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During the Soviet regime, musicians and composers especially were walking a fine line whenever they decided to try to write some music. They would have to make sure to exemplify the characteristics of power that the leaders of the Soviet Union wanted in all art that was produced during that time. Composers such as Shostakovich, Prokofiev, and Khatchaturian would produce this nationalist music, but they would put their own pieces of individualism and political rebellion in their music that was detected by the people and composers, but seemed to fly under the radar. On the other end of the spectrum, rap and hip-hop artists have always been able to very bluntly address very specific issues with their music. Artist Joey Bada$$ in his album All Amerikkkan Bada$$ (2017) very clearly addresses issues of white supremacy, police brutality, and black identity. This is only one example of a more recent artist being politically active with their music. My poster will address the similarities and differences that are present in these two very different, but surprisingly similar genres share.

Music is a part of almost everybody's life, in one way or another. Whether they actively make and produce their own music, or if it's just something that they listen to when they are driving from point A to point B. For most people, music is probably playing a larger role in their life than they are aware of. In my flash talk, I will be talking about how the music that people can listen to can change their perception about what's going on in the world of politics and culture. I will be talking about how music can change what's going on in those same fields, and how those fields can in turn affect the music that people listen to on a day to day basis. I will introduce specific examples of genres and artists that exemplify this type of change, or some kind of political activism, in their music.

For more than 20 years Walt Whitman worked as a reporter and editor of newspapers, mainly in the New York area and most prominently as editor of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle. The author traces this journalistic career, almost obscured by Whitman's fame as a poet and author of Leaves of Grass.