Author: David Wu

David Wu

3/25/19

Prof. Hall

Eng 1121

Police brutality is one of several forms of police misconduct which involves undue violence by police officers. Police brutality against African Americans is one of the most serious social problems that affects many states across the US. This issue has gained special attention in recent years due to the numerous killings of young black people by police officers. This issue has gone so far that it has sparked various movements, such as the well known “Black Lives Matter” movement. One of the main stereotypes against the police officers across America is that they unfairly discriminate against people of color, while being more lenient towards white people.

Kendrick Lamar’s 2015 album “To Pimp a Butterfly” is a multiple Grammy award-winning masterpiece. Its mix of hip-hop, jazz, soul, funk, and other styles is a testament to the incredible range of the Compton-born rapper. This album won Kendrick four Grammy awards in 2016. More than just a great album, it features several singles that have gone on to become anthems of the modern social justice movement. Most notably, the 2015 single, “Alright” has become the anthem of a generation.

On March 2015, Kendrick Lamar made his message on the music video “Alright.” This song became the anthem of the nation’s rallying cry, especially for the Black Lives Matter movement. The troubles of police brutality victims can be heard in every breath of Lamar’s takes on “Alright” as he states with “Homie you fucked up, But if God got us then we gon’ be alright.” Pharrell Williams can be heard on the chorus, chanting “We gon’ be alright!” The music video starts by showing shots of life in a neighborhood. A young African-American man is seen lying on the ground and Kendrick begins speaking. Police and destruction flood the scene as the music starts, Kendrick and friends are seen riding in a car. As the camera rotates, we can see that the car is being carried by 4 white police officers. During the video, Kendrick flies through California, while his friends are throwing out money to everybody and dancers performing in the streets. At the end of the music video, Kendrick stands on a lamppost and a policeman shoots him down. Kendrick falls to the ground finishing his statements from the beginning of the video, but ends the video with a smile.

The video contains themes of the relationship between the black community and the police, an issue that was a serious topic at the time and still is today. The message of the video indicates that everything will be alright despite the hardships and injustices that Kendrick and in this case, black people  struggle with as Americans due to institutionalized racism and prejudice in the face of protest. The anthem of the song, the symbolic importance of its chorus, and its deep references to African American history are all cautious. And it’s clear that it took much more than the beat and hook coming together for “Alright” to become “the protest song of our generation”, as Rick Rubin puts it. “That song could’ve went a thousand other ways,” Lamar states.

The song is an anthem of positivity written amongst a backdrop of civil unrest. For some context, these all took place in the last six months of 2014 (during the recording of “To Pimp a Butterfly”): The shooting death of an 18-year-old black man named Michael Brown by a 28-year-old white police officer, and the weeks of protest that followed. The death of a 43-year-old black man named Eric Garner at the hands of two white New York Police Department officers; Garner was being arrested for selling loose cigarettes at the time of his death. The shooting death of a 12-year-old black boy named Tamir Rice by two white Cleveland Police Department officers.

“Alright” is the song that moves beyond Kendrick’s personal tragedy by directing his words to be relevant to the Black Lives Matter movement. “Alright” is used as a protest song that affirms Black humanity in the context of police killing:  “Wouldn’t you know, We been hurt, down before, Ni**a, when our pride was low, Looking at the world like ‘Where do we go?, Ni**a, and we hate po-po, Wanna kill us dead in the streets fo sho’/Ni**a, I am at the preacher’s door, My knees gettin’ weak, and my gun might blow, But we gon’ be alright.” These lyrics acknowledge years of collective struggle and perseverance through those struggles. Kendrick understands the killing of black men by the police to be another obstacle in the Black experience that can be overcome through spiritual strength to survive (the preacher’s door).

Despite this message of black determination by Kendrick Lamar, people found Kendrick Lamar as an artist for the Black Lives Matter movement. According to music journalist Jamilah King, Kendrick Lamar had a disputed relationship with a Black Lives Matter activist because of his statement about Ferguson. Kendrick, in an interview with King, stated: “I wish somebody would look in our neighborhood knowing that it’s already a situation, mentally, where it’s fucked up. What happened to Michael Brown should’ve never happened. Never. But when we don’t have respect for ourselves, how do we expect them to respect us? It starts from within. Don’t start with just a rally, don’t start from looting, it starts from within.

