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| It is widely asserted that censorship leaves a song bereft of its intended implication of longing, anger, etc. Ice-T�s infamous �Cop Killer� and NWA�s �F*ck tha Police� EPs were written in reaction to police brutality and abuse of power in their neighborhood, LA�s tumultuous Compton block. These intrepid artists never intended to provoke any violent reaction against the law, but as it occurred, they were rightfully unapologetic. Once again, to quote Zappa: �I �refute any claim that the lyrics to a song are going to induce anti-social behavior. As if lyrics had that much power� (Zappa). Truly a visionary, rest in peace. Rap music always endeavored to be a peaceful outlet for personal and cultural frustrations, and encourage humanity to ponder the issue of police misconduct. Rock music is a completely different area of the spectrum, but its candor remains as vital to its fortitude as any other type. One essayist purports that controversy will always saturate ��the lyrics, guitar riffs, and drumbeats [of] the music scene� (D�Imperio). The same affirmations regarding corruption of artistic expression apply to rock music: the band Nirvana was ostensibly forced by Wal-Mart to alter the title and lyrics of their song �Rape Me� to �Waif Me�. Total meaning is lost here, since �waif� is not even a verb and does not carry any sexual connotations, but that�s the way Sam Walton wanted it. One avid music buyer put it this way: �Music censorship reflects the censorship of life, all the good parts are taken out. I [expletive deleted] hate that [expletive][expletive]� (Delametter). Freud theorized that dreams reflected subconscious desires and delusions. Some contemporaries believe that music allows us to live vicariously through the artist, so that me may empathize with their struggles, as in Eminem�s �The Way I Am�, or enjoy �la dolce vita, bambina�, as in Jay-Z�s �Big Pimpin�. Conceivably, this is why contentious material is a big seller ad infinitum, like 2 Live Crew�s debut album in the early 1990s: it jumped 29 places on the Billboard charts after a court ruling prohibiting its sale to minors and Florida�s Governor Bob Martinez called it �audio pornography� (Entertainment Weekly). Said a record store employee David Risher of the publicity, �Everybody and their mother wants a copy. And I�ll sell it to their moms� (Entertainment Weekly). There is ultimately a vague, hidden agenda to music censorship: ��the real intention of the would-be music censors is to impose on all Americans the tastes and values of political power brokers who don�t connect with the experiences and concerns of the young, the alienated, and minorities� (�Popular��) Zappa believed it was �the right-wing idea that America will work better as a Fascist theocracy� (Zappa). No less provocative is the fact that �The source of inspiration most frequently cited by criminals has been the Bible� (�Popular��). It must be that the pious believe it is their duty to vindicate religious fallacies with litigation against popular culture. The un-politically correct response: Bullshit. So says the Supreme Court, anyway, when they ruled that musicians are not liable for �the acts of unstable individuals� (�Popular��). Frank Zappa poses this query: �I wrote a song about dental floss, but did anyone�s teeth get cleaner?� (Zappa). |