Oh My God (Michael Franti song)
Encyclopedia
Oh My God is an Acid Jazz
fusion
pop song
by political
musician
Michael Franti
. It is the first track from Franti and his band Spearhead
's third studio record Stay Human. Though the song was not released as a single, it is a prominent favourite amongst Franti's fans, and a prime example of his creative political conscience.
, and is based around a rather basic but distinctly jazz
chord progression. The studio version of the song has heavy pop influences, including backing female vocals, strings, and basic pop-style mixing methods. Other renditions Franti has done, however, including the version heard on 2004
's Songs from the Front Porch and on his live album, Live at the Baobab, steer much more towards Acid Jazz
. It's worth noting that Franti's singing style, while at times melodic, borders on rap
throughout most of the song.
issues in America
. Some of the issues and events addressed in the song include:
These lines refer to the social practise of bribery
and immoral conduct in Public Services.
This refers to the CIA's practice of having paid movie producers to change the ending of movies, and their inactivity in regard to Jim Jones who orchestrated a mass suicide in Guyana.
The phrase, "my people" refers to African Americans, who have a long history of discrimination and oppression in America, dating back to the 1800s, when they were kept as slave
s. Racism, meaning discrimination based on race, is still present in Modern America.
These lines refer to modern medicine's practise of attempting to clone living organisms, or create life artificially. The issue of cloning is a heated one in world society, with many people holding moral objections to the interference of science in natural life. The last phrase of the line refers to a legal issue that Franti and Spearhead dealt with.
, nobody slips on bananas. Do you really think that that car killed Diana?"
This line refers to the famous death of Diana Frances Spencer, who was killed on the 31 August, 1997, and the conspiracy theories surrounding her death. It is believed that she was killed in a car accident in a tunnel, and although there has been no solid evidence to suggest it was anything but an accident, there has been speculation that she was assassinated, perhaps even by the Royal Family. There is also a theory that the paparazzi
indirectly caused her death.
Note: The following three subheadings all refer to the line
"I shot Ronald Reagan; I shot J.F.K; I slept with Marilyn and she sung me Happy Birthday"
concluded after lengthy investigation that the murderer was Lee Harvey Oswald
, many conspiracy theories still exist on the subject, and thus the theme of Conspiracy Theories, as established in the reference to Princess Diana, continues.
Alternatively, this entire sequence could be interpreted as a downplaying of the importance of political leaders or assassinations. Franti is saying "Who cares what happened, let's focus on the real problems in the world."
attempted to assassinate President Reagan by shooting him in the chest.
to President Kennedy at his televised 45th birthday celebration.
Shows Franti believes that marijuana should be legalized. Also references Mandatory Minimum Sentences for Marijuana, which causes people caught with marijuana to spend as much, if not more, time in jail as rapists and murderers.
This line is a comment on the Media's role in American Culture. What Franti seems to be stressing is the extent to which the Media stress the importance of scandals as opposed to political action, particularly personal scandals in politics, such as the Bill Clinton
scandal.
Acid jazz
Acid jazz is a musical genre that combines elements of jazz, funk and hip-hop, particularly looped beats. It developed in the UK over the 1980s and 1990s and could be seen as tacking the sound of jazz-funk onto electronic dance: jazz-funk musicians such as Roy Ayers, Donald Byrd and Grant Green are...
fusion
Jazz fusion
Jazz fusion is a musical fusion genre that developed from mixing funk and R&B rhythms and the amplification and electronic effects of rock, complex time signatures derived from non-Western music and extended, typically instrumental compositions with a jazz approach to lengthy group improvisations,...
pop song
Pop Song
Pop Song is the first single by the Drugs. It was released in 2000 and earned the Drugs some positive press. It has been described as "addictive". A live version was released on The Only Way Is Up...
by political
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
Michael Franti
Michael Franti
Michael Franti is an American poet, musician, and composer. He is the creator and lead vocalist of Michael Franti & Spearhead, a band that blends hip hop with a variety of other styles including funk, reggae, jazz, folk, and rock...
