Straight Outta Compton is a certified double platinum album that was released August 9, 1988, by the rap group N.W.A. (McCann 368). In this album, group members O’Shea “Ice Cube” Jackson, Eric “Eazy-E” Wright, Lorenzo “MC Ren” Patterson, Antoine “DJ Yella” Carraby, and Andre “Dr. Dre” Young describe the everyday life of the black man in Compton, located in South Central Los Angeles. The album also sheds light on a domestic war that few Americans knew the true story behind: the war against police brutality and black-on-black violence. Read more

The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan was released in 1963 by Columbia Records and acted as a distinct catalyst for change by promoting the Civil Rights Movement and supporting the anti-war movement toward Vietnam in the United States. This was Bob Dylan’s first successful album; it includes songs such as “Masters of War” and “Blowin’ in the Wind,” whose lyrics communicate his desire for peace and equality.  Despite the specific political meaning of the songs at the time they were composed, these have become ingrained broadly across American social movements and remain powerful to this day. Read more

Held in the Hoole Special Collection Library at the University of Alabama is an original copy of sheet music for the naval song “The Alabama,” which was published in 1864. In the midst of the American Civil War, the music was composed by Fitz Williams Rosier and the lyrics were created by Edward King in order to commemorate the crew of the Confederate ship the CSS Alabama. The piece was written in response to a commission by a Confederate Act of Congress. Read more