Use of Songs as An Effective Communication Tool for Climate Change and Transformative Action in Kenya

Abstract

Music is a powerful tool that can be used for transformative action. Music can be used to communicate information and emotions, and thus, it influences the way people think and how they view the world. A song is a musical piece involving lyrics that can be sung with or without accompaniment. Songs have always been a uniting cultural tool throughout human history. Songs serve not only a single purpose of entertainment but also educational purposes. The objective of this research is to analyse the climate change themes addressed in environmental songs by Kenyan artists and to examine how these songs can be used in climate change conversations. Songs about climate change can drive and encourage people and even countries to make positive changes. Even though songs play a crucial role in transforming people's minds, limited research on using songs in climate change action has been done in Kenya. Kenyan artists have composed songs on climate change. However, only some of these songs are popular, but we predict they can bring substantial transformative change if utilized. This research uses data from YouTube channels. The study adopts a descriptive design guided by the Ecocriticism Theory. The researchers relied on previous studies and critical analysis of scholarly texts on songs. We argue that songs by Kenyan artists have themes that express the scenario of environmental degradation due to climate change. These songs can be an effective communication tool about climate change in Kenya.