Think your vote doesn’t count? This rapper brilliantly shows why that’s not true

By KC Ifeanyi

WHO: Rapper YelloPain

WHAT: The politically conscious track “My Vote Don’t Count”

WHY WE CARE: Songs with an overt social or political message can be tricky to pull off. The production value and performance needs to be on par with any other song you’d hear on the radio, and, most importantly, the actual message needs to come across in a way that isn’t preachy or flat-out lame.

Rapper YelloPain checks both boxes with “My Vote Don’t Count.”

YelloPain brilliantly captures voter disenfranchisement, specifically in the black community. While voter turnout among all major racial and ethnic groups saw historic highs in 2018, there’s still a gap to close—and there are still disenfranchised groups who feel that, given issues such as gerrymandering and voter suppression, not to mention politicians routinely getting away with actual crimes, there’s just no reason to vote.

In “My Vote Don’t Count,” YelloPain admits he felt the same way, but he then presses that not voting is exactly what those in power want us to do. And then in a clip that honestly should be played in every social studies class, YelloPain breaks down the three branches of government, illustrating how it’s not just presidential elections that are important, but all elections.

In an election year like the one we’re in now, we need more rappers like YelloPain.

 
 

 

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