. It is the first track from Franti and his band Spearhead
Michael Franti
Michael Franti is an American poet, musician, and composer. He is the creator and lead vocalist of Michael Franti & Spearhead, a band that blends hip hop with a variety of other styles including funk, reggae, jazz, folk, and rock...
's third studio record Stay Human. Though the song was not released as a single, it is a prominent favourite amongst Franti's fans, and a prime example of his creative political conscience.
Musical Qualities and Influences
The song is in the musical key of D minorD minor
D minor is a minor scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. In the harmonic minor, the C is raised to C. Its key signature has one flat ....
, and is based around a rather basic but distinctly jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
chord progression. The studio version of the song has heavy pop influences, including backing female vocals, strings, and basic pop-style mixing methods. Other renditions Franti has done, however, including the version heard on 2004
2004 in music
See also:* 2004 in music Record labels established in 2004-January:*January 1**The Vienna New Year's Concert is conducted by Riccardo Muti.**Kurt Nilsen wins World Idol....
's Songs from the Front Porch and on his live album, Live at the Baobab, steer much more towards Acid Jazz
Acid jazz
Acid jazz is a musical genre that combines elements of jazz, funk and hip-hop, particularly looped beats. It developed in the UK over the 1980s and 1990s and could be seen as tacking the sound of jazz-funk onto electronic dance: jazz-funk musicians such as Roy Ayers, Donald Byrd and Grant Green are...
. It's worth noting that Franti's singing style, while at times melodic, borders on rap
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
throughout most of the song.
Historical and Social References
The lyrics to Oh My God are laden with references to then current affairs and historical events, as well as commenting on contemporary socialSociety
A society, or a human society, is a group of people related to each other through persistent relations, or a large social grouping sharing the same geographical or virtual territory, subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations...
issues in America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Some of the issues and events addressed in the song include:
Corruption in the Legal System and Public Office
- "Cause you gave cash to the feds, (who) left your school district for dead ... anonymous notes left in the pockets and coats of judges and juries from Frisco to Jersey, threats and protests, politicians, mob debts, trumped up charges and phony arrests; stage a lethal injection the night before the election 'cause he got donations from the Prison Guard's Union"
These lines refer to the social practise of bribery
Bribery
Bribery, a form of corruption, is an act implying money or gift giving that alters the behavior of the recipient. Bribery constitutes a crime and is defined by Black's Law Dictionary as the offering, giving, receiving, or soliciting of any item of value to influence the actions of an official or...
and immoral conduct in Public Services.
Distorted enforcement of the law
- "the CIA runin’ like that Jones from Indiana but they still won’t talk about that Jones in Guyana"
This refers to the CIA's practice of having paid movie producers to change the ending of movies, and their inactivity in regard to Jim Jones who orchestrated a mass suicide in Guyana.
Racism
- "Still believe in a system that's workin', when half of my people are still out of work..."
The phrase, "my people" refers to African Americans, who have a long history of discrimination and oppression in America, dating back to the 1800s, when they were kept as slave
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
s. Racism, meaning discrimination based on race, is still present in Modern America.
Cloning and Medical Science
- "Scientists whose god is progress; four-headed sheep is their latest project"
- "You can make a life longer, but you can't save it. You can make a clone and then you try to enslave it; you're stealing DNA samples from the unborn and then you coming after us 'cause we sampled a James BrownJames BrownJames Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is the originator of Funk and is recognized as a major figure in the 20th century popular music for both his vocals and dancing. He has been referred to as "The Godfather of Soul," "Mr...
horn?"
These lines refer to modern medicine's practise of attempting to clone living organisms, or create life artificially. The issue of cloning is a heated one in world society, with many people holding moral objections to the interference of science in natural life. The last phrase of the line refers to a legal issue that Franti and Spearhead dealt with.
