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Interview

A Protest Music Interview: Laetitia A’zou

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The impact of Joan Baez has long been known to reach far and deep. Her shining voice and lyrics of protest, whether those being her own or one of her perfect covers, have resonated with several generations by now.

One musician from Paris, France, felt that impact in an empowering manner. Laetitia A’zou used this power to create her own songs of protest. Two albums into her career and she is now slowly working on her third effort. She explained to me via email how this newest piece of work will out scale her previous efforts, production wise. As a side note she also explained how there is an often overlooked amount of protest in Disney songs.

First of all, for those not familiar with your work, who is Laetitia A’zou?

I’m a folk/opera/swing singer (Laetitia A’Zou, The Andrews Sisters Revival). I am inspired by all the great pop-folk artists from the 60’s to the 80’s. I perform American Music on stage, aiming to share feelings, emotions and music. 

When and how did you get into making music?

I started music at a very young age, entering the Conservatoire at 6, where I studied violin, music theory, choir singing and orchestra. What triggered it was my parent’s listening to a lot of classical music, and I fell in love with one of Mozart pieces, hearing the violin. It was the beginning of a great adventure. 

Folk music has always been there, my father listening to a lot of french ballads and american folk music (Joan Baez most of all). I started my folk career in 2010, playing covers during open mic’s, while starting composition and song writing. Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Tom Paxton, Pete Seeger… were my main source of inspiration. 

Has your music always been political or protest driven?

Yes and no. My folk music is what I like to call mainly protest songs, my aim being to heighten awareness to subjects like poverty, social injustice, war, overworking… This being said, there is another side to my music : I also write ballads

I read that when you heard Joan Baez the wheels started turning for you. Can you tell me a bit more about the influence Baez had on you and your music making?

What I love about Joan Baez is how powerful her voice is, without needing much more instruments than her guitar. Her compositions are both simple when it comes to the melody of the voice, and incredible picking. All the songs she covered are perfectly chosen and very delicate. I love how she both sings ballads and protest songs, without going up to political driven. This is, for me, the perfect balance.

You’ve released two albums so far, your sophomore album being ‘Protest Songs’ (2015). Your second album sounds considerably more subtle, almost like a live version with a very close, personal sound to it. What was the main difference for you in creating these two albums? And do you have a new album in the making?

The first album, The Girl on the Bench, consists mainly in ballads, with only 4 protest songs. More than anything, I worked on the melodies, the lyrics, also writing about History, which is also a passion of mine. To do that, I invested a lot in production, hiring professional singers, percussions, violin and guitar players. In Protest Songs, however, I have decided to focus more on writing less poetic and more protest driven lyrics. Inspired by the work of Pete Seeger (called the pioneer of folk) who wrote very catchy and simple protest music. I thus decided to record mainly guitar/voice, but added a small choir (10 teens) to give it, indeed, a sound of live performance. At the time, music was often played during diners (people REALLY listened) and people used to sing in a good-natured atmosphere.

There is indeed a real difference between the two albums. I do have a new album in the making. I am taking my time for this one, which I also want a bit different from the first 2. I want to make it bigger, more orchestral, and twice as impactful as the other albums. Two songs have already been recorded.

How is the Paris protest music scene in your opinion? Are there many artists using their voice responsibly?

Unfortunately I am an old soul. I live by the music from the 50’s to the 80’s/90’s and am not quite aware of today’s protest scene. We used to have incredible protest singers, with George Brassens, Yves Montand, Maxime le Forestier, Léo Ferré… Today, the one great singer I can think of is Melissmel. She has an incredible power when she sings, and is political driven, with one of her most powerful song: “Aux Armes“. 

Photo by Taline Maras

What do you hope to achieve when you play your songs for people? How do you feel people are receiving songs of protest these days?

What I hope for is to people to listen and to think. We are all triggered by different subjects, especially today when everything is getting harder in almost every way. My protest songs are hard and really sad. The ones that usually get people stop and listen are The Village and the Prisoner’s song. Both are about destruction : war and death penalty. When people listen to something that triggers their interest, they start thinking and get more aware. And then they listen more when the subject comes around. I do not believe in politicians listening to us, but I do believe in the power of people coming together against injustice. 

