Plan B - Ill Manors * Warning - Strong Depictions of Violent Content*
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‘Ill Manors’ is a Hip Hop protest song by English singer and songwriter Plan B. The track was released in the United Kingdom on 25th March 2012 as the lead single from the Ill Manors soundtrack, a film that 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.’
Plan B returns to the Hip-hop style of his debut album ‘Who Needs Actions When You Got Words’ with the release of ‘Ill Manors’, after his more soulful second album ‘The Defamation of Strickland Banks’. The lyrics mingle perceived causes of the riots such as the closing of community centres with threats and jokes. The aggressive baseline in the song is designed to mirror the turmoil and unrest felt by those involved in the riots, engaging a ‘visceral energy’ to raise awareness. It samples ‘Alles Neu’ by Peter Fox, which itself uses elements from the fourth movement of Dimitri Shostakovich’s Seventh Symphony.
The song, described by The Guardian’s Dorian Lynskey as ‘the first great mainstream protest song in years,’ was
written in response to the riots across England in August 2011. The song deals with both the causes and the consequences of the riots, concentrating on society’s attitude towards the disadvantaged youth population of the United Kingdom. Drawing upon Plan B’s own experiences of being expelled from school and attending a pupil referral unit, 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.’ The song, accompanied by a film of the same name are intended as the start of a project by Plan B to address what he perceives as a class divide. In an interview with MistaJam on BBC Radio 1 Extra, Plan B explained that the use of the word ‘chav’ was equivalently offensive to ‘Terms used to be derogatory towards race and sex.
The song was first played by Zane Lowe on BBC Radio 1 on the 27th February 2012, and immediately after was available for streaming online on You Tube and Soundcloud. The single was released as a digital download on the 25th March 2012. A remix of the single by Funtcase debuted on Fire radio on the 18th February 2012.
Jamie Reed, the Member of Parliament for Copeland compared the song to Marvin Gaye’s ‘What’s Going On’, and continued to describe it as ‘Excellent’. Writing in The Independent, Tim Walker called it ‘an all-time great protest song’, while David Smyth of the London Evening Standard praised Plan B’s decision ‘to say something so bold.’ Clash columnist Samuel Breen, also writing for The Independent, describes the song as ‘a cliché riddled attack on politics that feels calculated, impersonal, and disingenuous’. Breen also points out the apparently contrasting opinions made by Plan B, citing an editorial written by the rapper shortly after the riots in 2011, in which he castigated the rioters, claiming that they were damaging Britain with the actions taken by the rioters, something Plan B denies. In his interview with Radio 1Xtra, he clarified that he was ‘not trying to condone what happened during the riots.’
For the chart week ending April 7, 2012,’Ill Manors’ debuted at number six on the UK Singles Chart with first week sales of 37,455 copies. The track marks the musician’s third top 10 hit following ‘Stay Too Long’(2010) and ‘She Said’ (2010),which peaked at number nine and number three respectively. On the same charting week, ‘Ill Manors’ debuted at number three on the UK R&B Chart behind Chris Brown’s ‘Turn Up the Music’ and Nicki Minaj’s ‘Starships’, also debuting at number nine on the Scottish Singles Chart. On its second charting week, the track registered a seventeen-place drop, falling from six to number twenty-three; marking the week ending April 14, 2012’s biggest faller.
The music video for ‘Ill Manors’ was filmed on the 17th February 2012 and was directed by Yann Demange. The video expands upon the themes of the song, and uses footage from the 2011 riots in London. David Cameron and Nick Clegg, the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom both feature in the video, despite not being mentioned in the lyrics. However, Cameron’s ‘Hug a Hoodie’ campaign is alluded to.
Ill Manors is also an upcoming album by Plan B due to be released as the soundtrack to his 2012 film of the same name. The film has been described as a ‘Hip-hop musical’ with all songs performed by Plan B. Speaking about the album, Plan B said,(and I quote) ‘You could call it bassline, soul, hip-hop. The album has the lyrical depth of my first record, but the musical composition is light years ahead, as it’s informed by everything I’ve learnt in the last five years- writing, producing and playing with a live band. I feel I’m better than I’ve ever been’.
On the 8th February 2012, it was announced the soundtrack for Ill Manors would be released on May 7th via Atlantic Records. Subsequently, Plan B has clarified that it is not simply a soundtrack album, but can be considered his third studio album. This album now has an official release date of the 18th June 2012.
It has been very difficult for myself to review Plan B’s song ‘Ill Manors’, in a way that I would usually review songs by artists. This song was born out of the very unfortunate circumstances of last year’s (2011) UK riots, which lasted for four days in August.
Unfortunately, I cannot give a ratings mark for the song, based upon these unfortunate realities in the song; that actually happened for real. The real realities of what happened to individuals in these riots, far out-weigh the realities of any artistic merits of this song.
I will say that next to The Sex Pistols ‘God Save The Queen’ (1977), The Specials ‘Ghost Town’ (1981), Elton John’s reworded ‘Candle in the Wind’ (Tribute to Diane, Princess of Wales/1997), Asian Dub Foundation’s ‘Real Great Britain’ (2000) and Lily Allen’s ‘The Fear’ (2008), Ill Manors is one of the Greatest examples of a Cultural and Political message in the Modern, British Pop Song. The song’s lyrical anger and frenetic jungle and grime drumbeats fully bring you in, as a listener to the realities of last year’s August Riots. The music video is even more a confirmation of this reality.
I was so worried about this music video being shown on musicvita, I had to ask for special permission for the video to be shown, from the editor of musicvita. For anyone who was very shocked by last year’s riots, this music video would not be very comfortable viewing in any shape, way or form. Plan B’s role as the artist, was about depicting the realities and the media’s perceptions of UK Youth.
At the height of the Riots, everyone in society was talking about the riots, and trying to find solutions for these very deep problems. It only took five or six months in which everyone, especially politicians, had forgotten about the realities of these riots.
Reminding the Public and Politicians about the realities of these riots, was the whole basis of this song from Plan B.
It is Plan B’s hopes that the depictions of the song’s very strong lyrics and imagery in the music video, that a debate about finding solutions to these very deep sociological problems in society, can be really tackled in a positive way.
This song also brings to the agenda, the role of the artist in writing a song like this, that are based on social political realities.
What is the Artist allowed to document and to not document in song lyrics?
How much reality is the artist allowed to document in visual music video?
Before you make up your own viewpoints of this song and music video, listen below to an interview Plan B gave to Radio 1 Extra, of his reasons for documenting this very unfortunate period in this country’s history.
Roger Howard.
Plan B Ill Manors Radio 1Extra Interview with MistaJam
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