Diana, Priness of Wales Death
"This ain't no cartoonCartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
, nobody slips on bananas. Do you really think that that car killed Diana?"
This line refers to the famous death of Diana Frances Spencer, who was killed on the 31 August, 1997, and the conspiracy theories surrounding her death. It is believed that she was killed in a car accident in a tunnel, and although there has been no solid evidence to suggest it was anything but an accident, there has been speculation that she was assassinated, perhaps even by the Royal Family. There is also a theory that the paparazzi
Paparazzi
Paparazzi is an Italian term used to refer to photojournalists who specialize in candid photography of celebrities, politicians, and other prominent people...
indirectly caused her death.
Note: The following three subheadings all refer to the line
"I shot Ronald Reagan; I shot J.F.K; I slept with Marilyn and she sung me Happy Birthday"
The John F. Kennedy Assassination
The line, "I shot J.F.K." is a reference to the famous assassination of President John F. Kennedy, in 1963. Kennedy's assassination is one of the most notable and significant events in American history, and Franti's claim of responsibility refers to the widespread speculation surrounding the identity of the assassin. While the Warren CommissionWarren Commission
The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy, known unofficially as the Warren Commission, was established on November 27, 1963, by Lyndon B. Johnson to investigate the assassination of United States President John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963...
concluded after lengthy investigation that the murderer was Lee Harvey Oswald
Lee Harvey Oswald
Lee Harvey Oswald was, according to four government investigations,These were investigations by: the Federal Bureau of Investigation , the Warren Commission , the House Select Committee on Assassinations , and the Dallas Police Department. the sniper who assassinated John F...
, many conspiracy theories still exist on the subject, and thus the theme of Conspiracy Theories, as established in the reference to Princess Diana, continues.
Alternatively, this entire sequence could be interpreted as a downplaying of the importance of political leaders or assassinations. Franti is saying "Who cares what happened, let's focus on the real problems in the world."
Ronald Reagan
The line "I shot Ronald Reagan" is a continuation of the assassination theme, and refers to an event that took place in 1981, when John Hinckley, Jr.John Hinckley, Jr.
John Warnock Hinckley, Jr., attempted to assassinate U.S. President Ronald Reagan in Washington, D.C., on March 30, 1981, as the culmination of an effort to impress teen actress Jodie Foster. He was found not guilty by reason of insanity and has remained under institutional psychiatric care since...
attempted to assassinate President Reagan by shooting him in the chest.
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe was a famous actress and sex symbol of the 1940s and 1950s. The line, "I slept with Marilyn and she sung me happy birthday" is a continuation of the J.F.K. reference; Monroe's last public appearance was singing the now famous rendition of 'Happy Birthday'Happy Birthday, Mr. President
"Happy Birthday, Mr. President" is a song sung by actress and singer Marilyn Monroe on Saturday, May 19, 1962, for President of the United States, John F. Kennedy, at a celebration of his forty-fifth birthday, ten days before the actual day of his 45th birthday . Sung in a sultry voice, Monroe...
to President Kennedy at his televised 45th birthday celebration.
Marijuana
- "Mandatory Minimum Sentencing, 'cause he got caught with a pocket full of medicine.."
- "Still sayings nothing wrong, selling firewater, but outlawing the bong.."
Shows Franti believes that marijuana should be legalized. Also references Mandatory Minimum Sentences for Marijuana, which causes people caught with marijuana to spend as much, if not more, time in jail as rapists and murderers.
Media Culture
- "Politicians got lipstick on the collar; the whole media started to holler. But I don't give a fuck who they screwing in private; I wanna know who they screwing in public"
This line is a comment on the Media's role in American Culture. What Franti seems to be stressing is the extent to which the Media stress the importance of scandals as opposed to political action, particularly personal scandals in politics, such as the Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
scandal.
External links
- http://www.spearheadvibrations.com/index.html
- http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=04/06/17/1437207
- http://jahworks.org/music/interview/franti.htm