03 Sep 2018

Protest Song Of The Week: ‘Now Or Never’ By Yoko Ono

“Thirty years ago, the world did not need too much from me in terms of activism. Now we need all the activists in the world to do something, and still it may not be enough.” The above was posted on Yoko Ono’s Twitter account. The statement is an apt description

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28 Aug 2018

Protest Song Of The Week: ‘Move Along’ By Sihasin

Several hundred immigrant children remain in the custody of the United States government, separated from their parents. Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the Justice Department have escalated the war on immigrants by deciding domestic violence and gang violence are no reason to grant individuals asylum. The family of a child

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20 Aug 2018

Protest Song Of The Week: ‘Politics’ By Bobby Sessions

The following was originally published at Ongoing History Of Protest Songs. On July 24, 2012, James Germon Harper, an unarmed black man, was shot to death by a Dallas police man. Harper was the cousin of rapper Bobby Sessions. That experience heavily influenced the songs from Sessions 2018 major label debut, “RVLTN-Chapter

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06 Aug 2018

Protest Song Of Week: ‘Last Lion Of Albion’ By Neko Case

Albion is the oldest name for Great Britain, and twelve to fourteen thousand years ago, the large lions that resided there became extinct. One common theory is that the extinction was caused by hunting and technological advancements. The other common theory was that it was the result of climate change.

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23 Jul 2018

Protest Song Of The Week: ‘Indians Never Die’ by Black Belt Eagle Scout

Black Belt Eagle Scout is the moniker for Portland-based singer-songwriter Katherine Paul. On the Bandcamp page for her upcoming debut album, “Mother of My Children,” Paul describes herself as a “radical indigenous queer feminist.” Concerning the album which is due out on September 14, 2018, Paul says the tunes are

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09 Jul 2018

Protest Song Of The Week: ‘Run To The Hills’ By Tanya Tagaq and Damian Abraham

White man came across the sea He brought us pain and misery He killed our tribes, killed our creed He took our game for his own need Those are the opening lyrics to Iron Maiden’s 1982 heavy metal classic, “Run To The Hills.” The tune, which deals with the European

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03 Jul 2018

Protest Song Of The Week: ’23’ By Soul Glo

Philadelphia hardcore group Soul Glo formed four summers ago in July of 2014. They have released a handful of records. They meld the influence of hardcore, black metal, and screamo, incorporating samples and poetry too. Mostly, they describe their music as “aggressive.” Lyrically, singer Pierce Jordan often writes in full

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26 Jun 2018

Protest Song Of The Week: ‘Violence’ By Parquet Courts

“Violence is daily life.” That line is repeatedly chanted throughout “Violence,” a song by Parquet Courts that considers the various ways that violence weaves its way into everyday American life subtly and overtly. It’s a song that calls out racism, classism, capitalism, normalization. It also connects dots between the endless

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13 Jun 2018

Protest Song Of The Week: ‘Bullshit Anthem’ By Fantastic Negrito

Fantastic Negrito is a Grammy Award-winning musician who plays “blues music with a punk attitude from Oakland, California.”  He has an album, “Please Don’t Be Dead,” that will be released on June 15. One of the tracks on the album, “Bullshit Anthem,” is a protest song with a simple mantra

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04 Jun 2018

Protest Song Of The Week: ‘If I Was President’ By Las Cafeteras

The Las Cafeteras song “If I Was President” was released in 2017 on Presidents’ Day. Its message continues to resonate, and as the band embarks on a summer tour, it’s a good time to revisit. Drawing from both traditional Mexican folk and hip-hop, the song’s verses alternate between Spanish and

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