“Nina Cried Power” by Hozier is a song of empowerment and protest that is an essential contribution to political and social conversations happening today. The song acknowledges numerous people who have been influential in speaking out for oppressed groups, a lot of them stemming from the Civil Rights movement. The importance of this song comes from the call to action that is incorporated throughout the lyrics, which is why I think it would be a very appropriate song to do my podcast on. This song was released in the spring of 2019, and was the first track on Hozier’s second album.  The message at first listen may be straightforward, that it is in a way thanking all of those who have come before us and made drastic choices that shaped our society, but there are many underlying and/or forthright comments that make this song connected to current day.

This song has many different paths that could be followed. From the people listed in the song with their importance and possible connections to modern day events, to the direct comments on current political situations. I believe that there is an analysis that can be done on the song’s lyrics itself as well as the music elements backing it up, and reinforcing this idea of action. Hozier typically dances around the folk-pop genre, hitting both audiences of the masses and the more classic folk lovers. A person of his fame level making a song that comments on social movements and politics is a large and purposeful comment, and I want to discover what the true purpose was.
This song is important to me because I find Hozier’s views on politics and religion to be very similar to my own, and I respect the choice he made as a white man to step up and use his voice to do something that could enact action. I saw him in concert when he toured this album and he began the show with this song, which I think was a wonderful way to start a concert and unite everyone who was there. He made some choices while performing that really made different words stand out, and when I listened to the song again post-concert I noticed different things in the song. I think this song has something new every listen, so that studying in for 11 weeks I will have a more complete view of the song, as opposed to being tired of it. There is also an amazing music video that provides me with even more content to analyze. I don’t foresee any concerns in completing this project with this song, but you never know!