Protest Music

Protest music is music that brings awareness to problems in society. It is a powerful way to spread a message. Not only can it bring morale to those involved in a cause, it can also inform others who don’t know much about it, including those with the power to make change in the world. Though not all protest music is well known, the ones that are have made a lasting effect on our history and helped push their respective movements forward. “Popular music constitutes a powerful political force. A song’s lyrics enable performers to ‘criticize, mobilize, express dissenting views, raise an issue, and spread counter-hegemonic discourses and ideas about rights and freedoms.’” (Friedman 70) . That is part of the appeal of protest music: it doesn’t have to be made into a palatable manner for those who disagree to receive because music is a form of art.(elaborate) They are remembered for their impact in their time  and  known now for its sound quality

One of the most famous examples of this is the song, We Shall Overcome. The song had such an impact that in The Routledge History of Social Protest in Popular Music it was even called, “perhaps nearly as emblematic of the civil rights movement as Martin Luther King’s ‘I Have a Dream’ speech.”(Friedman xv). In The Language of Protest, readers learn about a story from the civil rights movement, specifically from the time of the Montgomery bus boycotts, when protesters were being attacked by mobs and had to give each other strength: “‘we were trapped, nowhere to go. Our only hope was to stay together. We joined hands in a circle and started singing We Shall Overcome. Te song has different meanings at diferent times … Sometimes you’re singing about problems all over the world; sometimes you’re singing about problems in the local community. But in that bus station, it was a prayer, a song of hope that we would survive, and that even if we in that group did not survive, then we as a people would overcome’ (Seeger and Reiser 1989, p. 55)” (Gassaway Hill 121). At the time, they weren’t even sure if they would make it out of the situation alive, but they were able to use the song as a means to boost morale amongst themselves and still have hope that the fight for their cause could outlive them.

 A protest song must evoke this type of feeling in people; it is just one of the ways that a protest song is able to push a movement forward. If the people behind a movement lose morale, the movement will eventually cease to be, and issues affecting those oppressed won’t be brought to the attention of people who can do something about it. 

A key signifier of a good protest song is one that speaks from the writer’s perspective and tells how they feel about an issue. It lets people know the ‘why’ behind support of a movement. It also is direct in listing their problems with society and what they plan to do about it. While it is not a requirement to speak from experience in order to bring awareness to social issues, doing this is an effective way to educate people on the matter. For example, in Phil Ochs’ I Ain’t Marching Anymore, the 5th verse goes, “For I flew the final mission in the Japanese skies; Set off the mighty mushroom roar; When I saw the cities burning; I knew that I was learning; That I ain’t a-marching anymore” (Ochs). At the time, the Vietnam War was going on and an anti war song from the perspective of someone who served talking about personal experiences is a great way to humanize the people being oppressed to the people who benefit from the oppression (Phull 47). At the time of the song’s release, there were many protests pushing for the United States government to back out of the war. Not just by American citizens but many people around the world were against the pain and suffering brought about by the war. The song is very effective in getting listeners to sympathize for a cause and people that they don’t understand or know. However, this usually isn’t enough to make people turn a new leaf and mobilize for a cause. Ochs, like many folk singers of his time, got pushback for making a protest song because many of their fans were not concerned with issues such as war or racial inequality, just like their government. 

Another popular folk musician who faced this was Bob Dylan. The text Story Behind the Protest Song: A Reference Guide to the 50 Songs That Changed the 20th Century, recounts a story of when Dylan was performing in London where he was getting heckled by fans to perform his old songs and Dylan simply responded, “ ‘these are all protest songs.’”(Phull 45). A lot of artists these days see music as a get rich quick scheme and just hop onto the wave of any trend to stay relevant but Dylan stayed honest with himself when it came to his music and just wrote about the things he found to be important, even if it wasn’t to the liking of all his fans. This is usually the case for people who try to bring about social change. They are judged for going against the status quo, usually just for having empathy for their fellow human. 

In his song Tombstone Blues, also inspired by the effects of the Vietnam War like Ochs’ song, Dylan envisions many notable figures from the past living in a somewhat dystopian world where the people in power are not doing what needs to be done and don’t seem to care as much as Dylan thinks they should about the situations of those who they are responsible for. The civilians in the song, such as the mother, father, and bride, are just people who need help, and the bride even goes as far as to going to one of these people in power desperately needing aid, but all of them are left to fend for themselves, much like people in war-affected areas with nowhere else to go and no means of getting there. “Mama’s in the factory; She ain’t got no shoes; Daddy’s in the alley;He’s lookin’ for food” (Dylan). Like Ochs’ song, Dylan’s lyrics force the listener to imagine the situation happening to their mother or father or even themselves, which will cause them to have empathy for people going through those situations and may even cause them to want to speak out about it. However, like many of Dylan’s fans, people would rather stay in their own personal bubble of blissful ignorance than make the conscious effort to try and make a change for those who need it. 

