The Student News Website of Susquehannock High School,   Glen Rock, Pennsylvania.

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The Student News Website of Susquehannock High School,   Glen Rock, Pennsylvania.

SHS Courier

The Student News Website of Susquehannock High School,   Glen Rock, Pennsylvania.

SHS Courier

Can music breed violence?

Where are the “Pumped Up Kicks” lately? Foster The People’s 2011 hit has been banned on some radio stations in wake of the Sandy Hook shooting.

The chorus warns high-status students to “outrun my gun” and “run faster than my bullet,” which some interpret as encouraging violence. Maybe the song should be pulled, but for the right reasons.

Foster The People’s album Torches features “Pumped Up Kicks” and artwork of creatures holding fire, not guns.
Photo by: Konnie Brown

After all, front-man Mark Foster agrees with the decision. He understands that victims and survivors in Newtown deserve respect after such a tragedy, as he explained in an interview with CNN.

“Now, this topic is finally at the forefront of major discussion and will hopefully lead to some big changes in policy that will prevent these acts of violence from happening in the future,” Foster said. “That being said, I respect people’s decision to press pause.”

It is understandable why people would want a song like this, or Ke$ha’s “Die Young,” to be taken off the air. After such a disturbing tragedy, grieving friends and family deserve time to mourn and heal. However, it is off-base for people to accuse these songs of encouraging violence.

“Die Young,” however simple and hedonistic, is just a song to promote partying and a spontaneous lifestyle. Never do the lyrics even mention violence, let alone condone it.

The bigger controversy stems from “Pumped Up Kicks,” and its message which clearly relates to gun violence. However, this song is not meant to approve of violence.

Foster explained that one of the main reasons he wrote this song was actually to relate to the Columbine High School shooting in 1999; bassist Cubbie Fink has a cousin who survived the massacre. On a larger scale, the song was meant to publicize all teen violence. Foster admitted to being shocked at the amount of violence in today’s youth.

“It was terrifying to me how mental illness among youth had skyrocketed in the last decade,” Foster said. “This song was written as a way to create an ongoing dialogue for an issue that was being talked about, but when it came to government intervention, [it] was largely being ignored.”

“Pumped Up Kicks” was meant to stir discussion, which it did. It did not cause any shootings. It is insulting and ridiculous to suggest that people died because of a song. People should take personal responsibility and understand that morals must be learned. Taking a song off of the air will not keep a violent person from committing violent acts.

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Can music breed violence?