The protest song that I chose is War by Bob Marley. It was written by Alan Cole and Carlton Barrett. The first verse is derived from a speech made by former Ethopian emperor Haile Selasise I. In the song Marley is protesting the violence and the racism that was taking place in Africa at the time. He also states that he is unhappy with the way the government in Angola, Mozambique and South Africa was denying equality. He states that untill all this stops there will be war. Marley is protesting the very actions that lead to protest. In other words the reason he is protesting is ultimately to stop protest. In this particulat situation Marley is talking about the brutal violence in Africa. However what makes this a great protest song is that it can be used in almost any situation. There have been many instances of racism throughout history in many different countries and places. I think protest songs can be very effective. However most of the time the artists of protest songs are trying to draw attention and convince people who are undecided. In order to convince these people I think protest songs have to combine reasonable lyrics along with entertaining music. What sets music aside from your average CNN speech is the entertainment. People knowingly listen and produce music because they get an emotional high from it. No one plays a song just because they “have to.” However too strong a melody may take away from the lyrics and ultimately the message. I think an effective protest song needs to be entertaining. However if the artist or production company is looking to do more than just sell records, the entertainment of the song shouldn’t obstruct the public’s ability to analyze the message.