It’s no question that Lamar deserved the honors of Best Rap Album and Best Rap Song. He sings about the oppression of the African race in the modern day context, and translates these personal stories into artistic masterpieces. The music video for his famous rap song “Alright” brought Lamar on the headlines of social media because of the visual elements used in documenting the historical and ongoing struggles of African Americans. Kendrick Lamar isn’t the voice of a single rapper. He’s the voice of millions.

Music Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-48u_uWMHY

 

 

 

David Wu

3/13/19

Prof. Hall

Eng 1121

The mentor article I chose that was interesting to me was short, simple and straight to the point. With the article being short and simple it is easier to understand and remember. The author analyzes the song and music video thoroughly to explain the whole idea and concept in a short amount of time. In the article, the author explains how Kendrick’s “Alright” goes about on police brutality. The author deconstructs the video and explains the important scenes and lyrics of the video on how it tackles on the social issue. I see the article fitting in the publication I chose because most of the audience who views this mentor article are African Americans of all ages. The topic of police brutality will definitely engage the audience since the problem of police violence against African Americans has been a relatively popular of nationwide discussions about race. The language will also engage the audience since Kendrick is not afraid to get into politics and use his voice to drive movements that matters to him. The song, which has served as the rallying cry for the Black Lives Matter movement, seemed to speak directly to the audience facing a time of increased tension to show that black lives matter too.

David Wu

3/11/19

Prof. Hall

Eng. 1121

 

What is police brutality? It’s when police officers use unnecessary excessive force against people. Police brutality against African Americans is one of the most serious social problems that affects many states across the US. This issue has gained special attention in recent years due to the numerous killings of young black people by police officers. This issue has gone so far that it has sparked various movements, such as the well known “Black Lives Matter” movement. One of the main stereotypes against the police officers across America is that they unfairly discriminate against people of color, while being more lenient towards white people.

On March 2015, Kendrick Lamar made his message on the music video “Alright.” This song became the anthem of the nation’s rallying cry, especially for the Black Lives Matter movement. The troubles of police brutality victims can be heard in every breath of Lamar’s takes on “Alright” as he states with “Homie you fucked up, But if God got us then we gon’ be alright.” The music video starts by showing shots of life in a neighborhood. A young African-American man is seen lying on the ground and Kendrick begins speaking. Police and destruction flood the scene as the music starts, Kendrick and friends are seen riding in a car. As the camera rotates, we can see that the car is being carried by 4 white police officers. During the video, Kendrick flies through California, while his friends are throwing out money to everybody and dancers performing in the streets. At the end of the music video, Kendrick stands on a lamp post and a policeman shoots him down. Kendrick falls to the ground finishing his statements from the beginning of the video, but ends the video with a smile.

The video contains themes of the relationship between the black community and the police, an issue that was a hot topic at the time and still is today. The anthem of the song, the symbolic importance of its chorus, and its deep references to African American history are all cautious. And it’s clear that it took much more than the beat and hook coming together for “Alright” to become “the protest song of our generation”, as Rick Rubin puts it. “That song could’ve went a thousand other ways,” Lamar states.

Question 1: Who is the speaker? What do we know about this person? How do we know it?

The speaker is Kendrick Lamar. He is known as an American rapper, songwriter and record producer.

Question 2: What is the occasion? When and where did it occur?

The occasion of “Alright” is an anthem of the modern civil rights movement. It occurred in March 2015 and was produced in many studios across the U.S. with a variety of different producers.

Question 3: Who is the audience? What group of people is the speaker trying to talk to? How do you know?

The audience the speaker is trying to talk to is the modern black people. We know this because this song was recorded in the time of 3 cases in 6 months that were about police brutality.

Question 4: What is the purpose of this piece? What is the writer trying to accomplish?

The purpose of this piece is that he channels the struggles of the modern black experience in America while also recognizing hundreds of years of struggle that led to this point. It’s a song of positivity written amongst civil unrest.

Question 5: What is the tone of this? How can you tell the writer’s feelings by the words or phrases (or other clues?)

The tone of this song is uplifting but aggressive. In the song, Kendrick states “And we hate popo, wanna kill us dead in the street for sure, n***a.” However, Kendrick then states in the chorus ” We gon’ be alright.”

Question 6:  Other thoughts of this piece? And by the way, what’s your name?

I really like this song because  Kendrick sees himself as a voice for African Americans who don’t have one, and believes he has a great responsibility to speak up for them. My name is David Wu.