Obama!

O-BAM-A, O-BAM-A,

Breathe. At last, the right man has won. I just read this at Huffington Post

"we would die of grief if Barack Obama didn't win, and to make sure he did win we held our breaths.

We held our breaths through the conventional wisdom:

Hillary was a done deal. Barack Obama would have to raise his energy level or else. The country would never elect someone so professorial. The Bradley effect was alive and well. Obama was Michael Dukakis all over again. The Reverend Wright was a catastrophic mistake. Michelle Obama was too angry. There would be an October surprise. Israel would bomb Iran. Osama bin Laden would make a videotape. There would be a dirty bomb in a suitcase. Those women from PUMA might matter. The vice-presidential candidate never makes a difference. Obama should have picked Hillary instead. A pitbull in lipstick. Lipstick on a pig. Obama should never have gone to Berlin. Obama should never have gone on vacation to Hawaii. Twemty-seven per cent of the American people thought he was a Muslim. The Republicans would rig the voting machines in Ohio. Everything depended on Pennsylvania. America would never elect a black president.

By the end of the summer we were drained, we were spent, we were maxed out. Then the economy crashed. At that point it was over, but we didn't know it: we continued to hold our breaths through the debates. But the country had made up its mind and the debates didn't matter at all.

Tonight, at eleven o'clock, the endless election ended. It was divine. It was amazing. It was (depending on what commentator you were watching) either "an" historic event, or "a" historic event. And we can breathe again."

Read the full post here

Larry David on the election

AboutTheMusic's favourite comedian, Larry David, writes in the Huffington Post today about the suspense of waiting for the election, and taking out angst out on his ex-wife (which he quite enjoys). Poor Cheryl.

Read the post here

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What's rocking Obama's iPod?

Obama has revealed what's on his iPod. Will it be the Dixie Chicks like George W had on his? Of course not, Obama rocks out to Dylan (predictably), Springsteen and a wide range of others from Jay Z to Sheryl Crow. I wonder if he had a focus group telling him to get rid of some music before handing it over to Rolling Stone for his interview.

THE GUARDIAN reports that The list of bands reads like the acts at a summer music festival, with the Rolling Stones, Sheryl Crow and Ludacris all in the mix.

Obama said that, growing up, he listened to Elton John and Earth, Wind & Fire but that Stevie Wonder was his ultimate musical hero during the 70s.

The Stones' track Gimme Shelter topped his favourite songs from the band.

His selection also contained 30 songs from Dylan. "One of my favourites [for] the political season is [Dylan's] Maggie's Farm. It speaks to me as I listen to some of the political rhetoric."

In the song, Dylan sings about trying to be himself, "but everybody wants you to be just like them".

The jazz legends Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Charlie Parker were also included in the compilation.

Many of the musicians on Obama's iPod, such as Bruce Springsteen, are supporting his White House bid.

Earlier this month, Dylan said he believed Obama was redefining politics in the US and could bring change to a nation in upheaval.

"I've got to say, having both Dylan and Bruce Springsteen say kind words about you is pretty remarkable," Obama said. "Those guys are icons."

Obama said he had not met Springsteen but that the two had talked over the phone.

"Not only do I love Bruce's music, I just love him as a person," Obama said. "He is a guy who has never lost track of his roots, who knows who he is, who has never put on a front."

He added that, when speaking to the singer, he addressed him by his moniker the Boss. "You've got to," Obama said.

The candidate said he thought rap music was also helping to break down barriers within the music world. Indeed it was reported last month that Obama will make a cameo performance on the rap singer Q-Tip's next album.

However, he expressed concern over his daughters – Malia, nine, and Sasha, seven – listening to some rap songs.

"I am troubled sometimes by the misogyny and materialism of a lot of rap lyrics," he said, "but I think the genius of the art form has shifted the culture and helped to desegregate music."

He said the hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons and the rappers Jay-Z and Ludacris were "great talents and great businessmen".

"It would be nice if I could have my daughters listen to their music without me worrying they were getting bad images of themselves," he added.

Obama appears on the cover of the Rolling Stone issue. The magazine endorsed him for president in March.

Great Speech

Barack Obama at Ebeneezer Baptist Church.

He's quite an orator. In memory of Dr King, Obama addressed the church with a wonderful speech.

"The Scripture tells us that when Joshua and the Israelites arrived at the gates of Jericho, they could not enter. The walls of the city were too steep for any one person to climb; too strong to be taken down with brute force. And so they sat for days, unable to pass on through.

But God had a plan for his people. He told them to stand together and march together around the city, and on the seventh day he told them that when they heard the sound of the ram’s horn, they should speak with one voice. And at the chosen hour, when the horn sounded and a chorus of voices cried out together, the mighty walls of Jericho came tumbling down.

There are many lessons to take from this passage, just as there are many lessons to take from this day, just as there are many memories that fill the space of this church. As I was thinking about which ones we need to remember at this hour, my mind went back to the very beginning of the modern Civil Rights Era. "

READ ON AT TIME MAGAZINE