The song “Pumped up Kicks” by Foster the People, was written in reference to school shootings. | Job Ang/THE CHIMES

We have all heard the song “Pumped Up Kicks.” We have nonchalantly whistled the chorus or perhaps unconsciously hummed the upbeat melody. If the catchy tune did not grab your attention or the new viral dubstep video has not infiltrated your computer screen, rest assured, it will eventually catch up to you. But the question must be asked, do we even know what we are tapping our foot to? Are we listening and not hearing?

For those who may not be familiar, the song “Pumped Up Kicks” is by the newly-famous indie band, Foster The People. Their hit single has quickly climbed to the top of music charts, made its way on mainstream radio stations and put the once no-name band into the limelight. Along with record deals signed and numerous sold-out shows, the band has been witnessing its musical career soar.

Controversial hit single blamed for gun violence

With lyrics that read, “All the other kids with the pumped up kicks, you’d better run, better run, outrun my gun,” many are blaming the song for promoting gun violence and negatively influencing young minds.

Recently, the band has come under a lot of scrutiny for their controversial hit single. On Sept. 27, a 14-year old boy from Maricopa County, Ariz., was arrested at his house for commenting on the song’s Youtube music video, “This song makes me think of doing this to people at school.” The boy was arrested based on “suspicion of interfering with a school and threatening and intimidating,” according to the Associated Press.

Song given frequent air time

The first time I heard it, I was driving home for the weekend when the song came on twice in an hour stretch. From then on, I felt like the song was playing everywhere. I would hear it at the gym, during intramural practices and I would hear people humming the song while walking to class.

The song even became the center of a class discussion when my rhetoric professor decided to use the song as an example of rhetoric. My professor became aware of the song when he heard his son nonchalantly singing, “all the other kids better run, better run, faster than my bullet.” After discovering the happy tune that accompanied these dark lyrics, my professor decided to make the song the center of our critique.

Singer clarifies intent behind “Pumped Up Kicks”

To demonstrate how the song is effectively persuasive, he played a video with the music and accompanying lyrics so that we would know exactly what we were listening to. By doing this, my professor was showing the class that even a song is a crafted message with specific intent. It was in that moment that I realized what exactly I had been humming for weeks … this song is promoting gun violence … or is it? Like any band, Foster the People had an intent to persuade with their music and lyrical combination, but the specific intent remains unclear.

Frontman Mark Foster spoke on record with the New York Post contrasting the negative claims by stating that the song is about the tortured thoughts of a bullied teen and is not advocating violence. The band has stated in recent interviews that the song is actually meant to promote awareness by using the light-hearted beats as a representative of how we act in ignorant bliss toward those dealing with these dark thoughts.

Song’s value to society determined by lyrics, not beat

From a rhetorical perspective, one way to interpret the song is called the ethical standard. In applying the ethical standard, one judges whether the rhetoric helps or harms society. When evaluating the evidence of the ethical standard we can ask two questions: did the argument work? And is it right?

As university students who are exercising critical reasoning skills, this begs us to answer the ethical question: can we justify the song based off of Foster’s comments or do we count the upbeat melody a fraud that masks dark lyrics? While the song is undeniably catchy, it serves as a prime example of what we fail to do at times: stop and listen. We need to stop, listen and consider if what we are listening to is speaking to inform or to persuade us. And then ask ourselves whether or not we can stand behind such rhetoric.