Compare and Contrast: Song
Poverty is a serious issue in America and an issue that deserves attention. This is
an issue often talked about in the world of politics, but sometimes ignored in the world of
popular culture. Fortunately, some musical artists are willing to use their platform to
draw attention to societal problems in the hopes of seeing these issues improve. While the
genre, style, and sound of The Dead Kennedy’s “Kill the Poor” and Aleo Blacc’s “I Need
a Dollar” vary immensely, both songs highlight the severity of poverty in seemingly
developed countries.
“Kill the Poor” and “I Need a Dollar” both focus on the prominence of poverty.
The Dead Kennedy’s note in their song, “Jobless millions whisked away / At last we have
more room to play.” In this quote, the singer uses the word “millions” to draw attention to
the number of people affected by poverty. While Aloe Blacc’s song has a different sound
to it, it too focuses on the number of people suffering from poverty. Blacc says, “And I
need a dollar dollar, a dollar is what I need…Well I don't know if I'm walking on solid
ground / Cause everything around me is crumbling down.” The phrase “everything
around me” implies the poverty affecting the speaker is surrounding him. The community
this speaker is within is also severely affected by poverty.
“Kill the Poor” and “I Need a Dollar” both emphasize that poverty is out of the
control of those affected by it. The Dead Kennedy’s sing, “No more welfare tax to pay /
Unsightly slums gone up in flashing light.” In this quote, the artists mention the slums.
Drawing attention to the slums implies that the people living in these slums cannot help
the conditions that they are in. While The Dead Kennedy’s discuss poverty in a satirical
fashion, Aleo Blacc directly states the fact that our speaker can’t control the fact that he is
facing the hardships of poverty. Blacc states, “Please mister boss man I need this job
more than you know / But he gave me my last paycheck and he sent me on out the door.”
This quote directly shows that the speaker can not control the fact that he lost his job. In
fact, he desperately begs the “boss man” to allow him to keep his job. Unfortunately, the
“boss man” is unable to help him and therefore the speaker is forced out of his job and
into the world of poverty.
Finally, “Kill the Poor” and “I Need a Dollar” both imply it’s society’s
responsibility to help with the issue of the poor. While everyone tends to agree that
poverty is a social problem, these songs imply it’s society’s responsibility to help provide
a solution. The Dead Kennedy’s imply this through satire, while once again, Aloe Blacc
is more direct. The Dead Kennedy’s state, “Efficiency and progress is ours once more /
Now that we have the Neutron bomb.” This quote means that instead of using our societal
progress to create nuclear bombs to destroy the poor, we should use this efficiency and
progress to find ways to help those struggling with poverty. After listing the hardships he
has faced, the speaker in Blacc’s song ends the first verse with the line, “And all I want is
for someone to help me.” This line directly states the speaker is in need of and willing to
ask for assistance. If society was willing to aid those facing poverty more efficiently and
progressively, the problem would be lessened.