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<p style="line-height:19.1875px;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:sans-serif;">"'''The Revolution Will Not Be Televised'''" is a poem and song by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gil_Scott-Heron Gil Scott-Heron]. Scott-Heron first recorded it for his 1970 album ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Small_Talk_at_125th_and_Lenox Small Talk at 125th and Lenox]'', on which he recited the lyrics, accompanied by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conga congas] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bongo_drum bongo drums]. A re-recorded version, with a full band, was the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A-side_and_B-side B-side] to Scott-Heron's first single, "Home Is Where the Hatred Is", from his album ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pieces_of_a_Man Pieces of a Man]'' (1971). It was also included on his compilation album, ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised_(album) The Revolution Will Not Be Televised]'' (1974). All these releases were issued on the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mainstream_Records Flying Dutchman Productions] record label.</p>
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[[File:Placeholder|video|right|300px]] [[File:Placeholder|right|300px]]
 
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{{Other uses}}
  
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{{prose|date=March 2014}}
  
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{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2012}}
  
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{{Infobox single <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Songs -->
  
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| Name = The Revolution Will Not Be Televised
  
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| Cover = Gill Scott Heron- The Revolution Will Not Be Televised- RCA (Flying Dutchman) 1971.jpg
 
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| Artist = [[Gil Scott-Heron]]
  
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| Album = [[Pieces of a Man]]
  
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| A-side = "Home Is Where the Hatred Is"
  
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| Released = 1971
  
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| Format = [[7-inch single]]
  
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| Recorded = {{plainlist|
  
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* April 19, 1971
  
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* RCA Studios, [[New York City]]
  
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}}
  
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| Genre = {{hlist|[[Funk]]|[[spoken word]]}}
  
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| Length = {{Duration|m=3|s=7}}
  
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| Label = [[Flying Dutchman Records|Flying Dutchman]]
  
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| Writer = Gil Scott-Heron
  
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| Producer = [[Bob Thiele]]
 
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| This single = "'''The Revolution Will Not Be Televised'''" <br>(1971)
  
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| Next single = "[[The Bottle]]" <br>(1974)
  
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| Misc = {{Extra music sample
  
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| type = single
  
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| filename = The Revolution Will Not Be Televised.ogg
  
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| title = "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised"
  
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}}
  
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}}
  
   
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<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:sans-serif;">The song's title was originally a popular slogan among the 1960s protest movements in the United States.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-1" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised#cite_note-1 [1]]</sup></p>
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"'''The Revolution Will Not Be Televised'''" is a poem and song by [[Gil Scott-Heron]]. Scott-Heron first recorded it for his 1970 album ''[[Small Talk at 125th and Lenox]]'', on which he recited the lyrics, accompanied by [[conga]]s and [[bongo drum]]s. A re-recorded version, with a full band, was the [[A-side and B-side|B-side]] to Scott-Heron's first single, "Home Is Where the Hatred Is", from his album ''[[Pieces of a Man]]'' (1971). It was also included on his compilation album, ''[[The Revolution Will Not Be Televised (album)|The Revolution Will Not Be Televised]]'' (1974). All these releases were issued on the [[Mainstream Records|Flying Dutchman Productions]] record label.
  
   
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<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:sans-serif;">The song appears in the 1999 [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denzel_Washington Denzel Washington] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Jewison Norman Jewison] film ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hurricane_(1999_film) The Hurricane]'' and on its soundtrack.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-2" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised#cite_note-2 [2]]</sup></p>
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The song's title was originally a popular slogan among the 1960s Black Power movements in the United States.<ref>{{cite book| author=[[Stokely Carmichael]]| title=Black Power: The Politics of Liberation in America| year=1967| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Eu2Ez9K8cQEC&pg=PT205&dq=%22The+Revolution+Will+Not+Be+Televised%22&hl=en&sa=X&ei=KHbsT5KcOqq36QH1j8HnBQ&ved=0CEcQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=%22The%20Revolution%20Will%20Not%20Be%20Televised%22&f=false| ISBN=0679743138| publisher=Random House}}</ref> Its lyrics either mention or allude to several television series, advertising slogans and icons of entertainment and news coverage that serve as examples of what "the revolution will not" be or do.
  
