Journeys With Jani

Let’s Talk About It…

Tonight I’ve got two songs on loop in my head that are older than half the opinions on the internet… and somehow still more mature.

For What It’s Worth and What’s Going On aren’t new songs. But they’ve aged like the good stuff. They still fit way too many moments in American life, which is both impressive and… honestly exhausting.

And no, I’m not doing the political cage match tonight. I do not have the energy to argue with Team Red or Team Blue or Team “I Saw A TikTok Once.” At different moments, both sides need to step away from the keyboard, unclench their jaw, drink some water and remember there are actual humans on the other side of the screen.

Because this chaos isn’t one-person, one-party, one-election, one-whatever. It’s a buildup. A pressure cooker. And watching grown adults act like feral raccoons in a Walmart parking lot? Damn. Just damn.

So let’s do what music does best: tell the truth without screaming.

1️⃣ “For What It’s Worth (Stop, Hey What’s That Sound)”

❤️ Who sang it: Buffalo Springfield

❤️ Who wrote it: Stephen Stills 

❤️ When it came out: Recorded December 5, 1966 and released as a single in December 1966 

❤️ What was happening then:

A lot of folks later filed this one under “Vietnam protest song,” but the spark was closer to home. Stills wrote it after clashes tied to the Sunset Strip curfew protests/riots in Los Angeles in November 1966. Young people, clubs, police, tension, the whole thing. 

❤️ What it was saying then- Not “pick a side.” More like:

“Everybody breathe… look around… something isn’t right.”

It’s a warning flare. It’s that moment when you realize the temperature in the room has changed and pretending everything’s fine is not going to cut it.

❤️ Why it still hits now:

Because it doesn’t name names. It names a feeling. The feeling of watching people talk past each other, posturing, escalating, acting brave behind screens and forgetting consequences are real.

It’s basically the soundtrack to: “I don’t know what’s happening but I know this isn’t good.”

2️⃣ “What’s Going On”

❤️ Who sang it: Marvin Gaye

❤️ Who wrote it: Al Cleveland, Renaldo “Obie” Benson and Marvin Gaye 

❤️ When it came out: Released January 21, 1971 (you’ll also see January 20, 1971 cited in some timelines) 

❤️ What was happening then:

This one was born out of real unrest and real grief. The writing was sparked by what Benson witnessed around violent clashes and police brutality during protests, then Marvin Gaye took it, shaped it and made it personal. 

❤️ What it was saying then- This is not a song that throws punches. It asks questions. It pleads for basic human decency.

It’s basically:

“Can we stop tearing each other apart long enough to admit something is broken?”

❤️ Why it still hits now:

Because it’s not a history lesson. It’s a mirror.

“Mother, mother, there’s too many of you crying”… that line doesn’t expire. Neither does the feeling behind it: confusion, compassion, frustration and a desperate need for people to calm down and act like we live on the same planet.

The shared message, then and now

These two songs come from different genres and different decades, but they’re cousins.

Both are saying- Pay attention Lower your volume Remember people are people If we keep going like this, it won’t end well

And I think that’s why they’re stuck in my head tonight. Because I’m tired. Not “need a nap” tired. I mean tired in my bones of the noise, the cruelty, the instant outrage, the way empathy gets treated like a weakness.

So I’m choosing music tonight. Not as an argument. As a pause.

Who’s next?

Alright lovelies, your turn.

Drop one song that fits this same mood for you, the “please can we act human” mood. Old, new, any genre. I’m building a little thread of sanity over here, one song at a time.

XOXO, Jani