The night before the inauguration of President Donald Trump, the band Gorillaz released their first song, "Hallelujah Money," in about five years. The Gorillaz are best known for their songs "Feel Good Inc." and "Clint Eastwood." Their years of silence were interrupted by a chilling song and music video exploring the idea of greed within the current U.S. political landscape. The lyrics hint at money’s effect on our humanity and subtly take shots at Trump.
The band has a long-held reputation for issuing opinions on pressing issues through their art. Their album "Demon Days" features tracks such as "Kids With Guns" and "Dirty Harry" that clearly reference cultural issues. Social and political commentary is nothing new to the virtual band.
The song and music video feature Benjamin Clementine, a British-born musician known for his versatile style and impressive vocal range. In the video, Clementine is seen standing in an elevator in Trump Tower with various scenes and cartoons being projected on to the wall behind him. From footage of native African dancers and members of the La Candelaria brotherhood in Spain to cartoon liberty bells, the projections show a vast array of different cultures from around the world.
Perhaps more enticing, though, are the lyrics. Clementine's lines are seemingly from the point of view of Trump. The line, "And I thought the best way to perfect our tree is by building walls..." refers to Trump's plan to build a wall along the U.S.'s border to Mexico. The line, "And thank you, my friend, for trusting me," is a nod toward the American people for electing Trump.
The most consistent sentiment throughout "Hallelujah Money" is greed and whether money is detrimental to our humanity. Immediately after Clementine repeatedly sings the words "hallelujah money," David Albarn, one of the two members of Gorillaz, is heard singing the lines, "How will we know? When the morning comes we are still human. How will we know? How will we dream? How will we love? How will we know?"
The bulk of the song and video focus on the idea of an unhealthy relationship with money in regards to Trump specifically. The real animosity harbored toward Trump is observed in the small details of the lyrics and the video.
In Clementine's spoken verse he says, "Ah, don't worry. It's not against our morals. It's legally tender." Legal tender is a term for currency recognized by the government. However, the term is also used to describe whether someone is of the legal age of consent. This could be a discrete reference to Trump's various sexual scandals.
The video ends with a scene from the television show SpongeBob SquarePants in which Spongebob is screaming and running away. The significance of this lies in the context of the SpongeBob episode. In the episode, Mr. Krabs, SpongeBob's boss, had just yelled at Spongebob, "You're fired," also known as Trump's catchphrase from his reality t.v. show The Apprentice.
The Gorillaz released this song and music video by tweeting a link to it on uproxx.com with the caption "Dark times - u need someone to look up to. Me. Here's a lightning bolt of truth in a black night. Now piss on! New stuff won't write itself."
The Gorillaz are officially back and expected to release a full album sometime this year.
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