   
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<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:sans-serif;">In 2010, the ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Statesman New Statesman]'' listed it as one of the “Top 20 Political Songs”.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-3" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised#cite_note-3 [3]]</sup></p>
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==Cultural references in the poem==
  
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{{refimprove|section|date=February 2017}}
  
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* "Plug in, turn on, and [[wikt:cop out|cop out]]", a reference to [[Timothy Leary]]'s pro-[[LSD]] phrase "[[Turn on, tune in, drop out]]."<ref name="Mansnerus">{{cite news | last=Mansnerus | first=Laura | title=Timothy Leary, Pied Piper Of Psychedelic 60's, Dies at 75 |work=The [[New York Times]] | date=1 June 1996 | accessdate=2009-10-02 | url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9500E0DD1E39F932A35755C0A960958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all}}</ref>
  
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* "Skag", slang term for [[heroin]]
  
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* [[Xerox]], best-known manufacturer (at the time of the poem's writing) of [[Photocopier|photocopying machines]]
  
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* [[Richard Nixon]], 37th president of the United States
  
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* [[John N. Mitchell]], [[U.S. Attorney General]] under Nixon
  
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* General [[Creighton Abrams]], one of the commanders of military operations in Southeast Asia during the [[Vietnam War]]
  
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* [[Mendel Rivers]], chairman of the [[House Armed Services Committee]] during the period of the Vietnam War (Rivers' name appears in the original 1970 recording, but not in the re-recorded 1971 version, being replaced by Spiro Agnew)
  
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* [[Spiro Agnew]], 39th vice president of the United States under Nixon
  
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* "[[Hog maw]]s", sometimes [[mondegreen|misheard]] as "hog moss", [[soul food]] made from the lining of the stomach, or maw, of a pig
  
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* ''[[Award Theatre|Schaefer Award Theatre]]'', an [[List of movie umbrella titles in North America|anthology of theatrical films]] that aired on several U.S. TV stations
  
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* [[Natalie Wood]], film actress
  
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* [[Steve McQueen (actor)|Steve McQueen]], film actor
  
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* [[Bullwinkle J. Moose|Bullwinkle]], cartoon character
  
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* ''[[Julia (TV series)|Julia]]'', a TV half-hour sitcom series starring [[Diahann Carroll]].
  
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* "Give your mouth sex appeal", from [[Ultra Brite]] toothpaste advertising
  
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* "The revolution will not get rid of the nubs", the nubs being beard stubble, from a [[Gillette (brand)|Gillette]] [[Safety razor#Cartridges introduced|Techmatic razor]] advertisement of the period
  
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* "[[NBC]] will not be able to predict the winner at 8:32", a reference to television networks predicting the winner of presidential elections shortly after the polls close at 8 pm.
  
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* [[Whitney Young]], [[List of civil rights leaders|civil rights leader]]
  
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* [[Roy Wilkins]], executive director of the [[NAACP]]
  
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* [[Watts, Los Angeles, California|Watts]], a neighborhood in Los Angeles, alluding to the [[Watts Riots]] of 1965
  
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* "Red, black, and green", the colors of the [[Pan-African flag]]
  
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* ''[[Green Acres]]'', a U.S. television sitcom
  
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* ''[[The Beverly Hillbillies]]'', a U.S. television sitcom
  
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* "[[Hooterville]] Junction" (a corruption of ''[[Petticoat Junction]]'', a U.S. television sitcom)
  
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* [[Dick and Jane]], white children, a brother and sister, featured in American [[basal reader]]s
  
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* ''[[Search for Tomorrow]],'' a popular U.S. television soap opera
  
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* "Hairy-armed women liberationists", a reference to mid-century members of the [[feminist movement]]
  
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* [[Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis|Jackie Onassis]], the late U.S. President [[John F. Kennedy]]'s widow, seen during the period in television broadcasts of Kennedy memorials
  
