LAT: Eminem Swipes at Bush ("calls on young America to mobilize")

[DeepModem Mom]

THE RACE FOR THE WHITE HOUSE
Eminem Swipes at Bush
He recruits an army to oust the president at the polls in the video for his new single, 'Mosh.'

By Geoff Boucher, Times Staff Writer


Slim Shady is becoming Citizen Eminem.

Rapper Eminem, who made headlines with the gleefully profane alias Slim Shady, has taken his deepest plunge yet into the political world with "Mosh," a new song that, along with its music video, slams President Bush and calls on young America to mobilize against the administration.

In the animated video, which had its debut on the Internet this week, Eminem leads an army of young people in hooded sweatshirts who march through the streets of a police-state America. As the ominous, martial cadence of the song builds, the hooded legion gains new members — a single mom who receives an eviction notice, a soldier who returns home from war only to be ordered back to Iraq, and rapper Lloyd Bankschafes under the harsh authority of police.

The disaffected army makes it past police and soldiers to storm a government building, but inside they don't riot — the video climaxes with the mob in an orderly line at a table with a placard that reads, "Sign in to vote." The fade shot at the end reads simply: "Vote Tuesday, November 2."

In the lyrics, Eminem savages the president as a liar and a thief of American honor. "Strap him with an AK-47 / Let him go fight his own war / Let him impress daddy that way," the song chides. "Mosh" implores young America to unite for the election. "Let us beg to differ / As we set aside our differences / And assemble our own army / To disarm this weapon of mass destruction / That we call our president / For the present."...


http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/2004/la-na-mosh28oct28,0,7423987.story?coll=la-home-headlines

[xultar]

1. Beware BushCo and the BFEE...we are coming to remove you with force

if necessary!

[Paradise]

2. Thanks! n/t

[wildeyed]

3. wow, #1 on MTV.

I didn't think they would have the guts to even play it.

I am about as far from the MTV demographic as you can get, but I was deeply moved by that video. I walked around for the rest of the day after seeing it feeling really weird.

[DeepModem Mom]

5. It's very powerful -- here's a link to a GD2004 discussion of an analysis

posted from Daily Kos that is really interesting:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x1190755

[Voltaire99]

13. He is the hip-hop generation's Lennon.

I loved the "Mosh" video.

The rap is decent on its own, with some very deft wordplay. But it's all the more compelling for the imagery on the video, which links the song with the kind of progressive populism that is the only hope for replacing Bushism.

[DeepModem Mom]

14. As one of my kids would say, "Word!"

[joeunderdog]

17. I hated this guy when he first came out.

All the cop killin stuff and the crap that had nothing but DEstructive elements to it really sucked.

Now I buy his stuff. Getting arrested and almost going to jail seemed to really turn him around.

Go slim. The Marshall is in town.

[DeepModem Mom]

18. I'm wondering if he's done some growing up...

since he first hit the scene --

[truthisfreedom]

4. gotta love it. i remember the 60's and seventies, and this is the first

time in a long time my emotions were touched as strongly as by Neil Young or Credence Clearwater. good on eminem.

[gatorboy]

6. As much as I love this video.

I wish he would have timed it a bit earlier, just so he could have gotten fans to register first! There might be alot of potential new voters who won't get the chance to vote!

[Lisa0825]

7. That was my first thought too! Why did ya wait??? Also, check Superdubya:

http://www.supadubya.com

[ahem]

16. That was my first reaction, but...

the more I think about it, I think the timing is good. Citizen Change and Declare Yourself did amazing jobs of registering tons of young voters. This song/video will make sure they get to the polls and vote Bush out. If it had come out earlier I think both the media buzz and the since of urgency that this provokes may have had time to wear off.

[David__77]

8. Eminem is a real progressive, let there be no doubt.

I defended him even when he made backward comments about gay people--and I am gay myself. He's reflecting a working class standpoint and he's obviously very open-minded as well.

[GrassyNoel]

10. MM - Gay Basher

Well, being gay also, I'm happy about his politics but someone needs to get his head screwed on properly about gays; still unacceptable to be a homophobe.

[NickB79]

15. I doubt Elton Jon would have played alongside him

Had he felt Eminem were as much a homophobe as the media has made him out to be.

[Democat]

9. "Mosh" is great, check out Eminem's "White America" from 2002 too

The same director did this previous political Eminem video:
http://www.gnn.tv/videos/video.php?id=12

[robbedvoter]

11. Air America (Morning Sedition) played part of his Mosh

I found the narative of the video very effective (while being totally unmoved by the music)

[ismnotwasm]

12. Good for him

I've always liked Eminem, even when I thought he was just a pop phenomenon. I started listening to his lyrics, and found real talent, if you like that genre, which I haven't for years. But like my kids tell me, what you hear on the radio, and most of the so-called gansta rap on MTV.,is just commercial pap, and the real stuff remains "underground", in small venues, and clubs. He definitely speaks his mind, and despite a lot of bullshit in his lyrics, I can agree with much of what he speaks of. Hope he's speaking to the kids who are registered, but don't vote because they feel their vote won't make a difference, as well as the ones who haven't registered.