Ask a kid, I was always taught that I would have to work hard to get what I wanted. This was a message that was ingrained into my brain through posters,s books, movies, and specifically one song. “Everyman” by Double Exposure was released in 1976 and was written by Allen Felder and Bunny Sigler. In its lyrics, it states what the author believes is the natural order of things and a situation where this is apparent. This song left me with a misunderstanding of how the social, economic, and political hemispheres should work.

Felder and Sigler state in the lyrics that “We were all born with the tools so let’s put them all to use. One day we may all have problems, but complaining just won’t solve them.” The idea that complaining and refusing to work is useless is commonly presented by those who would be inconvenienced by people complaining and refusing to do work. For instance, bosses want laborers to have this mentality so they don’t unionize to be paid more. Furthermore, when Felder and Sigler state that we should put our tools to use they showcase how they want people to continue working even if the conditions are bad. This benefits the upper class even more by convincing laborers that this is a natural struggle that no one can escape, so they might as well work, which makes more money for the rich.

Similarly, the lyrics state that “It’s on you, pick and choose where you want to go in life. No one said that the road would be paved all smooth and nice.” The idea that you can do anything you want if you work hard enough may be true in some cases, but in no way should this be the idea that our economy functions off of. With very few people hoarding the majority of the wealth in the U.S. economy, it is becoming harder and harder for the working class to live healthy, sustainable lifestyles. By convincing the working class that the solution to their problems is to work harder directly promotes a false idea that benefits the rich more than it benefits the poor.

Instead, artists should promote the idea that government officials should change our economic system so that people don’t have to work as hard as they can to barely scrape by. Although these lyrics are untrue and falsely inform the listener, the song is very funky and the music is very good.