(NewsUSA) - Music festivals might be associated with slackers and partiers, but festivals also maintain a political connection. Musicians use festivals not only to foster personal exposure, but also to spread awareness, question assumptions and incite a passion for change in their audiences.
In the U.S., music has always had a political connection. During the 1700s and 1800s, songs were used for political campaigning. The musical revolution of the 1960s brought music in politics to new heights with bands like the Beatles and Buffalo Springfield and artists like Bob Dylan and Country Joe McDonald. These pioneers of rock music paved the way for others to follow in their footsteps.
At Manchester, Tenn.’s Bonnaroo, an annual festival, environmental organizations worked the crowd, while the political interest groups Headcount and Rock the Vote turned carousing youngsters into registered voters.
At Chicago’s Lollapalooza, rapper Chuck D denounced presidential candidate John McCain, saying that the Senator would create a 1,000-year-war. But not all artists make their message so overtly political.
Roman Alexander and the Robbery, a band that will perform at the OC Music Fest in May 2009, doesn’t focus on one political message, but tries to promote “positivism” - or the ability to enact change - in its music. The music “lets people reflect how we are as humans, bring attention to problems in the world and how we can be positive,” explains lead singer Roman Alexander.
The OC Music Fest, a three-day event that will feature over 100 bands and that plans to attract 20,000 to 60,000 fans, has made environmental consciousness and educational outreach a core part of its identity. The festival gives artists and spectators a place to collaborate and spread ideas, making it an ideal environment for activists to spread their messages. The musicians attracted to the festival reflect its educational ideal.
Take artist DJ $crilla, a rapper from Cleveland, Ohio, who is competing to play in the OC Music Fest. DJ $crilla raps about pressing socio-political issues, including gun control and the government’s response to Hurricane Katrina. “You gotta make a choice - gotta use your voice” says DJ $crilla in his rap “Stand A Man (Uncle S.A.M.).”
Music festivals give bands and their audiences a chance to do just that. For more information about the OC Music Fest, visit www.ocmusicfest09.com.