Top 10 Children's Songs With Racist Origins 

I'm curious about that title you won't say.

Man am I happy I live in Norway and not America. I will never ever visit America. Canada and Mexico maybe. But never ever will I set my feet down on American soil.

I'd like a list of ice cream truck music! 🍦🍨🍧❄️😍😋

@@underland1983 Wzll if it can Make you want to visit America, while hitler was putting people in camps in germany, the US was doing the same with asians of their country after Pearl Harbor 😗

Many so-called Native Americans refer to themselves as Indians WatchMojo. Also Jingle Bells never had anything to do with mocking black people. But WatchMojo will push out their talking points when they are told. This video was only made to attack Christmas. They do this whenever they have a top 10. They're only trying to make one point and put nine other irrelevant points to throw you off of their true agenda.

Well, shit.

damn 😲

I hard that too

A lot of old fairytales and I believe quite a lot of old nursery rhymes are quite dark in their origin or about what is. Most of these things aren't just meant for entertainment, it was also meant to be cautionary tales of things that could happen or has happened. So I wouldn't be really surprised if Ring Around The Rosie was indeed a song based on plague deaths.

Interesting, Plague, Inc incorporated this nursery rhyme into their game for this reason. Well that’s dark.

Same. The real meaning is f**ked up.

No most definitely not lol

Same!! 😭😭😭

Same…

Everybody should listen To their parents, but when they're stupid they should not.

I happen to love shortening bread and im white.

I know, right? Not that I understood most of them when I was young, and no one could answer any of my questions. I remember wondering why the baby was in a tree with Rock-a-bye Baby.

And you still don't know. You believe everything you read on the damn internet? Personally I didn't see one iota of substantiation in any of that. Just like the tip of the index finger and the tip of your thumb touching together with the other three fingers extended it's supposed to mean white power... that's bullshit, and you KNOW that! LET'S GO BRANDON!!

My daughter and I still have feud over, "and the Joker got away," vs, "and the Joker did ballet." Obviously it was, "And the Joker got away!!!"

That one was much funnier than the original not gonna lie.

This version was even sung by Bart Simpson in the original pilot film for "The Simpsons." He sings it at the beginning, when he and the other kids in his school are singing Christmas songs during the annual holiday show, and just as he's singing the "Batman smells" verses, someone, probably the school principal, pulls him out of the choir.

@@michaelpalmieri7335 that pilot episode was actually where I first heard of this American Schoolyard parody of the song TBH

Sadly, Jingle Bells is potentially one of these questionable songs now, too. I think Batman is still na-na-na-na-not a problem, though.

Agreed on all three parts of this comment. We really need to teach the new generations to be aware of this sort of stuff.

I totally agree with you

Yes, keep racism alive and teach it to children, so they view people by race

Absolutely.

Racism is a big issue between all races, we may never see all of us come together. But we should keep trying no matter the cost.

They didn't even really touch on the aspect that despite being well known as a Christmas song the song has absolutely 0 to do with Christmas either. It's just a song about horse and sleigh races that was obviously written through a racist lens.

@@69belhaven Who races horses and sleighs in the snow? (Remember the lyrics "Dashing through the SNOW/in a one horse open sleigh")

@@michaelpalmieri7335 winter horse and sleigh races were and are a thing they just used to be more popular. The song itself never mentions Christmas and the only Christmas related things are snow and a sleigh.

There was another song that was similar to "Ten Little Indians" but involved Monkeys, but I think it would also apply to the latter as well