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* [[Jimmy Webb|Jim Webb]], U.S. composer
  
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* [[Francis Scott Key]], lyricist of "[[The Star-Spangled Banner]]"
  
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* [[Glen Campbell]], U.S. pop/country music singer, then hosting ''[[The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour]]''
  
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* [[Tom Jones (singer)|Tom Jones]], Welsh pop music singer, then hosting ''[[This Is Tom Jones]]''
  
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* [[Johnny Cash]], U.S. [[country music]] singer, then hosting ''[[The Johnny Cash Show (TV series)|The Johnny Cash Show]]''
  
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* [[Engelbert Humperdinck (singer)|Engelbert Humperdinck]], British pop music singer, then hosting ''The Engelbert Humperdinck Show''
  
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* [[Rare Earth (band)|Rare Earth]], all-white U.S. pop music band signed to [[Motown Records]] (this band is only referred to in the 1971 version)
  
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* "White tornado", [[advertising slogan]] for [[Ajax cleanser]], "Ajax cleans like a white tornado"
  
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* "White lightning", a slang term for [[moonshine]], the name of a 1950s [[country and western]] song by [[George Jones]], and an American [[White Lightning (band)|psychedelic rock]] band.
  
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* "Dove in your bedroom", an advertising image associated with [[Dove (toiletries)|Dove]] anti-perspirant [[deodorant]]
  
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* Reference to "Put a tiger in your tank", an Esso (now [[Exxon]]) advertising slogan created by Chicago copywriter Emery Smith
  
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* "Giant in your toilet bowl," a reference to [[Liquid-Plumr]] commercials saying that it cleared so well it was like "having a giant in your toilet bowl" with an animation of a large arm using a plunger on your toilet.
  
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* Reference to "Things go better with Coke", a [[Coca-Cola]] advertising slogan
  
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* Reference to "Fights germs that may cause bad breath", from [[Listerine]] advertising
  
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* Reference to "Let Hertz put you in the driver's seat", advertising slogan for [[The Hertz Corporation|Hertz]] car rental
  
   
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<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:sans-serif;">In an interview Scott-Heron said of the song "That song was about your mind. You have to change your mind before you change the way you live and the way you move...The thing that's going to change people will be something that no one will ever be able to capture on film. It will just be something you see and all of a sudden you realize 'I'm on the wrong page.'"<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-4" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised#cite_note-4 [4]]</sup></p>
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== In popular culture ==
  
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* In the beginning of hip hop artist [[Common (rapper)|Common]]'s song "The 6th Sense" from the 2000 album ''[[Like Water for Chocolate (album)|Like Water for Chocolate]]'' he states "The revolution will not be televised, the revolution is here."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://rapgenius.com/Common-the-6th-sense-lyrics|title=Common (Ft. Dexter Thibou) – The 6th Sense|publisher=}}</ref>
  
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* [[Elvis Costello]]'s song "Invasion Hit Parade" from his 1991 album ''[[Mighty Like a Rose]]'' contains the lines "Incidentally the revolution will be televised/With one head for business and another for good looks/Until they started arriving with their rubber aprons and their butcher's hooks,"<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.elviscostello.info/lyrics/mlar.html|title=The Elvis Costello Home Page|publisher=}}</ref> an allusion to the song.
  
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* The [[Sarah Jones (stage)|Sarah Jones]] song "Your Revolution," a feminist interpretation of the song criticizing [[misogyny]] in mainstream hip hop, with the key line "Your revolution will not happen between these thighs". A radio station that played the song was fined by the [[Federal Communications Commission|FCC]].<ref>{{Cite journal | url=http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0125,lee,25714,6.html | title=Counter ‘Revolution’ | last=Lee | first=Chisum | publisher=[[The Village Voice]] | date=19 June 2001 | accessdate=2009-10-02 | postscript=<!--None--> }}</ref>
  
