Africa-Press – Eswatini. Arts have always played a role in society and musicians generally represent what they see and feel in their respective environments.
Painters and sketch artists draw pictures of their surroundings and every creative, no matter what industry they are in, are a product of their surroundings.
A lot of people in arts believe their craft is a reflection of reality and it cannot be ignored.
Given the recent developments, one can only hope that Eswatini’s creatives understand the role they play in society.
Local artists weighed in on how arts can address the world’s social ills.
Singer and producer Hanwah said she believed that artists were a channel for all that happened.
“The good and the bad; artists reflect a subjective truth of it. It’s not our duty; it is more a natural outcome. Art is simply an alternative language for storytelling and it opens our eyes to alternative perspectives,” she said.
The artist added that artists’ job was to be a mirror for what was and what could be.
Female rapper Mz Louis Lane shared her sentiments and said artists had a major responsibility to be the voice of the voiceless and represent society in general. “We need to go as far as having support groups for marginalised people as we are artists and are relatable,” she added.
Even in America, during the civil rights movement, music played a critical role in inspiring, mobilising and giving a voice to people from all walks of life.
According to Wikipedia, the civil rights movement was a political movement and campaign in the 50s to 60s in America to abolish institutional and racial segregation, discrimination and disenfranchisement throughout America.
As prior mentioned, music and art is key as it helps people find a common ground and addresses the issues everyone can relate to. With this in mind, Eswatini artists have a lot of work to do in uniting the nation and making sure that they translate a true picture of our society to the world stage. It is known that arts have the power to alter public opinions through visual imagery.
When looking at the pictures that were captured during ‘slavery era’ in the United States or apartheid in South Africa; those captured images tell a story and they take the viewer to a place and time in history through photography or visuals.
That is how people are able to relate with those times even though we might not have lived in them.
That is the power of art, how people are able to relate to Bob Marley and the music that he made during his time because he addressed serious issues of injustice while opening his audience’s minds and eyes to the social ills that were happening around the world.
The arts fraternity can contribute positively to the society in helping to build a better tomorrow. Creatives are more than voices on radio and brushstrokes on a canvas, they have the power to change the world through their God given talents.
In 2023 and going forward, most creatives have expressed hope that the arts and entertainment sector would grow to unfathomable heights and creatives would take their place in society. Art is responsible for a lot of joy and happiness and it is known to convey the pain pretty well too, so artists please heal the world!
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