Music & Violence
-->Hip hop glorifies crime. Reggae hates homosexuals and encourages drug usage. Punk music creates anarchy. Marlin Manson is the DEVIL! These are some of the things that music, according to many, is doing to our poor souls!
There is so much psychology involved with music and sounds. It’s absolutely fascinating! I was just thinking about a story my cousin once told me about Hitler. He said that when Hitler used to put together political rallies, he would intentionally have a really low, single base tone playing out of the speakers for a while before entering the stage. The reason for this was that he knew that this particular sound creates anxiety and uneasiness amongst its listeners and he turned the sound of the second he entered the stage, which gave the effect of HIM being the reliever of this anxiety that people were feeling! Manipulation on a high level, used to create and enhance the aggression and violence that lures in almost every one of us...
I enjoy watching fighting sports. Nowadays it’s usually MMA but it used to be boxing that took my time. I remember wondering if the pro boxers themselves chose the music they would enter the arena with. I remember one fight in particular. It was the Mike Tyson vs. Lennox Lewis battle! Tyson coming in to some heavy base hip hop could have been DMX or something, really representing his aggressive style and appearance. Lennox on the other hand came along, trotting his dreads to Bob Marley’s classic, “Crazy Baldheads”. So perfectly referring to Tyson’s bald, and somewhat crazy, head! Ha! Classic stuff...
One thing I’ve noticed is what an incredible effect chanting has on people and how easy aggression and violence erupt from it. A perfect example of this is the, soon to be cult talk show, Jerry Springer. You men out there probably remember the rings of bloodthirsty schoolboys in the yards, chanting: FIGHT, FIGHT, FIGHT! When 2 kids bumped heads. Jerry Springer is the adult version of that, broadcasted on international TV. Ha! Classic material...
To really underline the actual power and effect of music effecting our aggressions I’ll finish with talking about music actually STOPPING violence. It would be impossible to count but how many soldiers do you think was affected by Lennon’s “Imagine” or Jackson’s “We are the world”. Music can be used in any direction so the power in it should never be underestimated! Let’s just hope that people wise up and use it for good...