Are you following other active, socially conscious musicians? What contemporary music inspires you?

Melissmel, whom I was referring to, is an artist I regularly listen to, and of course still Joan Baez. Paul McCartney has some very interesting protest songs worth listening. Other than that, I am today focusing on my opera career and listening to a lot of opera music. I am also very interested in the evolution of the themes of the songs in Disney music, a lot of them being about the status of women, loss, colonisation, songs too often overlooked because they are Disney songs. 

Do you partake in any activism outside the music?

It depends on what you call activism. I am completely into the respect of nature and ecology. I try as much as possible to help homeless people, whether it is by giving them a meal, or just talk. The french people has recently signed a petition (now 2 073 767 signatures) to sue the government and make it hold its promises for the climate. Other than that, I am not actively involved

If you could form a band with 4 people, living or dead, who would you choose?

I would go for those I consider as geniuses : Paul McCartney, Joan Baez, Pete Seeger and John Moukarzel. 

What’s on the horizon for you?

To keep working on the album, on my opera singing and on my thesis in Egyptology. Keep it simple but powerful.

You can check follow Laetitia on Facebook and the previously mentioned Bandcamp page for the full sonic experience. Cover photo by Taline Maras

Interview

A Protest Music Interview: Lee Reed

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Cover photo by Tony Hoang

“This microphone kills fascists”. That’s how Lee Reed blasts off on his song This Microphone from his 2015 album The Butcher, The Banker, The Bitumen Tanker. It’s been three years since the Hamilton, Ontario native, hip hop veteran released a full length and the resistance has been waiting.

For 23 years Lee Reed has been making militant boom bap radically raising his fist on tape and video and shouting messages of anti-capitalism, anti-police and equality. After touring with Sage Francis of Strange Famous Records he signed with the label for his newest release called Before & Aftermath.

Still militant, still relevant, Lee rips the society apart exploring its faults and looks for ways to puzzle it back together again.

“military grade shit/cops play war with certain populations/state sponsored it, racism faceted/blood and honour and ku klux closeted” Lee raps on ACAB which, unfortunately, is bound to never hit mainstream radio stations.

I contacted Lee via email and asked him about his new album, what set it apart from some of his more independent productions, his activism and organising and his dream roster of politician bandmates for a fiery bus crashing super group.

First of all, for those not familiar with your work, who is Lee Reed?

I’m an MC from Hamilton Ontario Canada, that makes far-left radical HipHop. I’m an outspoken supporter of organizers and organizations fighting for social and environmental justice. And I’m 23 years in the HipHop game in 2019. 

How did you get into making music?

I started messing around with music and song writing in my teens. I played guitar and I did rock and blues type jams with pals.  We would do covers and write some original material.  Nothing serious though really. 

And then, I started writing rhymes and rap in my 20’s. Inspired by other cats around me doing it.  I’d always listened to and loved HipHop but, didn’t really try writing and performing it myself until I was a bit older.  

Has your music always been political?

Yeah. Even when I was I was just getting started, I was always trying to ‘say something’ with music.  I was young and didn’t have the greatest grasp on politics and articulating big ideas but, there was a serious anti-authoritarian and anti-capitalist streak in my writing and thinking, right from the jump. Music with an expressly revolutionary message or that celebrated working class struggles and power. had always inspired and drawn me in. Public Enemy, BDP, KRS, later on into Rage Against the Machine, The Coup, Dead Prez. Or punk bands like the Dead Kennedy’s, Minor Threat, And was always was drawn to the underlying politics of HipHop and Punk in that era. Even bands that weren’t expressly radical, had decent politics woven through their songwriting. Or would have some ‘message based’ songs on their records. That really inspired me, and definitely shaped me as a songwriter.

You just released a new album, Before and Aftermath (Strange Famous 2018), but you’ve been making music for quite a while. Did you experience something new during the creative and production process of the new album?

