Photo: wikipedia.org
Photo: wikipedia.org

There are those who argue that musicians should not involve themselves in politics at all regardless of whether it’s publicly supporting a party or candidate or running for office themselves.

I’m not one of those people.

Music has always been political. Music represents the thoughts and beliefs of the people who create it and so, of course, it’s going to reflect that reality.

Hip Hop’s roots lie in political protest, as does Rock and Folk. One of the functions of music and, by extension, musicians, is to push the boundaries and make us all think about society and whether or not we like the way things are.

So, when a musician aligns him/herself to a political party or candidate, I’m not surprised. What surprises me is when a musician aligns him/herself with a political party or candidate solely for economic reasons. Case in point: Dee Snider is allowing Donald Trump to use his song “We’re Not Gonna Take It” at Trump’s political rallies despite openly disagreeing with Trump’s stance on most issues. Why would he do that? Could it be simply for the money Trump is paying him for use of the song?

Most recently, I heard that Zach Sciacca, aka Z-Trip, is scheduled to perform at Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders’ rally on Friday, February 5.

So, here’s the fundamental difference for me. I’m totally fine with Z-Trip performing for Sanders because Z-Trip has long been a political activist and his views are 100% in line with Sanders’.

In fact, according to Beatport.com, Z-Trip stated, “I’m stoked to be a part of the show as well as the movement. We have a chance to elect someone who is really focused on breaking up the old political machine which puts money first and people second. We need fairness and equality now and I’m down to lend a hand. It’s time to bang the drum.”

What do you think – should musicians stay out of the political fray or not?

Have a listen to Z-Trip and DJ P via Beatport.com and Soundcloud.