I was thinking about how Bruce Springsteen is the only artist I know of who has written a protest song lately and I was wondering if anyone else had any good recommendations since… 2016 or so.
Edit: so many great recommendations! Thank you all!
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Check out the band Moon Walker. Monopoly Money, You’re Next, Ban this Song, Apocalypticysm, probably all of it.
They haven’t been active for awhile now (early 2010s I think), but if you like hip hop check out Blue Scholars.
Grandson’s entire catalog is riddled with protest songs but the latest album leaned into it fully for better or worse.
I came to make sure grandson was mentioned. Their Soundcloud tagline is something like “the soundtrack to your revolution”.
願榮光歸香港 (Glory to Hong Kong) Protest Song during 2019 Hong Kong Protests…
(And… of course Youtube now age-restricts this video… was fine for the past 7 years… wtf)
Here’s someone’s reupload: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pe1gTPcWyds
The original lyrics in Cantonese are lit, the English version doesn’t even feel the same
This song is illegal in anywhere under PRC control, but I’m lucky to have to privilage to sing this as an Overseas Chinese
Earth to Eve -Threat Level Orange
FUCK ice - chrissa sparkles
Control alt-right delete - the briggs
Who would Jesus bomb - Jordan smart
Christo-fascists - art bergmann
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1LSun9sx5j40WOV9jzcCbi?pi=BKWdubu9Q12h7
Lots of anti trump playlists on Spotify and deezer
Pretty much the entire will of the people album by Muse: https://youtu.be/tCiDblgUNEA
The Neighborhood Kids have put out some recent bangers relevant to u.s. happenings
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=oZYB5v69n7w
Just about any song by Jesse Welles these days…
A few examples:
He had kind of a shit take after Kirk got murked tbh
“CEOs come and go and one just went”
Referring to the United healthcare CEO in the song United Health.
It’s the kind of wordplay boomers loved with Dylan. But it’s fresh, current, enticing, and it holds a sharp edge. In 50 years I hope we remember Welles as fondly.
I cannot tell you how happy I am that this man exists.
Came to say this, upvoted.
Rise Against - Megaphone (2018)
Rise Against - The Numbers (2021)
Rise Against - The Answer (2022)
Macklemore - fucked up (2025)
Carsie Blanton - Ugly Nasty Commie Bitch (2024)
Sorry that these are all YT links.Clearly I’m a RA fanboy, but I look at the state of the world and I hear their songs, and they’re the same picture. I can’t ignore their music.
(ehem…except for the new Ricochet album with its questionable production decisions)
While it came out 22 years ago, State of the Union still feels like it could have been written for now.
Bruce Springsteen put out this like 2 or 3 days after Pretti died
Billy bragg has a great song about the twin cities. It’s a spin on that “first they came for” poem, but instead of the “and i said nothing because…” bit it has “so I got in their face!”
Check out Jesse Wells
I don’t know, but Green Day and Rise Against are two bands I like that do political music and both are still active.
Maybe subconsciously that’s one reason I like Japanese rock; it doesn’t feel as influenced by current events as western music does.