Well, truthfully, this was the first time since my old band Warsawpack (1999-2004, G7 Welcome Committee Records) where I knew, going in, that a label would be carrying the work. I had been talking with Sage Francis about releasing it on Strange Famous Digital (SFDigi), and I knew if I crafted a great record that they would run with it. So, that kinda forced me to take the project a lot more seriously.  To get a lot more perfectionist about it. I spent way more time scrutinizing the process. I cut more songs, changed more songs, and did a lot more fussing about this record than anything I’ve ever worked on. 

Do you consider yourself a musician only or an activist or both? Do you find it hard to draw the line between the two or should there not be any line there in the first place?

Well, there’s a couple of layers to that.  First, if you mean is my music itself, on its own, a form of activism? I would say maybe, but in a very sideways and hard to quantify way. The song itself can act in the way a pamphlet or zine might, spreading radical info and awareness about something. There is that. But, I think, for me, the true crossover of music into real activism/organizing comes when artists give and use their music for the material benefit of a struggle.  Use their performances and recordings to bolster the work of frontline resistance and sites of struggle. Like, running fundraisers for organizations. Selling recordings where the proceeds go to radical organizations and campaigns.  Donating music or songwriting for a campaign site or video.  Using music as a spectacle for blockades and occupations. Using music and concerts to help refuel and invigorate organizers in the trenches. That sort of thing. I think when you can use your music to support struggle, in meaningful and material ways – you are properly using your art AS activism. And I’ve always worked hard to do that. 

Photo by Robbie J. – still from ‘This Microphone’ video

When it comes to your lyrics, do you ever find it hard to balance between the right, smooth flow and the precise political point you want to get across?

Definitely. And that’s something I fuss over continuously. The message is important but, you gotta sound smooth saying it. Or folk aren’t going to listen. 

What is wrong with this world and how can artists be a part of the change?

I think the problem is capitalism, and the way life is organized to put the needs of business over human beings. I think art can definitely help people see through that, and help articulate/envision something better. I think that approach is different for every artist.  And there are an infinite number of ways that art can make meaningful change. I guess I would just say, artists need to think about their relationship to the world and how their art affects and interacts with it. Is their art just a commodity, or is there a deeper significance to it, culturally, politically or socially? What does their art ultimately stand for?  Realize all art has a ‘politics’. Often that politics is ignorance, it’s a celebration of opulence or drugged up abandon or hate or something.  It might not have an overt ‘message’ like we think of with protest music. But it still stands for something. It still has a message.. it’s just getting whispered.  

Do you partake in activism outside the music?

Yes, as much as I can. Most years that’s just playing a supporting role for campaigns, organizers and organizations that I know. Attending rallies and actions. Helping run or promote events. Playing shows or events. Turning up and being present mostly. But some years I get deeper into the organizing work. This past year has been the busiest ever for me, in that regard. I belong to a tenant solidarity organization, here in Hamilton, and we have spent most of this past year working with a tenant committee in the city’s east end, supporting a rent strike. Its been over 8 months of regular meetings, door knocking, hearings, actions, events, fundraising, etc. Was often 4-5 nights of my week spent on it, at its peak. It’s definitely the most involved I’ve ever been in that ‘real work’.  It’s been one of the best experiences of my life. And I’m constantly inspired by my comrades in the struggle.   

How is the protest music scene where you are from? Are people using their voices and talents in protest?

Well, if you look at Canada as a whole.. and across genres.. there is lots of great protest/radical music, or artists that are pushing the political boundaries in a good direction. We have a lot of great rap and punk that talks good politics. My comrades Test Their Logik, Kay the Aquanaut, Mother Tareka, Praxis Life (who are part of a collective I work with called RHYMETHiNK), other talented rap pals I know like Emay, Kimmortal, Cheko Salaam, Micros Armes, garbageface, Jesse Dangerously.. OG electro soul hop pals Lal.. punk acts like Propagandhi, Action Sedition, Union Thugs. 