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* In the mid-1990s, hip-hop/rap artist [[KRS-One]] recorded a re-imagining of the song using different lyrics, written by [[Wieden+Kennedy]] [[Copywriting|copywriter]] Stacy Wall, for "Revolution," a [[Jake Scott (director)|Jake Scott]]-directed [[Nike, Inc.|Nike]] commercial featuring [[Jason Kidd]], [[Jim Jackson (basketball)|Jim Jackson]], [[Eddie Jones (basketball)|Eddie Jones]], [[Joe Smith (basketball)|Joe Smith]], and [[Kevin Garnett]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ericking.tv/1994/10/01/nike-revolution/|title=Eric King » NIKE ‘Revolution’|publisher=}}</ref>
  
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* The opening line of "Welcome to the World of the Plastic Beach", performed by [[Snoop Dogg]] on the [[Gorillaz]] album ''[[Plastic Beach]]'', is "The revolution will be televised".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://thequietus.com/articles/03849-gorillaz-plastic-beach-album-review |title=Review: Gorillaz, Plastic Beach |accessdate=June 14, 2012 |work= |publisher=[[The Quietus]] |date=March 5, 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://rapgenius.com/Gil-scott-heron-the-revolution-will-not-be-televised-lyrics#note-217382 |title=Gil Scott-Heron – The Revolution Will Not Be Televised lyrics |accessdate=June 14, 2012 |work= |publisher=[[Rap Genius]]}}</ref>
  
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* A cover was recorded by the trio [[Labelle]] as part of a medley for their 1973 album, ''[[Pressure Cookin']]''.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/pressure-cookin-mw0000841911 |title=Review: Labelle, Pressure Cookin' |publisher=[[Allmusic]] | accessdate=July 5, 2010}}</ref>
  
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* On their 1999 album ''Ad Finité'' the band [[Genaside II]] has a song called "The Genaside Will Not Be Televised," where some words of the original text were changed, such as different film actors being named.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.discogs.com/Genaside-II-Ad-Finit%C3%A9/master/17874 |title=Review: Genaside II, Ad Finité |publisher=[[Discogs]] |accessdate=8 June 2012 }}</ref>
  
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* The song appears in the 1999 [[Norman Jewison]] film ''[[The Hurricane (1999 film)|The Hurricane]]'' and on its soundtrack.<ref>{{cite web | title=Sight&Sound: The Hurricane 1999 | url= http://www.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/review/397 | work=[[British Film Institute]] |year=1999 | accessdate=December 6, 2011}}</ref>
  
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* ''The Revolution Will Not Be Funded: Beyond the Non-Profit Industrial Complex'',<ref>{{cite book | author=INCITE! | title=The Revolution Will Not Be Funded: Beyond the Non-Profit Industrial Complex | url=https://www.dukeupress.edu/the-revolution-will-not-be-funded | location=Durham, North Carolina | publisher=Duke University Press | date=2017 |isbn=978-0-8223-6900-4}}</ref> a book published in 2009, references the song in its title.
  
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* In 2010, ''[[New Statesman]]'' magazine listed it as one of the “Top 20 Political Songs”.<ref>{{cite web | first=Ian | last=Smith | title=Top 20 Political Songs: The Revolution Will Not Be Televised | url= http://www.newstatesman.com/music/2010/03/revolution-televised-gil-scott |work=New Statesman | date=March 25, 2010 | accessdate=March 25, 2010}}</ref>
  
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* In 2011, after Gil's death, [[Lupe Fiasco]] released a poem dedicated to him titled "The Television Will Not Be Revolutionized".<ref>{{cite web | title=Lupe Fiasco | url= http://vigilantcitizen.com/latestnews/the-television-will-not-be-revolutionized/ | accessdate=October 22, 2014}}</ref>
  