@@JadenYukifan28 yeah

@@TheDastardlyDipshits Never thought these songs were dark

A few months ago, I saw a RU-vid video that also featured songs and nursery rhymes that originally had racist undertones. Among other things, it said that "10 Little Indians" was originally called "10 Little Niggers." Some historians say that the word "Indians" wasn't aimed at our Native Americans and that the "N-word" wasn't meant as a slur against black Americans, that both words were really targeted towards the people of India, which, at the time the song was written, was still a colony of the British Empire. The theory is that a Britisher wrote the song for the purpose of depicting the natives of India as an inferior race, because of the color of their skins, and implying that the people of the United Kingdom were superior because they were white, and therefore, had the right to rule over India and other countries and peoples considered "inferior." In short, "10 Little Indians" may have been written so the British could show who was boss over India. By the way, despite what the narrator says, not all of the "10 Little Indians" are killed. For example, one verse says: "Nine Little Indian boys sleeping in late, One overslept, and then there were eight." Another verse goes: "Eight Little Indian boys traveling in Devon, One said he'd stay there, And then there were seven." Another goes: "Five Little Indian boys going In for law, One got in Chancery, And then there were four." There are actually other versions of the tune with different lyrics. A few were about each of the "Indians" being killed. But while the original ended with: "One Little Indian boy left all alone, He went and hanged himself, And then there were none," another take on the song had a happier ending: "One Little Indian boy left all alone, HE GOT MARRIED And then there were none." The latter fact was even mentioned in the stage play version of Agatha Christie's mystery novel "And Then There Were None" (later retitled "Ten Little Indians," which was also the title of several movie versions of the story), in which two of the ten people, a man and a woman, who were supposed to have been killed, are still alive, have exposed the real killer (one of the guests, who had faked his own "murder" so he could continue his deadly spree), and apparently, decide to become husband and wife. This is in contrast to the ending of the novel, in which all ten of the guests are murdered, and then a squad of Scotland Yard detectives explore the scene of the crimes, but they can't figure out the mystery. A few months later, someone on a boat discovers a written confession by the murderer explaining in detail how he committed each slaying, how he had pretended to be slain too, and then went on to finish off the rest of his victims before taking his own life (he was dying anyway) in a manner that looked like murder.

😂😂😂

🤣🤣🤣

🤣🤣🤣 I beat you remember how people use to play there music through game chat . That was annoying .

Didn’t know there were monkeys in Ireland. Isn’t that a pretty bad climate for most monkey species?

@@briansullivan5908 You...are...joking... right?

I thought turkey in a straw was a pretty harmless song until somebody used the tune and made a racist song called "n word love a watermelon"

They were already speaking of that

I'm strangely intrigued to see what other nursery rhymes have messed up origins.

That's a good one

@@ashlymenard5780 Way too many of them actually

Jack and Jill; is supposedly about King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette during the French Revolution. King Louis XVI was beheaded (lost his crown) during the Reign of Terror. Shortly after, Marie Antoinette was also beheaded (came tumbling after).

It's never been definitively proven it was about the plague

I always understood that it was written post civil war and that Dinah was a locomotive that blew it's whistle to start and end the work day.

@@leechjim8023 I always knew it to be an old slave song that got taken to the railroad and then modified.

THANK YOU. I got nothing and I've been reciting it in my head over and over on how it could be racist. I think that one is reaching a bit. Guess what? Lol Still gonna play it at Christmas. Sorry Not Sorry.

They literally said why.

They said it was written to mock black people that wanted to be part of the winter activities… ‘laughing all the way hahaha’…. This was based on research but it’s so hidden that no one cares it’s too far fetch

@@mauriciovalencia3374 It IS too deep and far-fetched. At least, too much for me to suddenly be like "welp... that does it. Never playing Jingle Bells again." Lol I care, but if I need to go that left field as to why the song is wrong and interpret the lyrics' intentions I'm pretty sure it's not directly offensive by today's standards. I mean, honestly... up until today, I always thought they were "laughing all the way" because they were having a good time. Lol

It is a sleigh ride, nothing more.

That was a parody. Not actually The Wiggles.

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Lol!! Wow. You're for real, aren't you? Lol That, um... wasn't The Wiggles and was a joke song.

@@damnedash9526lol wow you kiddos really get your panties in a twist when you dare speak I’ll of your hero. Grow up there little one.

@@jenniferferguson1517 LOL Is that supposed to be some kind of "burn?" LOL Good job, there, cupcake! You just keep doing you! We're all very impressed I'm sure!

Thank you, Mr. Helpful.

@@ashlymenard5780 YW

@@moviesignsol I was trying to make a meme reference.

@@ashlymenard5780 whoops.

@@moviesignsol It's okay.

Yep! Have yourself a very Merry Christmas!

Thanks! That's way better than the spams "praise the lord before the end!" lol

@@Gentleman_Orange you're very welcome.

Same

Hard R want a watermelon is probably the one that'll hit harder though all these songs are pretty messed up

Lol then you're weak and get offended on the behalf of others to much lol. I'm colored. And this is part of history. Like many nursery rhymes. They're dark But if you didn't care about before what's the point of getting all pissy about it now

@@thecaptaintaz420 I think people are just shocked that these "innocent" children's songs... aren't.

@@wmdkitty As a black man I stopped being able to differentiate the ice cream song with the song I listed above. Mostly because they literally just took the instrumental and started to blast it through neighborhoods.

was thinking the same

You know what's crazy about that song. It is played during splash mountain at magic kingdom. That ride is getting changed as well .

@@Reaperguy67 didn’t it already change during the pandemic?

@@punkwrestle no. It's still the original. It should be changed some time in 2022.

