Great Depression Rap - Smart Songs 

Great Depression Rap - Smart Songs
www.SmartSongs.org
Directed by: Shoeless Jeff
Written and Performed by: Shoeless Jeff & Scott Free
Beat Composition: John Della Morte
Mixing & Mastering: Marc Antonio Pritchett
Filming: Tim McCombe & James Mills
Special Effects Supervisor: Steven Aguilera
Logo Design & Special Effects: Carlos de la Vega
Costumes & Props: Mr. Vintage of Burbank
Hair & Makeup: Katie Skarvinko and Danyell Weinberg
Special Thanks: Arnold Delapous and Bob Smith for vintage cars
Featured:
Dennis King
Geoffrey D. Hill
Carly Toth
Randy Vinneau
Tanissia Sprull
Max Stern
Josh Capo
Meghan Stephens
Kim Farris
Gallupdick Pullag
Jacob McGregor
Bryce Thurston
Natalie Thurston
Steven Aguilera
Bob Smith
Aaron Smith
Nathan the Piano Man
Lyrics:
America was poor in the Great Depression
Millions without jobs in every profession
How will we eat was a daily question
What are all the lessons of the Great Depression?
Before the Great Depression, everything seemed great
It was the Roaring 1920’s, people liked to celebrate
A lotta food on their plate
And there was money to make
Factories were selling automobiles like hot cakes
Not to mention household appliances and radios
Flashy things, the economy was based on those
But the problem was that if times got tough
People weren’t gonna buy luxuries and all that stuff
And if you can’t buy what you usually do
Then the people who sell those things lose their jobs too
And then they can’t buy, it’s like a domino effect
So there were hidden changes
Though things seemed perfect
Chorus
Before the Great Depression
People thought they had luck
Thinking up ways they could make a quick buck
They’d buy a stock and sell it
For more than they bought it for
Sure to make a profit, long as the stock would soar
Seemed like such a great idea, everybody wanted in
Even with no money, they started borrowing
They’d ask the bank for a loan to the buy the stock
But could not pay it back when the stock would drop
Lots of people got in debt, had to sell all their shares
When some start selling, everyone gets scared
Millions rushed to sell their stocks in a mass
In the fall of ’29, the stock market crashed
Chorus
October 24, 1929, Black Thursday
One of the country’s darkest times
The market did crash, stocks began to tumble
Many Americans faced financial trouble
Their savings washed away in a matter of days
Left with debt with no money to pay
And our government-no, they didn’t want to panic
They knew there was a problem, but didn’t understand it
President Hoover tried to think of answers
He wanted to improve spending
What were the chances?
Businesses closed, banks dried up like wells
But Hoover thought things
Would take care of themselves
Chorus
Millions of people were poverty stricken
Living within wood shacks and poor conditions
These makeshift camps sprouted up all around
Hoovervilles they often called these towns
A couple years passed, it was 1932
The presidential race began to ask who
Could lift this country up from its depression
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, no question
Made the first and second New Deal
Government projects, building bridges of steel
With the Works Progress Administration
Then World War II brought jobs to the nation
Chorus