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* In June 2013 a sign quoting the poem's title (in [[Greek (language)|Greek]]) was posted on a window inside the [[Greece|Greek state]] broadcaster [[Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation|ERT]] as employees resisted its closure by the government under pressure from the [[Troika (triumvirate)|troika]] of the [[European Union|EU]], [[European Central Bank|ECB]] and the [[IMF]] to cut public spending under their austerity regime.<ref>{{cite news|author=Graeme Wearden |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2013/jun/12/eurozone-crisis-greece-ert-state-broadcaster |title=Greece's state broadcaster defies government closure; RBS boss in shock resignation - as it happened &#124; Business |publisher=theguardian.com |date= June 12, 2013|accessdate=2013-11-21 |location=London}}</ref>
  
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* Released in September 2013, South Korean entertainer [[G-Dragon]]'s ''[[Coup d'Etat (G-Dragon album)|Coup d'Etat]]'' contains a vocal sample of "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised".<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.allkpop.com/review/2013/09/album-review-g-dragon-coup-detat#axzz2fMmIBZSn | title=[Album Review] G-Dragon 'Coup De'Tat' | work=[[Allkpop]] | publisher=6Theory Media | accessdate=19 September 2013 | date=14 September 2013 | last=| first=}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/coup-detat-pt-1-mw0002579089|title=Coup D'etat, Pt. 1|publisher=[[Allmusic]]|accessdate=2013-11-22}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.complex.com/style/2013/09/g-dragon-complex-cover-coup-detat-week|title=G-Dragon Covers Complex's "Coup d'Etat" Week!|date=2013-09-09|accessdate=2013-11-22|publisher=Complex Magazine}}</ref>
  
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* Excerpts (of the expanded 1982 version<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xxMvoDuBFs#t=8m26s</ref>) are featured in the opening theme of all 12 episodes of [[Homeland (season 6)|''Homeland'' (season 6)]].
  
   
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<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:sans-serif;">In June 2013 a sign was posted on a window inside the Greek state broadcaster ERT as employees resisted its closure by the government under pressure by the "[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troika_(triumvirate) troika]" of EU, ECB and IMF to cut public spending under their austerity regime.</p>
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== References ==
  
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==Cultural references<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;">[[http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised&action=edit&section=1 edit]]</span>==
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{{Reflist|2}}
  
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*"Plug in, turn on, and [http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/cop_out cop out]", a reference to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timothy_Leary Timothy Leary]'s pro-[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LSD LSD] phrase "[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turn_on,_tune_in,_drop_out Turn on, tune in, drop out]."<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Mansnerus_6-0" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised#cite_note-Mansnerus-6 [6]]</sup>
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*"Skag", slang term for heroin
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==External links==
  
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xerox Xerox], best-known manufacturer (at the time of the poem's writing) of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photocopier photocopying machines]
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* {{MetroLyrics song|gil-scottheron|the-revolution-will-not-be-televised}}<!-- Licensed lyrics provider -->
  
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Nixon Richard Nixon], 37th president of the United States
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_N._Mitchell John N. Mitchell], [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Attorney_General U.S. Attorney General] under Nixon
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{{Gil Scott-Heron}}
  
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*General [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creighton_Abrams Creighton Abrams], one of the commanders of military operations in Southeast Asia during the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam_War Vietnam War]
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mendel_Rivers Mendel Rivers], chairman of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_Armed_Services_Committee House Armed Services Committee] during the period of the Vietnam War
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Revolution Will Not Be Televised}}
  
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiro_Agnew Spiro Agnew], 39th vice president of the United States under Nixon
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[[Category:1970 songs]]
  
  ⚫
*"[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hog_maw Hog maws]", sometimes [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mondegreen misheard] as "hog moss", [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soul_food soul food] made from the lining of the stomach, or maw, of a pig
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[[Category:African-American literature]]
  
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*''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Award_Theatre Schaefer Award Theatre]'', an [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_movie_umbrella_titles_in_North_America anthology of theatrical films] that aired on several U.S. TV stations
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[[Category:American poems]]
  
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natalie_Wood Natalie Wood], film actress
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[[Category:Gil Scott-Heron songs]]
  
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_McQueen_(actor) Steve McQueen], film actor
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[[Category:Protest songs]]
  
