Throughout modern history, music has provided an outlet for people to speak their mind on polarizing events and ideas. Many songs have been written to provide the listener with a long-lasting message and seemingly make a change. Ever since the creation of “Rights of a Woman”, a 1795 women’s rights song published in the Philadelphia Minerva, millions have sought sound as a source of promoting issues. In the last several centuries, we have seen protest songs regarding slavery, racial inequality, wars, gender, and more. Many of these songs still remain in a regular rotation today, providing you insight into their importance. We would like to present to you, dear readers, our top five protest songs. This was not an easy list, as there are hundreds of songs that manage to present an engaging and unique experience. In the end, however, there could only be five. Please note that these songs are presented in no particular order.
“Strange Fruit” by Billie Holiday. This dark, haunting song was written by Abel Meeropol and first recorded in 1939 by popular jazz musician Billie Holiday. The song tackles the topic of lynchings, which were still very common in the south throughout the Jim Crow era. With deep lyrics such as, “Black bodies swinging in the southern breeze” and “Here is fruit for the crows to pluck” that compared the bloated corpses of dead black men to rotting fruit, it starkly contrasted the popular sounds of an era traditionally associated with big band jazz, Frank Sinatra, and Sarah Vaughan. Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun called the song “a declaration of war”, as well as “the beginning of the civil rights movement”. Many artists have covered Strange Fruit, including Nina Simone, Kanye West, and Sting. Bob Dylan cited it as one of his main influences, and Time Magazine called it “The Song of the Century” in 1999. The messages of fear and savagery brought on by racial inequality found in the song are still prevalent today, clearly seen by conflicts across the United States.
“Eve of Destruction” by Barry Mcguire. P. F. Sloan, an American pop-rock singer-songwriter wrote many songs for Barry Mcguire. “Eve of Destruction” was written during and after times of crisis in the United States. This song is a response written after the Cuban Missile Crisis and the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. From nuclear scare and governmental instabilities, P. F. Sloan wrote a song to protest against Constitutional issues, the Vietnam War, threats of nuclear conflict, racial inequality, and more. There are many existing recordings of “Eve of Destruction”, but the most famous recording is by Barry Mcguire. The lyrics, “You’re old enough to kill, but not for votin” refers to a Constitutional problem. The United States law had stated that 18 was the age eligibility for the draft, when the minimum voting age was 21 in all but four states.
“F**k Tha Police” by N.W.A. In the 1980s, the city of Compton, California owned the title for the highest crime rate in the state. Out of this urban jungle, acts such as N.W.A burst on the scene with hit songs like “F**ck Tha Police” and “Straight Outta Compton”. F**k Tha Police captivated audiences across the nation through its tale of racial prejudice. By blending their own stories with rhetoric similar to Malcolm X, N.W.A provided a global stage for black South Los Angeles citizens who were regularly beaten, unfairly treated, or even killed. The song was directly inspired by abusive police response to their use of a paintball gun in public. By protest important topics such as racial profiling, disregard for black lives, and disproportionate responses from police, N.W.A saw their record reach the charts and become a cultural icon of the ’80s. With the goal of receiving a response, the group was treated to an angry cease-or-desist letter from the FBI in 1988. One of history’s most popular hip hop songs, F**k Tha Police defined a generation and helped to begin an era of reformation to police brutality.
“The Times They Are a-Changin’” by Bob Dylan. In an interview with Cameron Crowe, Bob Dylan said, “This was definitely a song with a purpose. It was influenced of course by the Irish and Scottish ballads… ‘Come All Ye Bold Highwaymen’, ‘Come All Ye Tender Hearted Maidens’. I wanted to write a big song, with short concise verses that piled up on each other in a hypnotic way. The civil rights movement and the folk music movement were pretty close for a while and allied together at that time.” The song represents a time of cultural and generational divide in American society. The album itself addresses issues of racism, poverty, and social change. Its universal lyrics maintain the relativity of the song, even though 50+ years have passed since its release. 1964–65 was a period in the United States when advocacy for societal change was prevalent. The song’s general message of being adaptable and accounting for change was effective at making “The Times They Are a-Changin’” one of Bob Dylan’s great works.
“The Revolution Will Not be Televised” by Gil Scott-Heron. The “inventor of rap”, Scott-Heron released this controversial song in 1970 to protest the state of Richard Nixon’s “White America”. Featuring lyrics muddled with pop culture references of everything from Steve McQueen to Johnny Cash, Scott-Heron produced one of the most linguistically memorable protest songs in history. While receiving very little radio play in the time surrounding its release, Scott-Heron’s poem has intruded into many facets of culture since then. The phrase “The Revolution Will Not be Televised” has become a symbol of politicians and pundits alike, with it being famously used as the title of a 2003 documentary about the coup of controversial politician Hugo Chavez. The influence of the song as a protest tool was further preserved when it was entered in the Library of Congress’ National Registry in 2005, permanently cementing its pessimistic view on politics and the state of America into pop culture.
These protest songs have slowly shaped societal change and revolution. The topics that protest songs address are comprehensive, from racial inequality, societal indifference, poverty, war, nuclear conflict, and many more. By assimilating pop culture with human protest, musical artists are able to use their platforms and positions to project their thoughts and generate discussion. By understanding their effectiveness and reasonings, modern history and culture can be further understood. Protest songs are not only works of art, but an integral part of human evolution and societal change. These songs have driven ideas and discussions that created a vastly different world today. Protest songs have raised awareness and empowered the oppressed by giving them a voice.
