Monopolies

Lyrics

Verse I
(Kazuo) I hate competition, my mission is solo
In this industry you're likely only knowing my logo, no one else's
They callin' me shameless, call me selfish
But different kinds of monopolies distribute where the wealth is

(Tony) I am the competition, my goal is survival
The last thing a monopolist needs is a rival
They fightin' to take me out the picture to get richer
I fight 'em in court, judges bangin' the gavel

(Kazuo) But I'm the price setter, and I never need to travel
My cost declines as I produce more
A natural monopoly I'm squeezin the juice for
With nobody else around me there's no substitute for me

(Tony) Just hold up a second, I think they wrote up a few laws
Making it harder for you to do what you do for a living
Making other people's living like too poor
Because you grabbed every opportunity you saw--true story

Chorus
(Kazuo) I am a monopoly, nobody stopping me
I own the resources and all the factories
Many below me but nobody on top of me
I own the raw materials and all the property

(Tony) I am the competition in a tough position
Up against a monopoly, now I face a tough decision
Economically, it's inefficient
But it's also inefficient when monopolies are doing business

Verse II
(Kazuo) This town ain't big enough for the two of us
Who of us gonna leave? It's obvious: to fail is your job
Look at this economy of scale, I'm bankin
If I am a whale you are a plankton

(Tony) But you couldn't survive without us, the everyman
Out there buyin' your output
Disrespect me you put your foot in your mouth, 'cause
We'll boycott your product--there's a lot of us; now, push!

(Kazuo) Your efforts are now hushed, my grasp is too vast
'Cause owning all the raw materials was my first task
The government assigned protection for me--my first patent
So many people bought it, the network effect had 'em

(Tony) The truth is, it's a number of different factors
Stacked up against me that cause me to move backwards
Sunk cost is start up money burned to ashes
So this is an uphill battle that still clashes

Chorus

Verse III
(Kazuo) Let me break it down like this
The factors that allow monopolies to exist
Location of raw materials so only they can get it
High sunk costs for others, so just forget it

(Tony) In addition, monopolies are inefficient
Price setters have monopoly power like arm twisting
Getting you to pay more when you want to pay less
'Cause a barrier to their resource is the source of their success

(Kazuo) A natural monopoly encounters an economy of scale
No matter how much product they can sell
The government can foster a monopoly as well
From the water that you drink to the taxi that you hail

(Tony) So there are different kinds of monopolies across the globe
Some determined by geography, federal code
Or ownership of resources so the price is controlled
But whether they benefit you depends on the values you hold

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Description

This rap song teaches about the different types of monopolies and how they affect economic competition. The song describes key terms such as economic efficiency and inefficiency, network effect, barriers to entry, sunk costs, natural monopolies, and more.

This economics song is suitable for explaining monopolies to high school, college, and graduate school students.

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Related Reading and Activities

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State Standards

State standards listed here are representative of school standards across the United States.

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