That is the question. The UK’s Guardian magazine had an extremely interesting article on how a few hip-hop artists are changing their tune in support of President Obama. Check out an excerpt of the article below.
Obama is hardly the first political leader to reach power and face a backlash from artists who once supported him, but in the absence of the pro-Obama anthems we heard in 2008 or the deep-throated support of legions of performers, the voices of dissent have become especially pronounced. It doesn’t help that some of Obama’s major fans have changed their tune. Speech, of Arrested Development, who supported Obama in 2008, said earlier this year he was “disillusioned” with the president and would support the Republican Ron Paul instead. Snoop Dogg, another Obama fan in 2008, also seemed to throw some of his support behind Paul when he posted a picture of the politician to his Facebook page with the caption, “Smoke weed every day”, a reference to Paul’s marijuana-friendly platform.
Even those inauguration VIPs Diddy and Jay-Z have tempered their enthusiasm. In early 2011, Diddy told hip-hop magazine the Source, “I love the president like most of us. I just want the president to do better.” Jay-Z also acknowledged problems with Obama’s first term, admitting that some of the criticism directed at the president has been fair. “Numbers don’t lie,” he said last July, during a preview of Watch the Throne, his collaboration with Kanye West. “It’s fucked up out there. Unemployment is still high.”
Continued after the jump.
When asked if he feels disappointed with Obama, rapper Nas expresses his continued support for the president but also his disillusionment with the political process that put him in office. “I’ve been disappointed by politics since the day I was born,” he says. “The historic part of him being elected president was got, and everyone was happy about that, and I’m glad I lived to see it. The flipside is, after we get over that, it’s back to the politics, and it’s something which doesn’t have time for people. It’s its own animal.”
This campaign season in the US has exposed this very tension – for rappers and for Obama. For their part, many rap artists are clearly torn between their allegiance to the first black president and their desire to be straight about conditions on the ground. The Wu-Tang Clan’s track Never Feel This Pain, released last June, offers a lyrical glimpse of this ambivalence. Referring to Obama, Inspectah Deck says: “I never doubted him. I’m proud of him.” However, these lyrics of encouragement are sandwiched between those of frustration. Speaking of his desire for a better life, he says, “I ain’t waitin’ for Obama,” and continues: “Seein’ is believin’, my vision is blurred, ’cause I ain’t seein’ nothin’ I heard, really nothin’ but words.” Album reviews have either read this as criticism or endorsement, but it’s not that simple.
{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
BLAME CONGRESS, THAT VOTE AGAINST EVERYTHING THE PRESIDENT STAND FOR!!!!
WE HAVE TO REMEMBER..HE INHERITED THE DEBT, HE DIDN’T MAKE!!!
yup. congress voted against everything he tried to do and then claimed he sucks.
it’s amazing he got the affordable care act through and he had to compromise and sell his soul to do that.
anybody who is cool on obama the second time around is an idiot. everyone knows that when you get behind a candidate it’s an 8 year commitment – because it’s only in a second term can a president go all out – because he’s not concerned about re-election. anybody who doesn’t realize it and doesn’t vote for obama is a fucking idiot who doesn’t deserve quality leadership.
I agree w/ both of you. Obama accomplished a heck of a lot more stuff when Congress wasn’t in the way obstructing progress. But can we really be surprised?? After Obama won, republican house and senate leaders said their #1 priority was to make him a one term president. THAT was their agenda….not jobs, not the economy, not finding bin Laden, not finding a sustainable energy source, not gun laws, not poverty, NOTHING but making Obama a one term president.
A DAY LATER CORRECTING MY TYPO…*THEY VOTED*
And if Romney wins they will be the first once complaining.
People expect him to be twice as good? It’s easier for him to start a war than get a stimulus bill through congress with republican in the majority in the house. It’s gridlock. Man got a health care bill through, you ll feel the result of that 10-20 years from now if it isn’t repealed. Crack to powder ratios came down to 18-1 for mandatory minimum 5 year sentence. Economy isn’t coming back any faster unless govt spends money to stimulate but there’s a limit to doing that, as in Rep party ain’t having that.
My main beef is the drone war and the killing of an American in Yemen. That some b.s. citizens deserve due process in a court not a sanctioned hit like its the Sopranos.
Rant over. Don’t make me reply
^^^^^ this is science.
President Obama still has my support!
If you expected shambles to prosperity in less than four years, you need to get real. Also, this is from the UK, don’t pay too much mind to it.
http://www.addictinginfo.org/2012/05/29/a-long-list-of-president-obamas-accomplishments-with-citations/
dope post. passing it along.
Vote for the two empty suits.
One of them has no experience & the other won’t even show us the tax havens & tax returns for the last few years and wont apologize for it.
Three & a half years of “On the Job” experience = “no experience” to you?
How do you define “experience”? What does that mean to you?
And if you don’t like either candidate, then who do you favor in the upcoming election? Ron Paul? Gary Johnson? Why?
Ha! No I meant Ryan & Rommney.
Fuck dat, Obama is the man….still gets my vote, as well as all my immediate peers…he came into a shitty situation, and did the best he could even when congress was balla blockin…excuse my ignorant literature rant, but that’s how I feel….
This makes me think of that Boondocks episode where everybody was making Obama songs! People expected this man to produce god-like miracles now their all upset because there’s not 0% unemployment and we no longer owe China money. There’s a process for everything and it all takes time. We fail to realize that political involment is more than making songs and voting every four years. This is our country and we need to start acting like it
While I admire entertainers for their unconditional support for voting in the main election, what the public misses is the importance of consistently voting. Its not just a matter of voting for a President we have to vote for the congress and for the house of representatives and so on and so forth. He is in this mess and cleaning it up by himself. I think people got caught up in the hype but didn’t listen when he said, “it’s going to be a long four years, and I may not fix it in 4 and I may not fix it in 8 but I’m going to do everything I can.” That’s important but we missed that because we were excited lol. I still have strong faith and trust in our President and I truly believe he is part of the solution.
fuck what a rapper gotta say about the president and politics in general, alot of these niggas are in that 1% percental that don’t want to get taxed in the first place, so its kinda hard for me to believe that Diddy or Jay fully support Obama anyways when they are the ones that will get tax more when Obama is re-elected. I take these dudes opinions like a grain a salt, it don’t mean shit!!