[lbo-talk] Eminem

[Max B. Sawicky]

I luved it.  The vote thing at the end
is a striking blunting or reversal of the
scary nightime street mob motif in the body
of the video.  Maybe it will scare away
some of those GOP poll watchers who are
slated to disrupt voting in minority
precincts.

I didn't see a leader thing going on --
more anarchistic.  The multiple Eminems --
shades of a previous appearance on MTV --
is less about a leader than about Everyman,
IMO.

It's a little fascistic in the shortage
of content, but nowhere near Reifenstahl.
The latter's images glorified authority
and regimentation.  Eminem's people are
not special bodies of armed men, nor do
they march in formation.  This was more like
Chuck D's fight the power video, which I
think is more vulnerable to the fascism
charge, or "rhythmn nation" (more so still).

Note the vid is multi-racial in a big way
(how could it not be), a strike against
fascist connotations in an American film.

And this disgorges the totality of my
knowledge or lack thereof about contemporary
music videos.  I stopped watching them when
Friday Night Videos went off the air, ages ago.

I await with interest the professional
judgements of Carroll and Yoshie.

-----Original Message-----
From: lbo-talk-bounces at lbo-talk.org [mailto:lbo-talk-bounces at lbo-talk.org]
On Behalf Of Nathan Newman
Sent: Wednesday, October 27, 2004 4:23 PM
To: lbo-talk at lbo-talk.org
Subject: Re: [lbo-talk] Eminem

Actually, the most interesting aspect of the video is that it creates a
menacing mob-anarchist feel that is directed to going into voting.  It makes
voting en masse seem menacing, which it is to the powers that be, but that
message hasn't been out there on the left for a while.  The radical focus of
the video is not just the donning of the hoods to go marching, but taking
them off to go vote at the end of the video.  It's a hip-hop "Clean for
Gene" message in its essence.

And while there is a leadership vibe, it's couched in explaining and
simplifying what's at stake to encourage folks to vote.

-- Nathan Newman

----- Original Message -----
From: "Steven Gotzler" <Steve at gotzler.org>
To: <lbo-talk at lbo-talk.org>
Sent: Wednesday, October 27, 2004 3:06 PM
Subject: Re: [lbo-talk] Eminem

There is a similar quality to the video that reminds me of Triumph of the
Will.  And while the lyrics do call on people to rise up and vote, they
also
ask people to let the singer lead them.

Steve

----- Original Message -----