone. There are also Rastafarians in Great Britain, the United States, and elsewhere in the Caribbean. It is not known how large these communities are.

With understanding and tolerance the Rastafarian religion has grown to coincide with the many religions of the world. Rastafarian people are very approachable and readily discuss their beliefs if asked. The next time you come upon a true Rastafarian, if you still aren’t sure what his/her belief is all about you have only but to ask. A Dread (Rastafarian) is only too happy to share his truth with you.