One big thing of note.. there’s been a surge in great Indigenous artists that have brought a strong voice for Indigenous issues, at a deeply divisive point in Canada’s relationship with Indigenous people. Canada’s colonization is ongoing. Genocide is ongoing. The rush to develop and sell tar sand bitumen.. sinking so much of our country’s economy into that venture.. and trying to force tankers and pipelines over Indigenous lands and waterways without proper consent. has brought the colonial legacy to the forefront of a lot of Canadians’ minds.  And I think artists like A Tribe Called Red, Tanya Tagaq, Snotty Nose Rez Kids, Mob Bounce, JB The First Lady, Ostwelve, Quantum Tangle (to name a few), are helping to articulate the Indigenous struggle and share its story. It’s inspiring.

How about your own influences, whether they are protest musicians or not? And are you following any socially conscious contemporary artists you want to recommend?  

Well, I’m always looking for good revolutionary music. I follow all the names I’d mentioned above in Canada.  But, outside of that.. some HipHop favourites of recent years would be.. Savage Fam, Ant-Loc, Bambu, Sole, Sima Lee, Mic Crenshaw, Skipp Coon. On the more mainstream side.. I’m into Vince Stapes, Earl Sweatshirt, Kendrick, Run the Jewels. There’s some good, inventive HipHop coming out these days.

What advice do you have for young musicians who want to use their voices in protest?

I would tell them to get involved with some real organizing. Find a group that’s doing work on an issue that concerns them or their community, and get involved in the fight back. They’ll be inspired in a way that reading and theorizing just never could.  They’ll understand, and be able to articulate the fight in a way that watching, reading and thinking about it just can’t. Get down.  

If you could invite 4 politicians, living or dead, to form a band with you who would you choose?  Haha. I guess Trump, Justin Trudeau, Doug Ford (our Province’s Premier) and Putin. We could die in a fiery tour bus crash.    

Image automatically generated by the Shouts machine 

What is on the horizon for you?

I’m just going to keep doing what I’m doing. Old timey boom bap hip hop, with a batshit radical leftist lean. I’m going to hit the road again in the spring. In Canada, and then Europe. And I’ve got some new writing on the go. Should be a pretty productive year.  

Thank you for participating and for your music. Anything else you’d like to shout from the rooftops?

Naw, I think we covered it! …easiest way to find all my music, videos, shows and new is to hit my website.. www.leereedrevolt.com 

Thank you for the thoughtful questions, and fist up!

Interview

A Protest Music Interview: Tina Mathieu

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Cover photo credit: Schultz Media

 

When an armed young man decided to take 17 lives away from their families, in what we now know as the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in the United States, the tragedy hit strong and personal with musician and activist Tina Mathieu. As a former alumni of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High and a published musician, Tina now writes more and more protest songs as well as participating as an activist in the country’s fight for gun reform and voter registration initiatives. In this latest Shouts protest music interview Tina tells me about her recent protest songs, her upcoming debut solo album (which drops in December 2018) and how she recognises her talent and uses her voice for those who don’t have one.

 

First off, for those not familiar with your work, who is Tina Mathieu?

“Thank you so much for inviting me to be a part of this amazing platform. My name is Tina Mathieu and I am an alternative soul singer/songwriter based in Los Angeles. I am also an activist involved in America’s common sense gun reform and voter registration initiatives.”

When did you realise you could use your music to make a positive impact?

“Early on in my songwriting, I tapped into the ability to tell the truth in a way to which people could relate. To me, relating to someone is extremely impactful. It’s what music and lyrics are all about. I’ve always been drawn to and soothed by emotional, introspective songs. I tend to write about my relationships, heartache, anxiety, injustices, etc. I think my music has had a positive impact in a way of letting others know that they aren’t alone in their pain or sadness. Especially In this current climate of America, I have turned to my music as a way of expressing what many of us are thinking and feeling and it has been beautiful to see it bring people together.”

Tina Mathieu Quote 1
Photo credit: Myke Wilken

Your debut album A Safer Place is set to be released in December 2018, but you’ve been working in the music industry for longer than that. Can you tell us a bit about the creative process behind this debut solo album and how the process might have changed since you started out?

