An Aussie doctor and pop singer’s viral protest song has become a chart-topper despite the controversial lyrics that were rejected by her manager.
Iyah May’s controversial protest song Karmaggedon has climbed the charts, reaching number two on n iTunes, number one in Spain, number two in Indonesia, number 12 in the US, and 16 globally.
In the lead-up to Karmaggedon’s release, May split with her manager, who objected to the song’s controversial lyrics which claim Covid is a ‘man-made’ money maker and criticises Israel’s conflict against Hamas and Hezbollah as ‘genocide’.
May said things got a ‘bit heated’ when her former manager demanded changes.
‘There were parts of it he was not OK with and he said “if you don’t change these lyrics I am not going to work with you”,’ she said.
‘I said “I am not going to dilute my song, you’re not the artist, you’re not the creator of this song, you are here to help manage this song promote it not tell what to change”.
‘So, we sort of left it at that. It wasn’t great but it has been a blessing in disguise.’
May also split with her record label, Island, although that was due to her belief it ‘wasn’t a good partnership anymore’ rather than Karmaggedon’s content.
She admitted the reference to Israel was ‘probably the most jarring line of the song’.
‘I felt it would be weird to cut it out because it is such a big thing and a lot of people are so distraught by that,’ she said.
The song also skewers politicians as ‘bribed for life’, media for feeding people ‘lies’ and corporations as being untrustworthy, particularly ‘big pharma’ who May sings made ‘biggest profit of their lives’ from the pandemic.
‘Not all media is bad, not all corporations are bad, not all politicians are bad but there is so much s*** that has happened with so many of them it’s just been obvious,’ she said.
‘Just all the stuff that happened with Covid – I was like what is happening with the world?
‘It gave me a big perspective shift, I suppose.’
She believes the song has struck a chord with so many because it reflects the harsh disruption millions experienced during the pandemic period.
‘I just think we have been dragged in the mud for the past five years,’ May said.
‘I think this is divine timing. I didn’t plan for this song to even happen or come out.
‘If this song had have come out three years ago it would have been smashed and not seen the light of day.
‘Now we have all had time to process what happened it’s like hold on a minute. It’s such a beautiful time to be speaking like this and I think that’s why it is catching on.’
May believes the song is still being shadow banned on TikTok and other social media platforms.
‘Why are we censoring stuff and controlling what people can say?’ she asked.
‘I think people should have freedom of speech. There was just a lot manipulation throughout Covid about what people should do and coercion. What the hell is that?’
During the pandemic period in , May began working as trainee doctor in Victorian and Queensland hospitals.
‘Covid opened a lot of eyes and gave us a different perspective to a lot of the institutions including the health,’ she said.
‘I felt myself get disheartened over the past few years. There is such a push for pharmaceuticals in the medical industry.’
May is still a practicing doctor but has grown disillusioned with the heavily reliance on drugs in modern medicine and wants to treat people in a more naturalistic and preventative way.
‘I am a huge advocate for that,’ May said.
‘I am not saying never take a pharmaceutical, absolutely not and surgery in an emergency saves people’s lives, but I just want there to be more of a focus on how we can get to the root cause of health problems and prevent the disease in the first place.
‘To have a look at what we are eating, what we are putting into our bodies and water systems and just take away the chemicals and the stuff that harms us.
‘I also felt super hopeful because this information is starting to come out and I think Covid was a good push. It actually showed people where we need to fix what we doing.’
May hopes Karmaggedon will help people find a voice against institutional forces.
‘I definitely think young people are waking up and standing up to it,’ May said.
‘If I can encourage others to speak out it is just such an important thing for me, just speaking the truth, speaking against injustices is so huge.
‘I want my medicine to be healing and I want my artistry to be healing and I think they find a way to match each other and work together.
‘This song has been a beautiful bridge for that.’