The relationship between music and politics
A project by Chandni Sembhi
#Grime4corbyn
Arguably the most important genre when it came to the snap election in 2017 was Grime. #Grime4Corbyn was a huge movement. Stormzy calling Theresa May a paigon went viral; JME campaigned for votes; and Dave released his hit ‘Question Time’. 58% of grime fans voted in the election, and as the youth votes rise, an increasingly popular genre for under-24 year olds must have at least some impact.
Although people seemed surprised at Grime's involvement in politics, Grime as a genre has it's place in the conversation - just as Punk did in the 80s. As a genre primarily composed of working-class people living an innner-city life, they have first-hand experience with disenfranchisement, and other issues they may have experienced at the hands of a Conservative government, and they rap about it. This isn't new. At the heart of Grime's origins, you can find artists talking about discontent, because it's what they know. Now that Grime has broken into the mainstream, it makes sense for those with an audience to campaign for a candidate that seems to understand their plight - a party with policies to improve life for them, to maybe make life better for younger generations. Stormzy even said: "My man, Jeremy! I dig what he says. I feel like he gets what the ethnic minorities are going through and the homeless and working class." These people probably have the most to lose, making their interest greater.
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Grime supporting Corbyn also makes sense when you look at the smear campaign led by the media against Corbyn - not dissimilar to the way Grime and black artists even wider are shunned by the music industry. This formed another similarity between the Grime and Corbyn, and it saw JME take to Twitter to rant about it. In the eyes of Grime artists, Corbyn understood where they were coming from, and he was seen as the first politician in their lifetimes to actually care about issues that meant something to them.
A Q&A WITH MAXSTA
I chatted to Grime MC, Maxsta, who was heavily involved with the campaign, despite having no interest in politics before Jeremy Corbyn became the leader of the Labour party.
What made you want to get involved with the campaign?
For me, as a black young person, I feel that the general notion between me and everyone that I've ever known, is 'I wasn't involved with politics at all because I never felt like it affected me'. You always think 'what's the point of voting, it's not the things that we deal with that are being addressed'. Voting for Corbyn was the first time I've voted, so for me, I'd just never really cared before, because it's not necessarily a system that I feel is catered towards me or things that affect me. With Corbyn I felt like there was somebody who shared the interests of the people that I relate to, it got my attention. Just in terms of hearing about Corbyn in the news, it seemed like someone had a different approach. For me, I'm never really into anything that I don't feel makes sense or is relevant to me, but with Corbyn my interest in politics grew, thinking somebody might almost relate to people that I relate to.
Why do you think the campaign was so successful?
It's such a simple thing. Like in the marketing world, they just throw words at you that relate to the things that you're interested in buying, I feel like on the most simple level, just saying 'Grime for Corbyn' makes people that listen to Grime pay attention, because this will probably be the only chance they'll have to hear Grime involved in anything to do with what's actually affecting England politically. With that being said, it's a serious time for young people in general when they think about their futures and the next 10-15 years of their lives, even people who aren't politically driven or inclined in any way, even they know that it's a serious time politically, and that it can potentially get worse for them. Grime for Corbyn is something that relates to people culturally, and invites people to come and be a part of what's actually going on and feel like they might have a chance at representation as whatever class they are. I think still at this point, young people might not necessarily totally get the ins and outs of politics, but if you speak to them, they're going to listen.
What do you think of people saying musicians should stay out of politics?
If a famous artist painted a picture of Vladmir Putin and Theresa May in some sort of imagery, that's his representation of the narrative. Is he then going out of his lane? For me, my music, and a lot of artists I know, we are 100% in charge of the message and what's going on in our music. So unfortunately for people who normally would disregard such opinion and stance, Grime is at a place where if certain Grime MCs talk, people might listen. I just think saying that Grime MCs, or anyone, should stay out of politics is just saying they don't want you to get involved, which isn't fair.
Linda Maitland - Artist Liason
I spoke to Linda Maitland who was the artist liason for the NME award-nominated #Grime4Corbyn campaign, which saw numerous Grime artists get behind Jeremy Corbyn in the 2017 snap election.
On Corbyn's popularity with young people, Linda attributes this mainly to the fact that he's relatable, and when he talks, you can actually understand what he's saying, "it doesn't just sound like a sales pitch. It motivates people in a different way".
Linda also feels like young people are underestimated - even though youth vote numbers are growing, along with a general interest in politics. She thinks young people know more than the general public/ media give them credit for.
Her 18 year old brother, for example, never really had an interest in politics until Corbyn became a viable candidate. When he found a candidate that finally seemed to understand him, he got informed.