Song Details
- Album Release Date: 2012
- Genre: french
Song Meaning of “Greenwashing” by Tryo
Greenwashing by Tryo speaks to the short sightedness of companies and governments who put profit over environmental responsibility.
The song is a lament against companies who are misleading consumers by hiding their environmental harm with superficial actions of sustainability. By calling this behavior ‘greenwashing’, Tryo criticize the superficial gestures and communicate the need to pressure companies to actually act on their commitments.
The chorus reflects the themes of facade and manipulation:
“Je ferme les yeux, je les fais semblants, Pour mieux me dissimuler dans mon décor Greenwashing. Je rit et regarde vers le présent, Pour mieux éviter ce qui s’oublie et s’endort”… (I close my eyes, pretend, To better hide in my Greenwashing decor. I laugh and look towards the present, To better avoid what is forgotten and sleeps)…
Tryo use the lyrics to denounce the consequences of greenwashing, both environmentally and economically, as it creates an unjust situation for both consumers and businesses who are actually committed to sustainability:
“C’est l’monde d’l’honnête qui se retrouve bête et c’est d’l’environnement qu’on s’fout. Injustice, courses poursuites, bêtise et discordance et c’est ça, ce que l’on oublie à l’après cours…” (It’s the honest world that ends up looking stupid, and it’s the environment that we don’t care about. Injustice, chase, stupidity and discordance, and that’s what we forget afterwards).
Ultimately, Greenwashing by Tryo reminds us of the importance of looking beneath the surface, and not being fooled into thinking that superficial sustainability gestures are enough to address the serious environmental problems our planet is facing.