So on my way home from class one day, i was listening to my ipod, and the song that plays is “kenji” by Fort Minor. The songs lyrics tell the story of a Japanese-American family’s experience in the U.S. during the events of World War II. Namely Pearl Harbor, the Internment of the Japanese into camps by the U.S., similarly to Germany and the Jews, and the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Within the song, there are voice inserts by people who either experienced what had happened during that time or have family who have experienced it, the singer’s (Mike Shinoda) own family being one of them. I found it interesting that in a 4 minute song, we can get a glimpse as to what had happened from a Japanese-American standpoint.

-Nick Thips-