Dial Back the Day

In this episode of Dark Side of the Music, the host discusses the tragedy that occurred at Kent State University in 1970. Students were protesting the expansion of the war in Vietnam and the draft when the National Guard fired at them, killing four students. This event caused outrage and led to activism against the war. Neil Young was inspired to create the influential song "Ohio" after seeing a Life magazine cover depicting the tragedy. The students' deaths highlighted the brutality of war. Today, college campuses continue to be platforms for sharing views and opinions. Young and David Crosby, however, grew apart over the years. The host concludes by expressing hope that someone else will step up to advocate for a better world. Hello out there, everyone, and welcome back to Dark Side of the Music on WKBD. I'm your host, Daniel, and this is where we discuss events that shook the music world with odd, tragic, and random events and situations. While many look at schools as a safe haven or a place where students have the opportunity to voice themselves and are able to be free to find and stand up to new ideas, in some cases, this is not true. Today we're taking a look back at a tragedy that happened on May 4, 1970, in Ohio, more specifically at Kent State University. What started as a day of protesting the Cambodian campaign that President at the time, Richard Nixon, announced on TV, students gathered to protest the expansion of the war in Vietnam being brought into Cambodia, as well as the draft. When the National Guard became overwhelmed, they fired 67 rounds in a matter of 13 seconds, killing four students, thus causing outrage amongst colleges across the states and making activists take action and their stance against the war and President, one of them being writer and musician, Neil Young. Neil Young at the time was known for being a part of Buffalo Springfield, as well as Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young, as well as putting together twisted love songs like Down by the River, I Shot My Baby, and Cinnamon Girl. When Young seen the cover of Life magazine with a college student laying dead and a female student above them with her hands out crying, why? It moved Neil to create one of the most influential political songs to date, Ohio. Young and David Crosby immediately flew to meet other members of Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young, or CSNY, to immediately record and distribute the song, letting everyone know where CSNY politically stood. While the four students, Alison Krauss, Jeffrey Miller, Sandra Shower, and William Schroeder were killed, they did, however, show the world the carnage of war and peace. Even though the horrific events happened 54 years ago, students continue to use college campuses as a way to share their views and opinions. Penn State till this day reflects back on those events that happened, and students pay tribute to ones that lost. Also, over the years, Young and Crosby grew apart. During a documentary for Crosby, Young said, that was a moment that I'll never forget, and David had a way of bringing that out of me, hell, bringing that out of all of us, out of everyone. Let's see who the next person or group is that tells us, or wants to show us, what the world needs to do to be better. Hope you enjoyed the show, and until next time, it's not just music, it's a message.