Mosh (song)

Mosh
publication	October 26, 2004
length	5:17
Genre (s)	Hip-Hop , Conscious Rap
text	M. Mathers , A. Young , M. Elizondo , M. Batson, C. Pope
music	Dr. Dre , Mark Batson
album	Encore

Mosh (derived from the term “ mosh pit ”, which at open-air concerts refers to the boggy area in front of the stage where the fans dance) is a song by the American rapper Eminem . The piece is included on Eminem's fifth studio album Encore and was released as a second single on October 26, 2004 . It is a protest song against the then US President George W. Bush .

content

The song can be assigned to the genre Conscious Rap , as many text passages are political and socially critical.

At the beginning the voices of children can be heard reciting the pledge of allegiance . Now Eminem starts rapping and says it is time to speak up and use the influence he has gained from his fame to help the blind see. He made the way to the top, despite some stones that were put in his way. In addition, he also played the role of father for his daughter Hailie. In the chorus, Eminem calls on all listeners to come with him and be guided through the darkness to fight and accuse. The second verse is about everyone sticking together, regardless of skin color. We should fight together and demonstrate against Bush so that he can bring the soldiers back home from Iraq and Afghanistan . In the third verse, Eminem compares George W. Bush with Osama bin Laden . Bush himself should be sent to war with an AK-47 so that he could impress his father . No more blood should be shed for oil, since there are enough problems in one's own country to be taken care of. One is also loyal to the USA if one does not accept a commitment to the war. If Eminem was shot, it would be because he called for a protest against the president. In the outro of the song, the rapper compares George W. Bush with a weapon of mass destruction and again calls for the fight for a better future.

On the previous album The Eminem Show there is a thematically similar song called White America .

production

The beat of the song was created by Eminem's discoverer and producer Dr. Dre produced in collaboration with Mark Batson. No samples from other songs were used.

Music video

The fully animated video for Mosh was directed by Ian Inaba.

It begins in a classroom where Eminem speaks to the students as a teacher and shows various newspaper articles about George W. Bush and the Iraq war . This is followed by articles expressing Eminem's position against George W. Bush. Now an animated figure of the rapper Lloyd Banks is shown, who is being beaten by police officers in the street. He goes home and sees a report on the Ku Klux Klan on television , whereupon he goes back to the streets and joins Eminem, who is already rapping and protesting there. Eminem is also shown performing in front of US soldiers in Iraq. One of these soldiers comes to his family's home soon after, but there he receives a letter that sends him back to Iraq. In response, he and his wife also join Eminem and the street protest movement. The protest movement reaches a large square in front of the Capitol , where it faces the police. At the end of the video, protesters storm the building to vote.

After President Bush won the 2004 presidential election in the United States on November 2, the end of the video was changed: Citizens storm the Capitol while Bush delivers his State of the Union address . The then Vice President Dick Cheney had a heart attack.

single

Mosh was only released as a single for promotional purposes and to protest against George W. Bush and was therefore not for sale on the free market.

Web links

• Lyrics with interpretations (English)
• Lyrics (German)
• Music video on vimeo.com

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Lyrics in the booklet