Written by Truth Universal   

[Reprinted from Nola.com on 10.19.2011]

As the Occupy movement continues around the U.S., so does the secondary conversation it has spawned about the protest music that traditionally accompanies American activism but has not so far made itself apparent as a part of this particular movement. (To listen to nola.com’s Spotify playlist of protest songs)

A visit to the small Occupy New Orleans encampment in Duncan Plaza last week yielded a chat with 29-year-old Jo Robin, a protestor who said she was also a jazz singer. According to Robin, Occupy Nola does have an entertainment committee, and its members are considering inviting musicians and puppeteers to the park.

Although the concept of entertainment seems frivolous in the face of the greater issues the Occupy movement addresses, many critics have wondered about the movement’s lack of music.
Historically, topical songs have been part and parcel of activism and dissent for reasons ranging from morale to PR: consider Woody Guthrie’s pro-union songs, Bob Dylan and Joan Baez’s civil rights and anti-war ballads and the soundtrack of dissatisfaction provided by Reagan-era punk rock.

A piece that ran Wednesday, October 19 in the New York Times quoted Dorian Lynskey, the author of a recently published history of protest music, suggesting that the financial crisis, “where the villains are obscure and the solutions are obscure,” presented difficult subject matter for potential bards.

New Orleans rapper Truth Universal took a stab at it with an mp3 released online today. His “Who Da Boss” freestyle, set to the music of Rick Ross’s track “I’m A Boss,” is the opposite of the acquisitive “luxury rap” motif that defines recent projects like Kanye West and Jay-Z’s hit album “Watch the Throne.” The finished song will appear on his upcoming mixtape. Listen below:

http://soundcloud.com/alisonfnola/truth-universal-who-da-boss

By Alison Fensterstock