“I spent the early part of my music career gigging around New York City as a solo artist and as a member of the indie pop rock band, Under the Elephant, before moving out to Los Angeles a few years ago. Finding the right producers and musicians who understood my vibe was really important to me. Once I surrounded myself with the right people, my sound really began to evolve into what it is now.

My biggest influences are 90’s alternative and R&B artists like Sade, The Cranberries, Erykah Badu and Alanis Morissette. I decided to lean into those instinctual vibes and create the music that comes most naturally to me. A Safer Place started to take shape after the devastating reality that my marriage was ending. Feelings of anxiety, abandonment, sexual trauma and depression were very real for me. The only way I could cope was to write it all down and sing about what I was feeling. The whole process was extremely cathartic and ended up becoming a beautifully dark and emotional body of work. I’ve recently released two singles from my upcoming album; a hauntingly uncomfortable tale of infidelity, RING OFF, and the most recent, a vibey reminder to break unhealthy cycles, TOUGH LOVE. I’m so excited to share the album as a whole. It’s been a long time coming!”

Being based in one of the more abundant and diverse music scenes out there, Los Angeles, how do you feel people are receiving your protest music?

“I’m pretty new to the protest music world. I wrote my first real protest song in February 2018 after the shooting at my Parkland alma mater, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. My song, One Step Closer, came as a surprise to me. It poured out of me in minutes after watching Emma Gonzalez’s emotional cries of “BS” as the March for Our Lives movement was born. With the way the country is today, writing protest music has become a big part of my process.

I recently released a live video of my newest protest song, America the Beautiful, which questions the apocalyptic nature of the issues that plague the USA right now. Singing these songs at rallies, protests and marches is very emotional. I cry pretty much every time, whether it’s before, after or even during my performance. I’m usually sharing the experience with people who feel similarly. Whether that’s angry, sad, frustrated or helpless, they look to me in hopes that I’ll move them in someway. It’s a big responsibility that I don’t take lightly.

However, performing my protest music at artist shows is much different and sometimes almost more important because I’m playing to mixed crowds. I find that audiences are surprised by it. Most people go out to see music to forget about our country’s problems so often my call to action is unexpected. The MOST rewarding part is when the songs actually hit them in a way that makes them feel like they want to be involved in making a change. If just one person hears a song of mine and because of it decides they want to pop their bubble and be a more involved citizen, that’s a huge win, not only for me and them but for us all!”

 

Is there a strong scene of like-minded musicians and artists using their voices in a similar way? 

“YES! There are so many amazing musicians and poets on the activist circuit. It’s a beautiful thing to see artists creatively channeling their hopes and fears to inspire and comfort one another. With issues ranging from sexual abuse to the destruction of our national parks, I have heard incredible musicians share their personal experiences and move a crowd to tears. I love being inspired by artists who use their platforms in a socially conscious way.”

You recently released the single One Step Closer. Can you tell us what it is about and why the subject strikes close to your heart?

“As I mentioned earlier, I’m a former student of MSD High School in Parkland, Florida. For those in other parts of the world who may not know what happened there on February 14th 2018, I’ll fill you in. On Valentine’s Day of this year, a troubled, young white male entered his former high school armed with military style weapons and an abundance of ammo and wreaked havoc. He brutally murdered 17 individuals, 14 of those young, promising students. The trauma this caused to my beloved hometown is indescribable. The ripple effect of the pain has reached people not only all over the country, but the entire world. Unfortunately in America, mass shootings are happening just about EVERY day and it could only be a matter of time until your community is next. Our gun laws have very little to do with safety, protection, and common sense and have everything to do with money, power and privilege.

The NRA (National Rifle Association) currently has the wherewithal to control our elections with money, thus bribing politicians to keep gun laws in the interest of their pockets. People with violent histories, mental health issues, and even people on “No Fly” lists have full access to legally own military grade weapons in this country with little to no background check or wait time. For those who care about the safety of our citizens, this makes little to no sense, but if you follow the dark money it all becomes very clear. Money and power are at the crux of most, if not all, of America’s biggest issues.

