Is music an effective form of silent protest?

Introduction

In this paper, I will be exploring the question of “Is music an effective form

of silent protest?”. Before I begin with my opinion, it is important to breakdown

the question. In this question, silent is defined as a non-violent method

of protest.

To quote Victor Zelaya “Music is an effective way of protest due to it

being a peaceful way of giving out your thoughts and opinions in the form

of song and good sounds, not harsh screams and rants.” I believe that music

is indeed an effective form of silent protest for a multitude of reasons. I will

be justifying my opinion through this paper.

Argument

Emotions & Music

Music is often known as the universal language. This is because the sound

can appeal to people across language and cultural barriers. Like many other

art forms, music is used by the composer to invoke a variety of emotions in

the audience. Beyond a point, music is also based on one’s interpretation of

the piece. Thus, music connects people around the world even with their own

interpretations of the same piece and it is this that makes music is effective

as a way of bringing people together.

It is all these factors above that make music the most effective as a

medium of protest.

When there is a problem that a community faces, each stakeholder faces

their own problem, they interpret the situation based on their life. When a

group assembles to raise their voices against a particular phenomenon it is

important that they bind together. If there is no unity between the people

itself, nobody is going to bother listening to the group’s concerns. Moreover,

if there is no consensus within the protesters, they aren’t going to be able to

portray their point effectively.

This is where music comes in. While each protester has a different motivation,

they are all feeling a common emotion. Music can be used to effectively

invoke this emotion. This means that the protesters have now found common

ground, and the music is their symbol thus they all unite to it. Now you

might say that a speech might do the same, but think about it. If somebody

was giving a speech to you about a problem and trying to unite you, or if that

same person wrote music, music that bound you to the cause, and invoked

your heart more than your mind.

Another interesting feature of music is that it usually has many instruments

playing in synchronization. in context of protest, this happens to

further emphasize the concept of unity. While this is a feature irrespective of

this link, many songs also follow the structure of a single voice/ instrument

to begin with and then get in multiple layers so as to make the song more

attractive but also hint at the sign that the audience must unite.

Lyrics

While music is a universal language, lyrics are specific to language.

Music plays the role of uniting the protesters, lyrics on the other hand are

responsible for the main message. Catchy lyrics can play a huge role in the

spread of the music and thus the movement. The lyrics are usually straight

forward because the demands of the protesters are clear.

Lean on me - Bill Withers

The 1972 song Lean on me by Bill Withers has re-surfaced the world as it

became one of the lead songs for the “Black Lives Matter Protest”. Bill wrote

it when he moved to Loss Angeles and felt lost and away from the comfortable

family-like cultural back at his home.

On June 3rd 2020, protesters rallied the streets with this song as their

binder. The lyrics matched perfectly with the tone of the protest. It was all

about being there for each other and understanding people around us.

However, lyrics weren’t the only motivation for the song being chosen.

The repetitive simple music also became a symbol of solidarity for the event

that sparked the protest.

This song is a profound example of how music can be re-purposed as a

protest song and can bring together so many people.