For the politics and protest paper I will be researching Gil Scott Heron and Brian Jackson’s Winter in America album. This album was the artist views on African American culture in his surroundings during the 1970s. Many of the tracks were vivid insights to frustrations of not only the African American community, but to those stricken by poverty and other social injustices. Winter in America was not released on a major label but was a considered underground hit. The artist used “guerilla marketing” such as spray painted ads and flyers to promote the album, which lead to its huge underground success. This made Heron known as a street poet of sorts, which is largely due to his grassroots marketing and his stance on many social issues. Heron also used what many believe to be the earliest form of rap music to drive home his point of social equality.
Hi Greg -
ReplyDeleteThis is a *great* topic - we'll be talking about both Gil Scott Heron and graffiti in the weeks coming up. You might want to pick a song or two you'll do a 'close reading' of along with finding other sources. It's also interesting to think about the title of the album - what do you think it suggests about the period in which it came out?
Be sure to also get caught up on earlier posts.