Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On is more than just a classic album we all know and love – it’s testament to the power of music as both art and activism. Released in 1971, this wasn’t just another Motown hit, rather it redefined soul music and shattered expectations of what it could sound like.
Where Motown was known for its streamlined and radio-friendly hits, What’s Going On took Motown in a whole new direction. Gaye cast away his crooner image that Motown label head Berry Gordy had cultivated for him. Instead, he made something far more audacious. A statement, not just a record, using his platform to confront war, police brutality, economic injustices and environmental decay, all whilst confronting his own struggles with addiction.
Gaye never abandoned love. Rather, he transformed it into an expression for the world
around him, and you can tell with its lush and effortless sound, completed by his searing vocals. The result is a masterpiece that is as musically rich as it is politically urgent.
Marvin Gaye’s Transformation – From Motown Crooner to Protest Icon
By the late 1960s, Marvin Gaye was at the top of his game. Hits like I Heard It Through the Grapevine and Too Busy Thinking About My Baby skyrocketing him to a flurry of success.
But it wasn’t all smooth sailing. The pressures of fame, Tami Terrell’s tragic death, and a
world in havoc – the assassinations of MLK, JFK and Malcolm X, the Vietnam War, and civil rights struggles – sent Gaye into a spiral of drug abuse and depression. It’s here he began questioning it all.
In a heartfelt conversation with his brother, he realised how he...“didn’t know how to fight before, but now I think I do. I just have to do it my way. I’m not a painter. I’m not a poet. But I can do it with music.”
This yearning became the driving force behind What’s Going On.
The Making of What’s Going On – A Fight for Creative Freedom
We have Renaldo Benson to thank for the spark. After witnessing police violence, the Four Tops member wrote about What’s Going On, describing it as “a love song, a song about love and understanding. I’m not protesting. I want to know what’s going on.”
Breaking Motown’s Rules
Gaye took that spark and set it ablaze, turning it into something spectacular. Bent on defying Motown’s strict no-politics rule, he broke the mold and transformed What’s Going On into a soul-stirring plea for love, unity and deeper understanding of our world.
The single was released on January 21st 1971, and to the shock of Gordy, the song became a massive hit. This was Gaye’s breakthrough, fulfilling his vision and earning him full creative control over the full album.
And so Gaye kept subverting. He rejected Motown’s rigid, assembly-line approach to music and encouraged something freer and more collaborative. He’d work 12-hour sessions, inviting friends to contribute with even Motown’s janitor, James Nyx, helping to write. Gaye layered in background chatter, embracing spontaneity. Sessions were loose and fueled by bursts of creative genius.
A Revolutionary Recording Process
Eli Fontaine’s signature saxophone at the start of What’s Going On was the result of a
spontaneous burst, with Fontaine in his own words just “goofing around.” But that
improvisation made the final track and became one of the most unforgettable openings in soul music. Even Gaye’s signature double-layered vocals was a happy accident.
You can truly feel the jazz-like spontaneity in every track. From the vibrant production to the sweet grooves and smooth transitions that pulse it to life.
A Lyrical Revolution – Soul Music with a Message
No one can deny that What’s Going On is a protest album. But it is one that makes love a central ingredient. Gaye’s otherworldly vocals express compassion and concern, not just for African Americans, but also society at large.
On war & veterans
The record confronts the disenfranchisement of veterans, particularly Black veterans,
in What’s Happening Brother, where Gaye, inspired by his brother, poignantly remarks,
“Can’t find no work, can’t find no job, my friend.”
On racial & economic injustice
The economic hardships don't end there. Inner City Blues shifts the focus to the crushing weight of poverty and over-policing. Lyrics like “Bills pile up sky high, send that boy off to die” and “Oh crime is increasing, trigger happy policing” cut deep, a critique of state violence and economic despair that rings just as true today.
On the environment
But it’s with Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology) and its focus on environmental destruction
where Gaye was really ahead of the curve. He warns “Oil wasted on the ocean and upon our seas, fish full of mercury.” It is a wonder that someone was sounding the alarm in 1971. His words still hit hard.
On personal demons
Gaye even looked inwards, confronting personal issues. In Flyin’ High (In the Friendly Sky) he sings about his substance abuse, confessing “Nobody really understands, no, no, and I go to the place where good feeling awaits me.” It’s Gaye at his most vulnerable, and it's truly staggering to witness.
What’s Going On navigates the personal and political seamlessly, translating pain, frustration and hope into a record that still resonates today.
A Legacy That Still Echoes Today
The impact was instantaneous. Months later, Sly and Family Stone answered What’s Going On with, with There’s a Riot Goin’ On, a darker but equally urgent reflection of the times.
Meanwhile Stevie Wonder, inspired by Gaye’s defiance, pushed musical boundaries that
ushered in a new era of socially conscious R&B. Gaye not only revolutionized soul, but
proved that it can be both intellectually profound and commercially successful.
For many, myself included, What’s Going On remains a timeless classic and a complex
album full of rich and innovative sounds. Musically brilliant, its messages still resonate in a world that’s still asking: What’s going on?
Written by Jakub Ciesielski
