"It's got a great message and you can groove to it".
Posted on 06/10/2005 6:33:23 AM PDT by iwannaknow07
Hip-hop music usually gets a bad rap for its misogynistic overtones and violence, but amid the criticism comes a refreshingly courageous song with a message to which parents can proudly expose their children, particularly teens.
"Can I Live?" which debuted recently on Black Entertainment Television's "106th & Park" video music show, stars former Nickelodeon television star, turned rapper and movie star Nick Cannon, as the yet-to-be son of a teenage mother.
The video, set in the 1970s, takes place at an abortion clinic where a teenage mother, played by actress Tatiana Ali, formerly of "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air," arrives to get an abortion. Cannon, who plays a ghost-version of himself, tries to persuade his mother to choose life and reconsider her decision to terminate her pregnancy.
The mother sits in the waiting room where others are facing the same dilemma. As she fills out medical forms, Cannon's character talks about the struggles she would face as a teenage mother.
Ali's character is then seen in a hospital gown, lying on a table, ready for the abortion procedure. With doctors standing by, Cannon again appears and sees himself in the form of a baby in the ultrasound on a screen behind him.
He implores her to think about the consequences of her actions and what he could become one day if she would only let him live. As if she could hear him, Ali gets up from the examination table and leaves the room. Cannon thanks her.
Ali runs outside to the street and sees a crowd of children of all sizes and ages wearing white t-shirts, emblazoned with three words: "Can I live?" Those words are also heard in the song's chorus, which is sung by various children.
Months later, we see the young mother in a different hospital room surrounded by family and friends while holding her baby.
In the entertainment industry, sex is often viewed as the most effective tool to sell a product. As a mom, however, I would like to think that an uplifting message like that found in the "Can I Live?" video is much more powerful.
While watching this video, I was moved to tears thinking about the mothers who thought they had no other choice but to abort their child, but I was even more affected by the voices of the children, begging to be born.
Hopefully, more mothers who are conflicted over matters of life and death will be able to hear their child's voice as clearly.
See post #40.
I got chill bumps reading this. Nick Cannoon huh? I may buy my first rap CD!
That was beautiful...*sniff*
Thank you very much for posting this.
I'm not a big fan of hip hop, but that was seriously one of the most moving songs I've heard in any genre of music.
Qwinn
Very nice!
I only heard this song once as a young girl and it had such a powerful effect. I remember every word.
Let me live
Let me walk into the sunshine let me live
Feel my mother's arms around me
Feel my father's love surround me
Be a part of God's creation
Let me live.
bump
Back in the Seventies when I was teaching school in New Orleans my all black classes were very united on the perception that abortion was a "white folk's thing"and that"we"carry our kids to term,wed or unwed.
I think that view is rather simplistic but also in many ways quite accurate.Somewhere along the line the"liberal"black leadership went pro-abortion and many young blacks got brainwashed into thinking killing an unborn child was OK.
However,even today,you are more likely to see a white teen from the burbs get an abortion than a girl from the hood.
I'm not sure about absolute numbers but as I understand it the abortion rate is much, much higher among blacks.
It cracks me up how in America, these days, anything gets validity just because a certain segment of our population starts talking about it.
With the exception of country music (which I cannot stand) I'm with you on the rock/metal/Irish traditional music. Add in a little Gregorian Chant and it's a perfect setlist!
Bears repeating: (to vote go here: http://www.bet.com/Site+Management/Polls/106+and+Park+II.htm?wbc_purpose=Basic&WBCMODE=PresentationUnpublished&Referrer=%7B29BD4505-32BF-4E4F-A434-1E7519949588%7D )
Go vote! Let's keep this young man on top! FReep it!
Not even close, black women account for about 12% of the population and about 32% of abortions.
"It's got a great message and you can groove to it".
Same here on all counts. But watching the video was even better, Nick gets my business.
HUGE RC Pro Life Ping....an amazing video that was featured on Amy Wellborn and Domenico Bettinelli's blogs! I saw it today and it blew me away.
Frank
Been away, thanks for the ping!
I hope the main street media will give this song and artist their full attention. It seems nobody shows black culture in a positive light... hear's their chance.
Holtz
JeffersonRepublic.com
Common did a similar type of song some years back. Regarded as one of his best, though it had more of an ethnocentric "don't kill black babies" vibe to it. That's fine, but Cannon's song probably can speak to more people.
D'oh, I missed this post.
As mentioned by nickcarraway, hip hop music is one of the only non-marginal music forms that's addressed pro-life issues.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.