 

I wrote One Step Closer for the March for our Lives movement, which advocates for common sense gun reform, but really it can be applied to so many issues that we face. Leading a country to make major changes can be an extremely daunting task. In a time when we are constantly being fed distractions and lies from our administration, it is so easy to feel defeated. But with every march we attend, every vote cast, every civil conversation we have with someone on “the other side”, we are One Step Closer to making a difference in America… and in the world. We can never stop speaking up, no matter how hard it is.

I’ve comforted gun violence survivors. I’ve hugged the parents of these dead children. I’ve laid on the ground in protest pretending to be a dead body. I’ve spoken to scared school children to remind them that they have a voice and they aren’t alone. I have decided to devote my life to this cause.

I released One Step Closer with a music video created by fellow MSD alumni that captures moving footage of the brave and inspired people who took the streets to March for Our Lives all over America, along with a memorial for the victims. Proceeds from One Step Closer go to the March for Our Lives Action Fund. You can download, stream, and add it to your protest playlist and be a part of the change we are all creating!”

On your webpage you state that you use your “music and voice to speak up for the victims who no longer have a voice of their own”. There is a striking resemblance here to some codes of ethics of journalists. In journalism its an age old dilemma; the balance between journalism and activism. Do you find it tricky to balance between art and activism or is it blatantly obvious to use the music in this way? 

“96 Americans die every single day from gun violence. There are 17 people from my hometown who no longer have a voice or a vote. I speak and sing for them. There are plenty of artists who have strong political opinions and choose to not bring it into their music because it could “turn people off” or they may lose fans. To each their own. For me, it’s blatantly obvious to use my music platform for something bigger than me. The balance isn’t tricky at all because I’m not a journalist. I’m an artist so I get to infuse my perspective. My music is all about truth, whether that’s being cheated on in a marriage, children dying at the hands of our country’s twisted policies or the racism that is sewed into the fabric of our everyday life. Truth is truth. Speak it. Share it. If people are uncomfortable with that, it says much more about them than it does about me. Luckily, I am able to shape these messages into digestible pieces of music that we can all sing along to!”

Do you follow other current protest musicians? How about some older inspirations?

“I definitely have some favorite musicians, some of them great friends of mine, who use their platform for socially or politically conscious activism! Some of my favorites are Milck, Pussy Riot, Raye Zaragoza, Anthony Federov’s Voices for Change and Tennille Amor. I love artists like Charlie Puth, John Mayer, Andra Day and the Dixie Chicks who seamlessly interweave bigger messages into their mainstream pop music. I created a One Step Closer: Protest Playlist on Spotify that highlights all of these artists.”

What’s on the horizon for you?

“These next few weeks and months will be very busy for me. I just released America the Beautiful and it is making a huge impact! I will be performing at voter rallies, college campuses and election parties to remind people why it is imperative to vote in our upcoming midterm elections on Nov. 6th… and to stay involved thereafter! I’ll also be in the studio putting the finishing touches on A Safer Place EP. I’ll be continuing to volunteer for NextGen America and Moms Demand Action. And of course, since the news cycle never stops, neither does my brain, so I’ll be writing, writing, writing!”

Tina Mathieu Quote 2
Photo credit: @shinyfilms – Greg Bartlett

 

Thank you for participating and for the music! Anything else you’d like to shout from the rooftops?

“Thank you so much for creating this platform! The fact that my protest music reached your ears across the world, which led to me sharing this message with your audience means more than you’d know. I love that there are so many like-minded people around the world who actually care about humanity and justice for all. As world citizens, we need to continue to shine a light on those who are willing to stand up and speak loudly in the face of the injustices of the world! I’d love to connect with anyone reading this and listening to my songs. Music is such a personal experience and I would love to get to know the people I’ve touched or inspired. To connect with me, follow me on Instagram at @TinaMathieuMusic or visit my website, TinaMathieu.com.”