There’s nothing racist about that song and Song of the South isn’t racist either. It’s a classic Disney movie that nobody will get to watch because it’s been deemed “racist”.

Pretty much! Enjoy the songs you like, skip the ones you don't.

Don't be silly! Not every song ever written has or had undertones of racism.

i assume she did considering the book is based in the south US during the civil rights era

Since the author is not black, and MANY people--blacks included, are unaware of these song origins, I'm going to suppose she did not.

No, it wasn't. The racist slur is not an original lyric. This originally was a children's counting song.

@Condatore - Correct.

@Condatore I have looked at the history of it within the United States! It was a children's counting song! The ORIGINAL lyrics were Hana, man, mona, mike;Barcelona, bona, strike;Hare, ware, frown, vanac;Harrico, warico, we wo, wac.[3] The N word came much later, and was a regional change. The tiger was used by people with some common sense.

@@AtheistOrphan no. Not correct!

@@Kimmelbee1 - The version with the n-word was (sadly with hindsight) the version we all sang as kids (I’m pushing 60 by the way). It also features verbatim in the 1949 Ealing comedy film ‘Kind Hearts and Coronets’.

You are correct good sir

@@jonathans.8537 haha lol just watched the video and saw I was correct

Yeah, it's not racist, it's about a guy picking up chicks.

I've also heard most of these songs when I was a kid, and like you, I never knew about their darker origins. It seems to me that racism is more entrenched in American society than we thought and has been so right from the very beginning of this country. Maybe the creators of the 1619 Project and the Critical Race Theory had the right idea after all, but try telling that to those crazy right-wing Republicans who don't want anyone to know or learn about either of these theories, like Texas Governor Gregg Abbott, who actually wants to make it illegal for the schools to teach their students about the history of slavery in the United States. WTF???? 😵😫😱 HOW RACIST CAN YOU GET?

@@michaelpalmieri7335 and to think that the Camptown Song was one of those kids song that had messed up origins throughout history is just even more messed up. Especially when you consider how many times this song was briefly used in a couple of classic cartoons like Loney Tunes, which already ruins my childhood. 😱😳🥶

I know right? We moved to the US in 1998 from Singapore and since then people from my community have been attacked many times because of the way we look. We work hard and mind our business but we are beaten and robbed. In 2009, my 79 year old grandmother was attacked while waiting for a bus and had her jaw broken and hip fractured. She passed 3 years later. As Asians, we have it hard too but we fight forward without harming anyone, yet over 20+ years I personally know of at least 11 racist incidents against us. Losing faith in humanity is something we all share. By the way, every single racist incident we experienced came at the hands of Black Americans. Sad.

@@xfactor3000 The problem with immigrants who love to immigrate to America is that they, like you, know nothing about our history. Your people have not been discriminated against based on how they look for over 400 years. You just listed single incidents, you have yet to list systematic, structural, environmental racism, or any kind of racism that has been specifically targeted toward Asians here. Also if it wasn’t for my people who fought for every minorities rights in America in the 1960s to not be discriminated against across the board in all ways, I’m sure your people would be attacked even more than they are.

RU-vid would probably give them a strike for it.

@@drfreud65 The version of Oh Susanna, complete with the particularly offensive verse that is usually omitted, is already on RU-vid.

This is one of the reasons why I wish the dislike button wasn’t removed

There's nothing wrong with talking about racism

Right? I was wondering the same damn thing.

I just thought of that

because he cracked corn and well, to be honest...we just don't care :)

Right? But Jingle Bells is...

While I don't disagree, ignoring the origins of media can veto the history of why the song, story, whichever, was created and can change viewpoints of how the past was for those in the present or future.

I agree with @Eric Norman. Knowing the origins of something is never a bad thing. My two cents is that if the songs have been revised, AND instill good feeling rather than its original intention to hurt, then its not really the same song anymore is it?

That's what I say. I _totally agree_ with altering racist and hateful lyrics in songs, but _outright banning_ a song is almost _totalitarian._

@@rogue7723 huh. Didn't think of it that way. I don't agree with banning reading material especially. I guess the best people can really do is make one another aware of history, and let each other decide what to do.

Im gonna sing the older ones to spite people like you

What the actual hell were they teaching kids in school

Fat chance of that ever happening

Yea in my middle school choir we learned this & several other "Negro/Slave Spirituals," which by other metrics would've bummed me out as a black girl growin up, but I don't think it was done 2 glorify the origins of American slavery in my best memory.

After a while, all this becomes ridiculous. When Susan B Anthony first started campaigning for women’s rights, she campaign for everything. Because of this she was not taken seriously so she reduced it just to campaign for the vote.

