Foreign Policy Blogs

Obama for President, 'Mon!

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Senator Obama has inspired yet two other musical cultivations, both coming from the Caribbean.

The Mighty Sparrow, a Caribbean-American of of Grenadian/Trinidadian origin known as the “Calypso King of the World,” composed a song praising Obama.

In the song, titled “Barack the Magnificent,” Sparrow sings: "Barack! Barack! He is fighting for openness and honest government. Barack , is doggedly defiant; phenomenal strength; and wisdom beyond comment."

Sparrow's lyrics also urge the Senator to stop the war in Iraq, end the genocide in Darfur, get healthcare for those who “have not,” and to “clean up Washington… in the wake of the Jack Abramoff scandal.”

According to Sparrow's website, the singer actually endorsed Senator Obama back in August of 2007 at an “exclusive,” backstage meeting between the two at the Marriott Hotel in Brooklyn. At the meeting Sparrow presented the Senator with a mix tape he composed and recorded as a “tribute to Obama.”

Sparrow said of Obama: “Based on what I have heard, read and researched, I am very impressed by the resplendent vision of Obama (words which entered into his hit song). He is resilient and wise. It is easy to equate him to Solomon."

One more musical tribute to Senator Obama was recently released by Jamaican Reggae singer Cocoa Tea:

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PRI's The World radio program investigated Carribeans’ views of the US Presidential election.  The program's correspondent in Jamaica had some interesting insight and quotes from Carribeans themselves on whether Obama holds the promise Sparrow sings about.

 

Author

Melinda Brouwer

Melinda Brower holds a Masters degree in Global Politics from the London School of Economics and Political Science. She received her bachelor's degree in Political Science and Spanish at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She received a graduate diploma in International Relations from the University of Chile during her tenure as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar. She has worked on Capitol Hill, at the State Department, for Foreign Policy magazine and the American Academy of Diplomacy. She presently works for an internationally focused non-profit research organization in Washington, DC.