Marvin Gaye - What's Going On entry

Before the recording of What’s Going On, Marvin Gaye was thought to be a very different artist. His image was drastically different also. He wrote great love songs and had a successful career because of it. He also because a predominant sex symbol of the ‘60s and ‘70s. He wasn’t thought to be a tough guy or fighter; he was a lover. What’s Going On was a contradiction to his whole career. The song was definitely a risk that would have been hard for the average artist to pull off.

The song, What’s Going On, was actually influenced by many social and national concerns and issues. Renaldo Benson is the person who gave Marvin Gaye the song after he was inspired to write it because he witnessed horrible police brutality in San Francisco. After Marvin Gaye received the song, he added the pain of his brother’s time spent fighting in war, the shooting deaths of political leaders, and more violence and injustice throughout the world.

It wasn’t easy for Marvin Gaye to get What’s Going On recorded and released. There were extensive processes that the song had to go through for both things to happen. When Marvin Gaye got to the point of actually recording the song, he was so excited that he called Berry Gordy to tell him the news. Berry Gordy immediately shot him down and told Marvin to stick to making love songs. Everyone working on the song thought it might not happen because they may not get away with it. They eventually recorded the song, but once Berry Gordy listened to it, he called it the worst thing he’s ever heard in his life. Berry Gordy refused to ever release the record, so Marvin Gaye refused to do any work for the label until he changed his mind. Eventually, Harry Balk heard the record and liked it so much that he issued it without Berry Gordy’s knowledge. Berry Gordy would have tried his best to pull the record from the shelves if it had not been so successful.

What’s Going On is different from other soul recordings of the 1960s and ‘70s in many ways. What’s Going On is even set apart from the other recordings that were being made on Marvin Gaye’s own label, Motown. No one on Motown was making songs that addressed serious issues that were going on in the world. With the exception of some seriously controversial artists, such as Bob Dylan, there weren’t many artists in that era that would venture into that territory for fear of their career being hurt. On the album, What’s Going On, Marvin Gaye was daring enough to cover social issues in his songs. Another characteristic that sets the What’s Going On apart from other soul recordings of the mid 1960s and ‘70s is the fact that it’s a concept album and he is the first soul singer to create one.  After this, many artists took note and decided they would create concept albums also.

Personally, What’s Going On hits home for me as both a listener and industry professional. As a listener, it touches my soul to hear a singer make music about issues that are so serious. It uses their voice to bring recognition to a greater amount of people. I love to hear it because it lets me know that there are other people who really care. As a professional, I admire the fact that an artist had the courage to do this. It’s not easy to make music that has a meaning as opposed to just making music that you know will earn money and get airplay on the radio.