Because it's not there. It's a late 1800's song about fun and frolicking in wintertime.

That man is not Australian. Australians are people like Travis Head who say oh cunt.

@@patrickbateman6885 - Oh. I always thought he was. What country was he actually born in?

@@AtheistOrphan It was a joke. He was sadly born and lived in Australia.

There's no mystery to that. The character is called "PARSON Brown," not "Foster Brown." The word "Parson" means "minister" or "clergyman." Consider the lyrics that you obviously misunderstood: "In the meadow, we can build a snowman, Then pretend that he is Parson Brown, He'll say 'Are you married?' We'll say 'No, man. But you can do the job when you're in town.'" In other words, the couple in the song build a snowman, which they pretend is the local Parson, or minister, who will someday perform the marriage ceremony for them. I trust that solves your mystery for you.

Ive only heard the song as it was used in the States for a pro wrestler called "Outback Jack" when he was in the WWE. This a poor mans crocodile dundee who didnt last very long.

I always heard them play _Greensleeves_ but that's probably a thing for my country.

So did I!

Not all ice cream trucks play the same songs. I once heard one playing ragtime composer Scott Joplin's "The Entertainer" (better known as the theme from the 1973 movie "The Sting," starring Paul Newman and Robert Redford). Another time, I heard a truck playing the theme from "Chariots Of Fire," and another one playing "Music Box Dancer."

Oh, wow! That's quite a lyric! In the US it is usually "One for the master, one for the dame, one for the little boy who lives (or cries) down the lane."

Remarkably grimey right smfh 😳💯✌🏾

Elaborate. What title of what song is racist?

that's racist, why associate dark with bad?

@@NatCo-Supremacist I hope thats a joke.

@@anthonyadams1325 it's not, racism is no joke

You are correct

because they're liberal snowflakes

Disney stories and most original children's stories were made intentionally dark to warn children. The full star spangled banner has a reference or 2 to slaves.

Well, it’s important to acknowledge the history as well as it sets an idea on what culture was back in the day. And it kinda says something about how still popular these songs are and how ingrained they are in our culture and history.

Actually, we live in a time in which some people actually know the origins of these songs, so yes, it does matter. Think of any song you know that has been "bleeped" for strong language. Don't you still know the word that belongs in the bleep? Don't you still sing it in your head (or out loud)? Replacing words with less offensive ones does not actually change the song at all for those who know the original.

Exactly.. cool information but that's it. Doesn't ruin or change anything.

@@josvel2344 No matter how much the Cancel Culture thinks it does.

@@williamcrowe2576 cancel culture will always keep digging looking for hate because that's all they're about.

Song of the South been vaulted and will never come back out. So only those with the VHS of that Disney movie or the cassette/record of the soundtrack will even know of that song. I remember parts of that song, recalling it being rather upbeat and perky so it's racial undertones would be easily missed.

In the world of ‘WatchMojo’, racism is everywhere.

no, it's because people of many races are forced to live together and no one likes it.

No it's because people are racist and prejudiced against my race and many other race not because they're educating you on the racist context of nursery rhymes

I'm guessing you're from the South

@@donovanlocust1106 lol nope New York

@@hunterwise5156 yikes!

Every kid sings Jingle Bells in their school Christmas recitals.

It was originally meant to be a Thanksgiving song.

@@michaelpalmieri7335 interesting

To these people it does.

I know it is shocking, it does sound friendly but the story of this song is racist

How is it making trouble? It’s pointing out the origin, which is true, the origins are racist. What seems to be the issue?

Birds living in a tree know not its roots. They have the luxury of flying to another when that tree rots and dies

@@beetogarcia9983 the issue is if you look at most things origins they could be classed as racist but that’s the past we’ve move on from that as a society we’ve noticed it was wrong and rectified it

@@dscates27 We haven’t moved on that much with the issue with racism in this country and it kinda does say something about how popular these songs still are and how much of it is a part of our American culture. Imagine that a song where you made fun of black people and called them the n word hard r is as American as apple pie.

@@dscates27 I feel like there's something wrong with educating people about the origins of these songs. We haven't moved on and I feel like y'all are so quick to say my goodness slavery was a long time ago get over it It's not that easy especially of black people are still suffering from massive racism and unfair and inequality in society

given how they are today, I can see why my ancestors thought so poorly of them. They knew reality better than anyone today.

Yeah, could've at least explained the meaning. They don't have to say the actual word, just give you an idea what word it was

@@supertransistor8762 what meanings were you unable to infer?

If you research that you'll find that it was not only one person's opinion.