Boy George, "We Will Dance Again"

Let’s be real here.  This song is trash.  The fact that it was AI-generated helps explain why the backing track sounds like a parody of karaoke reggae .  The lyrics are clunky and awkward, to put it mildly.  There’s no obvious symbiotic connection between the music and lyrics – why is this a reggae song?  Couldn’t it have been house music, or acoustic pop, or any number of other genres while still broadcasting the same message?  There’s nothing about the lyrics that scream “cool reggae vibes” in the least.  The song comes across like something that was written and recorded in a day, in order to meet a deadline.  This won’t be blaring out of a car window or a club near you anytime soon.

And yet, it’s better than nothing, which is exactly what the music industry’s response to the Nova Festival massacre has been up until now.   Boy George is at least doing something.  He’s doing it for a cause he believes in, even if it costs him financially.  In the long term, he may even benefit.  Many loony left wing and right wing cranks have discovered that ditching a defensible political position and catering in Jew-hate to those who crave that sort of thing, is a financially lucrative career decision.  There’s a lot of money is Jew-hate right now.  There's also something to be gained by joining the other side.  Boy George may yet discover that after a career in the global pop sphere, he’d be better off focusing on more of a niche audience, the kind that will be receptive to the message of "We Will Dance Again". 

There’s really only one line in the song that matters: “But if you’re ever confused/I stand with the Jews”.  There’s nothing controversial about that.  His loyalty to his Jewish friends is commendable, he should be praised for it.  But the old line about being more Catholic than the Pope comes to mind.  Diaspora Jewish musicians can’t even defend their own.  Why does the responsibility fall on Boy George to do it?  This particular issue shouldn't be controversial in the least.  Hundreds were slaughtered at a music festival.  No matter your opinion on subsequent events, the event was horrific.  Kent State keeps an archive of music related to the 1970 shootings, which people still talk about decades later.  The shootings inspired dozens of recordings.  Boy George's song is the first Nova-inspired music by a major artist.  Why shouldn't there be more such songs?