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bullwinkle_J._Moose Bullwinkle], cartoon character
  ⚫
*''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julia_(TV_series) Julia]'', a TV half-hour sitcom series starring [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diahann_Carroll Diahann Carroll].
  ⚫
*"Give your mouth sex appeal", from [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultra_Brite Ultra Brite] toothpaste advertising
  ⚫
*"The revolution will not get rid of the nubs", the nubs being beard stubble, from a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gillette_(brand) Gillette] [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safety_razor#Cartridges_introduced Techmatic razor] advertisement of the period
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*Either [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willie_May Willie May], a sprinter, or [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willie_Mays Willie Mays], a baseball player; the context is unclear from the line which has "you" and May(s) "pushing that shopping cart down the block on the dead run."
  ⚫
*"[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NBC NBC] will not be able to predict the winner at 8:32", a reference to television networks predicting the winner of presidential elections shortly after the polls close at 8 pm.
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whitney_Young Whitney Young], [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_civil_rights_leaders civil rights leader]
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roy_Wilkins Roy Wilkins], executive director of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NAACP NAACP]
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watts,_Los_Angeles,_California Watts], a neighborhood in Los Angeles, alluding to the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watts_Riots Watts Riots] of 1965
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*"Red, black, and green", the colors of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan-African_flag Pan-African flag]
  ⚫
*''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Acres Green Acres]'', a U.S. television sitcom
  ⚫
*''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beverly_Hillbillies The Beverly Hillbillies]'', a U.S. television sitcom
  ⚫
*"[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hooterville Hooterville] Junction" (a corruption of ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petticoat_Junction Petticoat Junction]'', a U.S. television sitcom)
  ⚫
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dick_and_Jane Dick and Jane], white children, a brother and sister, featured in American [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basal_reader basal readers]
  ⚫
*''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Search_for_Tomorrow Search for Tomorrow],'' a popular U.S. television soap opera
  ⚫
*"Hairy-armed women liberationists", a reference to mid-century members of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feminist_movement feminist movement]
  ⚫
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacqueline_Kennedy_Onassis Jackie Onassis], the late U.S. President [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy John F. Kennedy]'s widow, seen during the period in television broadcasts of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy John F. Kennedy] memorials
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmy_Webb Jim Webb], U.S. composer
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Scott_Key Francis Scott Key], lyricist of "[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Star-Spangled_Banner The Star-Spangled Banner]"
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glen_Campbell Glen Campbell], U.S. pop/country music singer
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Jones_(singer) Tom Jones], Welsh pop music singer
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnny_Cash Johnny Cash], U.S. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Country_music country music] singer
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Engelbert_Humperdinck_(singer) Engelbert Humperdinck], British pop music singer
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rare_Earth_(band) Rare Earth], all-white U.S. pop music band signed to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motown_Records Motown Records]
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*"White tornado", [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advertising_slogan advertising slogan] for [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ajax_cleanser Ajax cleanser], "Ajax cleans like a white tornado"
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*"White lightning", a slang term for [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moonshine moonshine], the name of a 1950s [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Country_and_western country and western] song by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Jones George Jones], and an American [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Lightning_(band) psychedelic rock] band.
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*"Dove in your bedroom", an advertising image associated with [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dove_(toiletries) Dove] anti-perspirant [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deodorant deodorant]
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*Reference to "Put a tiger in your tank", an Esso (now [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exxon Exxon]) advertising slogan created by Chicago copywriter Emery Smith<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-7" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised#cite_note-7 [7]]</sup>
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*"Giant in your toilet bowl," a reference to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liquid-Plumr Liquid-Plumr] commercials saying that it cleared so well it was like "having a giant in your toilet bowl" with an animation of a large arm using a plunger on your toilet.
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*Reference to "Things go better with Coke", a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coca-Cola Coca-Cola] advertising slogan
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*Reference to "Fights germs that may cause bad breath", from [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Listerine Listerine] advertising
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*Reference to "Let Hertz put you in the driver's seat", advertising slogan for [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hertz_Corporation Hertz] car rental
