Political music is a fad in America.  Sometimes it’s popular, sometimes people just want to dance.  But what about musicians who don’t have the luxury of treating politics as a fad?  What about artists who live under such repressive and brutal conditions that they cannot afford to ever divorce their music from a political mindset?

This edition of Thriller examines POLITICS AND MUSIC through the eyes of three such artists:  Hugh Masekela, Albert Mazibuko (Ladysmith Black Mambazo) and Caetano Veloso.  Masekela and Mazibuko lived under apartheid in South Africa.  Veloso lived under a repressive regime in Brazil.  All were exiles from their home countries.  All have incredible stories to tell about the power of music to change the world.

Also, check out Gainesville musician David Borenstein’s beautiful first dispatch from China.  Borenstein moved there several months ago and writes about the changing political landscape through the eyes of ordinary Chinese people.

Gainesville musician David Borenstein recently moved to China.  He writes about the changing political landscape as seen through the eyes of ordinary Chinese people.  You can find his and other articles at Asia Snapshots.  In his first installment for Thriller, Borenstein writes about a trip he took to the Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in West Sichuan to hike around the holy mountain of Minya Konka.