Verbal Evolution
Author’s Note: This is the final product for my “Re-Purposing an Argument” project. I am happy and proud of how successful this project was. It all started with an idea, and then a vision, to recreate Gil Scott-Heron’s “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” (originally recorded in 1971) so that it can reflect the current “revolution” and social unrest that is present and constantly displayed in today’s media. I really like how successful this piece is at applying cultural allusions and sarcasm to describe a society that is distracted by whoever is controlling the fake “revolution.” It is also difficult for me to maintain my own voice while being influenced by Scott-Heron’s voice. So, I am very pleased with how well I managed to do this. For context and in order to gain the most from my spoken word piece, I advise that before you read and listen, take a few minutes to listen to Scott-Heron’s original piece, since he strongly influenced my ideas.
This piece is intended for a wide range of audiences. Readers interested in how the current media is negatively impacting protests covering social movements related to “Black Lives Matter” and “Justice for Eric Garner,” and also how it is manipulating viewers by covering only one side of the argument should be interested in this piece. Also, this piece is intended for those who agree that there is currently an issue of police brutality especially against minorities. Finally, anyone who believes that social media is being used as a mindless distraction to prevent viewers from noticing the aforementioned social issues will likely gain the most from this piece.
My hope is that you listen and read and understand the cultural allusions and points of sarcasm that should be similar to Scott-Heron’s. Enjoy the lyrics on the right of the audio while you listen!
The Revolution in Disguise
You want a piece of the “revolution?”
You can log in, turn on, and watch
You can lose yourself on Molly
And take a break when you need to re-up
And maybe take time to ask yourself
Whose revolution are you watching?
Whose revolution is being televised?
It is being brought to you by CNN
Manipulating the truth
And leaving most of the facts in disguise
National Review is bringing the revolution to you
Telling you to believe the evidence presented
And trust the grand jury’s decision
Disney says that this “the happiest place on Earth”
Coke is telling you to open a cool case of happiness
But to leave the court case closed when you get kidney stones
Damn
There are pictures of feds killing brothers on YouTube
There ARE pictures of feds killing people on YouTube
There are pictures of LeBron James standing next to Jay-Z
Wearing the revolution’s slogan
There are pictures of Al Sharpton
Strolling through St. Louis
Saying that justice will come
With two body guards behind him
For just the proper occasion
Bad Girls Club, The Real Housewives, and How I Met Your Mother
Are somehow so damn relevant
And women care if Jay is cheating on Bey
Instead of tuning in and trying to figure out
Whose revolution is being televised?
There are tweets from Katy Perry, Taraji P. Henson and Pharrel Williams
Praying for more equality, more compassion and more peace
The theme song is written by Carly Rae Jepsen
And sung by Miley Cyrus, Will i Am and Justin Bieber
It is being recorded, paused, and retweeted
And you can sit back
As Tammy Bruce and Alan Colmes debate about the revolution
And rather it was caused by poverty or institutional racism
Instead of starting your own debate
The problem is, they are telling us that our revolution is being televised
And then trying to convince us with distracting images
Of negativity and lies
But I am telling you that our revolution is not being televised
Not being televised, not being televised, NOT being televised
If anything, it is being disguised
And that’s Writing for Social Evolution