"Ill
Manors" is a hip hop protest song by
English singer and songwriter Plan B. The track was
released in the United Kingdom in March 2012 through the American
company Atlantic Records (a subsidiary of the Warner Music Group conglomerate) as
the lead single from the Ill
Manors soundtrack, a low budget film which Plan B also directed. The
song was written in reaction to the 2011 riots across England, and
specifically Plan B's perception of "society's failure to nurture its
disadvantaged youth." The song deals with both the causes and the
consequences of the riots, concentrating on society's attitude towards the
disadvantaged youth population. Drawing upon Plan B's own experiences of being
expelled from school the song sarcastically attacks the media view of
working class children: "Keep on believing what you read in the papers /
Council estate kids—scum of the earth."
Writing in The
Independent, Tim Walker called it "an all-time great protest
song." However, Samuel Breen, also writing for The Independent, describes the song as "a cliché riddled
attack on politics" and suggests that Plan B is justifying the action
taken by the rioters, something Plan B denies.
The music video for "Ill Manors" expands
upon the themes of the song, and uses footage from the 2011 riots. David
Cameron and Nick Clegg, the Prime Minister and Deputy
Prime Minister, both feature in the video, despite not being mentioned in the
lyrics. However, Cameron's "Hug a Hoodie" campaign is alluded
to.
Plan B - ill Manors.
Answer the following questions...
- Forms
How is it typical of a music video?
- Representation
How does it represent the London
riots/rioters?
- Audience
What audience pleasures does it offer?
- Institutions
How does the music video help to promote the
film?
Homework
Research the Ill Manors track and soundtrack album - Record companies? Sales? Music reviewers' response? Post the research on your blog - minimum of 350 words.
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