I Can-Nas- 2002
Songwriters: Roy Hammond, Salaam Remi, Nasir Jones
In his song, “I Can,” Nas urges young kids to have dreams and push themselves to reach them. He tries to motivate them to do better and to know that they can be anything they want to be if they put their mind to it. Nas talks about young people who were drawn into the wrong crowd, and ended up badly, despite having the potential to do better. He also talks about young girls who try to imitate what they see on television and try to act a lot older than they actually are. He tells them to slow down and focus on reaching their goals before they end up in a bad situation.
Dear Mr. President- Pink- 2006
Musicians: P!nk, Max Martin, Billy Mann, Indigo Girls
In “Dear Mr. President,” Pink talks about having a conversation with the President and asking him questions about different things going on in our world today. She touches issues like the war, education and the no child left behind act, employment, and prison. When I first heard this song I thought it was very interesting and controversial. But I liked that she raised questions about a lot of issues that are probably on peoples minds.
Niagara en Bicicleta- Juan Luis Guerra- 1999
In the song, “El Niagara en Bicicleta,” Juan Luis Guerra talks about a day where he went to a hospital because he was feeling sick. When he goes to the hospital, he barely receives any medical help and finds out that the hospital barely has any doctors or equipment to help him. In this songs, he shows what people who don’t have a lot of money in certain countries have to go through when they go to their local hospital and how this should change. My mother told me about this song and I remember both my parents singing this song when I was younger. They told me that this song really showed what people go through in the Dominican Republic and how it can be very different from here in the U.S.
– I. G