Marvin Gaye was an American singer, record producer and songwriter. During the 1970’s, he recorded “What’s Going On”. The spring of 1970 was a dark time for Marvin Gaye and this song helped him talk about some controversial issues. His marriage to Anna Gordy, was crumbling, and he was devastated by the death of one of his duet partners, Tammi Terrell. His lyrics for this song were inspired by the stories his brother Frankie told him when he came back from the Vietnam War. The whole purpose of this song was to address the pain and suffering of the war, and what was going on in the 1970’s. The lyrics to the song were short, but very powerful. He was trying to encourage spreading awareness, peace, and love through his music. In the intro portion
