Bretton Woods Rap Battle

And now for something completely different, as Monty Python might say.

Many of you know that I used to work at the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The IMF - along with the World Bank - was born in 1944 after forty-four allied nations gathered in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire. The two lead negotiators at this conference were U.S. Treasury official Harry Dexter White and eminent British economist John Maynard Keynes. The agreement they reached gave rise to the Bretton Woods system of fixed exchange rates anchored to the U.S dollar, and held in place by capital controls and strict financial regulation. This international stability formed the backdrop to the “thirty golden years” of rising and shared prosperity.

Yes, people, I wrote a rap battle based on the Bretton Woods conference!

I set this up as a conflict between Keynes and White. Keynes wanted an international currency called bancor to anchor the international payments system, and for a shared burden of adjustment between creditor and debtor nations in the event of balance of payments problems. White, on the other hand, insisted on the centrality of the U.S. dollar and had no interest in assigning responsibility to creditors (the United States was a major creditor at the time). White won, and the IMF largely bears his imprint. White was later accused of being a Soviet spy, although he died before these allegations could be investigated.

OK then, you can listen to the epic rap battle between Keynes and White here! I wrote the lyrics and performed all the parts. My friend Charlie Kramer made the music. Only one problem: I can’t sing, so I beg your indulgence!