A Short History of Protest Music

Kendrick Lamar’s “Alright” first went viral after a protest in Cleveland in 2015 but this song made a comeback in 2020 when it became an anthem for the Black Lives Matter Movement. Anthems like “Alright” are recurrent phenomenons. For example, more than 80 years ago, “Strange Fruit” was written by Abel Meeropol and recorded by Billie Holiday and made an unmistakable impact; Holiday’s performance of “Strange Fruit” at Harlem jazz clubs had the power to instantly cut conversations short and change the air in the room when she sang lyrics that did not stir blood but chilled it containing messages that protested against the lynching of African-Americans and compared the victims to the fruit of trees. Up to this point, protest songs functioned as propaganda, but “Strange Fruit” proved protest songs could be a powerful form of art since it had transformed the poetic space and marked the beginning of the civil rights movement. Both “Alright” and “Strange Fruit” are part of a longstanding and global tradition: protest music. 

In the United States, protest music dates back to the 18th century and the American Revolutionary War. During the 19th century, songs were expressions of protest against topics such as poverty, the Civil War, and slavery with African-American spirituals like “Oh, Freedom” defining this time. Moving into the 20th century, events such as the union movement, the Great Depression, the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War in the 60s all inspired protest songs. Bob Dylan is just one out of the countless protest music icons of this time. Protest music continues to live on and is with us today with Childish Gambino’s “This is America” also in support of BLM.

Protest music isn’t limited to the United States. Individuals and activists across the world have used and are using music as a means of protest against socio-political and cultural issues. Take for example Les Amazones d’Afrique, an all-female collective of west African musicians fighting for gender equality and an end to violence against women with their 2017 debut album République Amazone. One of their songs “I Play the Kora” serves as a metaphor since the multi-stringed kora is an instrument traditionally only played by men and to which women are denied to play.

From hip-hop anthems, spirituals, to traditional folk songs, the power of protest music and collective singing is timeless and undeniable. Their functions are endless; protest songs can educate, motivate and raise awareness by affecting listeners both emotionally and intellectually and rallying them around a common goal. Protest music will always be an essential form of expression and at the height of political and social unrest, these songs become a crucial refuge both for musicians, as a release valve for their frustrations and convictions, and for listeners in need of a rallying cry. As long as people are dissatisfied and fed up with the status quo, they’ll be singing about it. Take a moment to listen to some of our Protest Jams.