Crescent Ballroom (Nathan Thrash/DD)
Musicians at both the local and global levels have voiced strong opinions on the outcome of President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial. Many in the Phoenix area have combined their music to cultivate new audiences as well as inspire them to act on their political opinions.
English rock band Asking Alexandria, whose members reside in Arizona, released a single titled “They Don’t Want What We Want (And They Don’t Care)”, which was released last Thursday. The song voices frustrations over the senate’s acquittal of the president.
“This is something I have seen a nasty underbelly of and feel very strongly about,” said Asking Alexandria vocalist Danny Worsnop in an Instagram post Tuesday. “Do not be blinded by the ‘truths’ you are told. Don’t get caught up with which ‘side’ you’re on. Be on the side of people, of compassion, of the future, and of progress.”
Worsnop’s group isn’t the only music act to take note of the decision and its impact on the current state of the union.
Phoenix-based band Fixed Reaction’s drummer Jackson Blessing said he felt that up-and-coming musicians could benefit from using their politics to promote their music.
LiL MiK_e is a Phoenix rapper who found that politics have been an effective way to gain followers. He currently has more than 35,000 listeners on Spotify.
“The state of the union is impacting the whole scene, even the industry,” LiL MiK_e said. “I’ve yet to hear a popular song that wasn’t sad.”
Most artists, in addition to using their platform to advocate for bigger issues like mental health awareness, have also used their musical advocacy to encourage listeners to vote.
“Brick Walls” and “Memories” are two songs that LiL MiK_e attributes to the current state of the union from his latest album, titled “Memories.”
LiL MiK_e said he felt these songs were an escape from reality and isolation, both of which are the common themes of the album.
“All the music coming out now is sad because of the way politics are,” LiL MiK_e said. “I feel like the political realm and the state of the union influences everything.”
Jacob Coleman is a drummer for Outsiders and said well-known musicians can use their platforms for advocacy.
“Famous musicians have a platform, it’s their duty to stand up for things that are important,” Coleman said. “That’s what Beyoncé does, that’s one of the greatest examples I know.”
While the trend may work for large bands like Asking Alexandria, there are some smaller bands like Fixed Reaction that are avoiding the trend of making political music entirely.
“I personally would hope that we would stay away from that,” Blessing said. “I would rather people respect us because of what we are able to achieve musically rather than what we believe politically.”
Some artists have even felt hopeless due to backlash over attempting to release political music.
“Political art comes when artists have hope and I currently have none,” said Skyler Acord, a bassist with the band Issues.
There is also a notion among listeners that they would rather have artists keep their political views out of their music. It would also appear that some artists agree with that notion, as they have remained apolitical in their lyrics and public image to avoid alienating audiences.
Kenny Barton, the guitarist for band Note To Self, stated that he would rather have music be a source for the community than political venting.
“As a band, we just want to see a common ground vs. red and blue,” Barton said. “All it has been for ages is red vs. blue, it’s been black vs. white, it’s been this vs. that, there’s never been any common ground.”
For some, music has offered that common ground.
“If you’re wanting to do music for a career, you have to do it for yourself first. It’s the same thing with any career,” said Coleman of Outsiders.
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