The ‘anti-sociality’ of social media as portrayed in selected Zimdancehall songs

Abstract

Background: Although social media was designed with the aim of bringing good, it has however taken negative trajectory in societies of the world which has resulted in unpleasant outcomes such as conflicts, lack of Ubuntu, family disintegration and even death of some people. All sectors of the society that include media, government departments, the law courts, the police, educational institutions, the home and arts industry have all pointed to the negatives of social media. Musicians as social commentators and members of the society sensitive to social issues have also observed and raised their concerns about the effects of social media through songs. Aim: The article analyses the effect of negativity of social media on the lives of the people of Zimbabwe as revealed in selected songs. Setting: Selected songs and most particularly Zimdancehall songs that are about the problems that are brought by social media in society will be analysed. Methods: In the analysis, the article, therefore, adopts textual analysis as the method. WhatsApp is the major form of social media that will be focused on although others such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter would also form part of the discussion. Results: Zimdancehall artists appear to have nothing to celebrate about social media as they are blame everything about it. Conclusion: The article shall conclude that although social media was meant to bring people together, it has, however, set them apart and has created many problems in society and thereby becoming an antisocial platform.