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==Covers and allusions<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;">[[http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised&action=edit&section=2 edit]]</span>==
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roy_Clark Roy Clark]'s 1972 song "[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lawrence_Welk-Hee_Haw_Counter-Revolution_Polka The Lawrence Welk-Hee Haw Counter-Revolution Polka]" alludes to the song in its title. Scott-Heron had accurately predicted that as part of the revolution, several TV shows (mentioned above) that were popular with rural audiences would no longer be relevant; indeed, all but one of them had been [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cancellation_(television) canceled] by 1971 as part of a programming strategy known as the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rural_purge rural purge]. Nevertheless, two such shows, the subjects of Clark's response, survived and thrived by entering [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broadcast_syndication syndication], countering the revolution.
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*In the beginning of Hip hop artist [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_(entertainer) Common]'s song "The 6th Sense" from the 2000 album, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Like_Water_for_Chocolate_(album) Like Water for Chocolate] he states "The revolution will not be televised, the revolution is here."<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-8" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised#cite_note-8 [8]]</sup>
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elvis_Costello Elvis Costello]'s song "Invasion Hit Parade" from his 1991 album ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mighty_Like_a_Rose Mighty Like a Rose]'' contains the lines "Incidentally the revolution will be televised/With one head for business and another for good looks/Until they started arriving with their rubber aprons and their butcher's hooks,"<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-9" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised#cite_note-9 [9]]</sup> an allusion to the song.
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*The [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Jones_(stage) Sarah Jones] song "Your Revolution," a feminist interpretation of the song criticizing [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misogyny misogyny] in mainstream hip hop, with the key line "Your revolution will not happen between these thighs"). A radio station that played the song was fined by the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Communications_Commission FCC].<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-10" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised#cite_note-10 [10]]</sup>
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*In the mid-1990s, hip-hop/rap artist [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KRS-One KRS-One] recorded a re-imagining of the song using different lyrics, written by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wieden%2BKennedy Wieden+Kennedy] [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copywriting copywriter] Stacy Wall, for "Revolution," a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jake_Scott_(director) Jake Scott]-directed [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nike,_Inc. Nike] commercial featuring [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jason_Kidd Jason Kidd], [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Jackson_(basketball) Jim Jackson], [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddie_Jones_(basketball) Eddie Jones], [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Smith_(basketball) Joe Smith], and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Garnett Kevin Garnett].<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-11" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised#cite_note-11 [11]]</sup>
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*The opening line of "Welcome to the World of the Plastic Beach", performed by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snoop_Dogg Snoop Dogg] on the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gorillaz Gorillaz] album ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_Beach Plastic Beach]'', is "The revolution will be televised".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-12" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised#cite_note-12 [12]]</sup><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-13" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised#cite_note-13 [13]]</sup>
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*A cover was recorded by singing trio [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labelle Labelle] as part of a two-part medley for their 1973 album, ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pressure_Cookin%27 Pressure Cookin']''.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-14" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised#cite_note-14 [14]]</sup>
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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molotov Molotov], a Mexican Rock Band with political inspirations, have recorded a cover entitled "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised (La Revo)" for their 2004 album "[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Con_Todo_Respeto Con Todo Respeto]." They translated the lyrics to Spanish and added their own lyrics that applied to the social context in Mexico.
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*On their 1999 album "Ad Finité" the band [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genaside_II Genaside II] has a song called " The Genaside Will Not Be Televised", where some words of the original text were changed, such as different film actors being named.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-15" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised#cite_note-15 [15]]</sup>
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*Christian folk singer [http://joshgarrels.com/ Josh Garrels] references the poem in "The Resistance," a song about the return of Christ from his 2011 album, Love & War & The Sea In Between, saying, "the liberation will not be televised / when it arrives like lightning in the skies."
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*In 1998, Prince's band [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_New_Power_Generation The New Power Generation] released a 1998 one-off single entitled "The War", where the title track's hook repeats a paraphrasing of the title: "One, two; the revolution will be colorized..."
 
[[Category:1971 singles]]
  
[[Category:1971 singles]]
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