"Hobo Johnson Alienates His Fanbase" Is Misunderstood, Just Like the Generation It's Written About

Have you ever heard or watched something so awful that it was actually good? Take Tommy Wiseau’s 2003 cult classic, The Room, for example; it’s mind-numbing but nonetheless impactful. That’s my impression of artist Hobo Johnson’s newest album: Hobo Johnson Alienates His Fanbase. With 20 minutes and 46 seconds of chaotic, whiny, and downright not-giving-a-fuck-ness, 26-year-old Hobo Johnson manages to put his listener into the deranged headspace of a young adult growing up in the complex, media-hungry, extremist times of today. Commenting on socio-political topics such as the effects of capitalism, the true ideological foundation of socialism, and the trials of wavering mental health and consequential medication, the singer and lyricist are bold enough to state the effectual dilemmas of this young generation, alienating those who cannot relate to its candid content.

The album opens with the song “Jeff Bezos,” where he tackles the struggle of America’s “get rich and be happy” trope that has placed Gen-Z and young millennials into a mental and financial crisis, being unable to obtain that capitalist fantasy due to burdens of debt and rising living costs. Hobo’s style, which is traditionally more spoken-word and leisurely rapping rather than quick, pop-y beats, enhances the trance-like state of participating in the capitalist economy while also critiquing it: “Jeff Bezos walking down the street / He looks at me, I look at he / I say ‘what’s in your pockets, you got a pocket of meat? / I’m ’bout to Amazon Prime your face to the street / You’ll get it in a day, when you recover from Frank / And I’ll make sure your workers unionize, after I Amazon Prime signs.’” Guh! As a currently in-debt undergraduate student that wants to fight the power while also staying on a budget, this line could not be more relatable. The system, as voiced in the above lyrics, is entrapping younger generations in its greedy, capitalistic grasp, making any means of escape (while achieving success in the same system) impossible.

Have you ever had everything go right, and it still feels wrong? That’s what the second song of the album, “All I See Is Poop,” is about. Mental disorders such as anxiety and depression are common among young adults as they navigate the transition from dependence to independence while also trying to know themselves and the mechanics of the real world. According to the National Institute of Mental Health Disorders, an estimated “26% of Americans ages 18 and older -- about 1 in 4 adults -- suffers from a diagnosable mental disorder in a given year.” While the title of this song seems childish, the message remains relevant. The ending chorus, with a drawl-ing, spaced-out tone, closes out with “All I see is poop / The world’s fuckin shit, and I’m a piece of shit, too [...] Yeah, everyone around me / Everything I touch / Everything I see / Everything I feel.” The lyrics may seem simple, but nonetheless, it stirs in the listener an allied feeling of, for the lack of a better word, poopiness. Mental disorders obscure the world around you, altering everything to...well, poop. And even the side effects of prescribed medications can induce the same effect, making this less than an ideal perception of life inescapable. However, this is still a song that’s fun to sing if you’re in a good mood--or relieving to scream when something goes wrong.

Before the Outro song, wherein Hobo alludes to his next album, “Why Socialism by Albert Einstein” takes a different approach than the preceding songs. The singer reads an edited for length version of Einstein’s 1949 article addressing the problems of capitalism. The song is the longest track on the album, 6 minutes and 30 seconds in its entirety. With excerpts from the article that centers around the “predatory phase of human development,” this song highlights the origins of capitalism and how socialism will, in theory, lead humans out of this “predatory phase.” Considered a sensitive or taboo topic in the United States by some older generations that favor capitalism and the pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps mentality, Hobo approaches a theoretical institute of socialism with a gentle timbre, quiet voice, and tone of dismay towards the complexity of it all.

Other tracks on the eccentric album include “What’s the AQI of This Bong Rip?,” “(Drake Diss),” “sorry i can’t look you in the eyes,” and “Villain of Himself.” In total, the album-length is just 20 minutes and 46 seconds but still manages to pack a weighty punch in its quick mind vomit of the social, economic, and mental threats so many young people face today as a result of prior generations’ actions.