Yes, many protest songs tell the harsh truth and force you to swallow it, but there’s also another type of protest song that should be acknowledged. It is a song when the artist just pours their emotions into a song based on their own life, and the message and feelings brought about from the song are what popularize it with social movements, and it earns the label of protest song. What many fail to acknowledge is the fact that protest music is not chained to one genre: “… drew inspiration from antiwar music that crossed all genres, from folk to Motown” (Friedman 78) (in reference to the social uproar brought about by the Vietnam War). It is music meant to call out injustices and inspire change. The best part about this type of protest song is that it is usually popular with everyone, and its association with a social movement helps to spread a message of change and in most cases, spread hope.

A great example of this is James Brown’s famous Say It Loud—I’m Black and I’m Proud, made in the late sixties. Unlike Dylan, Brown was not the archetypal protest musician; his legacy has surpassed that. Some may find this surprising because, as said in the text Story Behind the Protest Song: A Reference Guide to the 50 Songs That Changed the 20th Century, “the unparalleled artistic success of James Brown as a black American man throughout the 1950s and 1960s made him a part of the civil rights movement just by default.” (Phull 78). Brown didn’t have much choice on whether or not he would use his voice to promote the movement, not just because he was a Black singer, but the fact that he was Black was enough for people to assume that he would fight in solidarity with his people. What they seem to not realize is that not every Black person wants to have to fight for a seat at the table that they already should’ve had. At first, Brown made sure to keep himself palatable in order to cater to a wider audience: “The avoidance of overtly political language within his musical output had helped Brown curate the large white audience that was vital for a pop artist to succeed” (Phull 80). Due to his fame, a lot of people who normally wouldn’t have cared about the civil rights of African Americans did care just because of the sheer talent that Brown had. However, that didn’t seem to do much except to garner some sympathy and pity. ​ 

A change in Brown’s demeanor came about in 1968 following the assassination of Martin Luther King Junior. Brown, also being a prominent figure in the Black community, knew that his influence could help make a difference and spark hope in those losing it in those difficult times. Even without listening to the song, just reading the title would let you know how he felt about the civil rights movement. The song has a direct call to action in the first verse that’s impossible to misinterpret: “Some people say we’ve got a lot of malice; Some say it’s a lot of nerve; But I say we won’t quit moving until we get what we deserve; We have been ‘buked and we have been scorned; We’ve been treated bad, talked about as sure as you’re born; But just as sure as it takes two eyes to make a pair, ha; Brother we can’t quit until we get our share” (Brown). His message is fierce, and his words are clear, but they still have that James Brown charm. The song is also relatable to his experience as a Black man, so listeners who couldn’t understand why artists like Bob Dylan would even care about the civil rights movement can understand the perspective of someone who would greatly benefit from its success. This song is not as hard-hitting and accusatory as other protest songs, and it even has a joyous melody, but it contains the kind of confrontation that just can’t be turned a blind eye to that even those who aren’t personally affected have to face.

The sentiment of feeling the need to speak out on issues because of a person’s experiences isn’t just limited to James Brown. Sam Cooke felt the same way when writing a change is gonna come he was so petured w the fact that a white person made such a good song about black struggles he felt the need to write his own, : “Cooke was motivated to write ‘A Change Is Gonna Come’ by another sixties anthem, Bob Dylan’s ‘Blowin’ in the Wind.’ When he first heard that song, Peter Guralnick writes in 2005’s ‘Dream Boogie:The Triumph of Sam Cooke,’ he ‘was so carried away with the message, and the fact that a white boy had written it, that . . . he was almost ashamed not to have written something like that himself.’” (Cantwell).

The song A Change Is Gonna Come was a rallying cry to stay strong made for those fighting for their rights muck like the song we shall overcome. However unlike we shall overcome this song is newer and its creator is known and credited. The chorus goes, “It’s been a long; A long time comin’, but I know; A change gon’ come; Oh, yes it will” (Cooke)

This doesn’t mean people who don’t know struggle can’t use their privilege to uplift the message of the oppressed. It is usually the case for protest songs like the artists above. Without Bob Dylan’s Blowin’ In The Wind we might not even have A Change Is Gonna Come. And what was usually the case in the past was that white musical artists had the most attention, so they had the biggest platform to promote change to most of the time. However when the message isn’t from the ones being oppressed the delivery of how that message being spread can go over the head of the audience, like Bruce Springsteen’s Born in the USA, which was “mistaken (via the famous refrain, particularly) as a “positive” American anthem, up to be even used by Republican Ronald Reagan in his 1984 presidential re-election campaign” (Martinelli 28). Many songs can be taken out of context and misinterpreted as supporting an opposing argument. 

However, people having someone who has the same privilege as them tell them why something is injustice can make them realize that their entitlement is not what makes them ignorant to the pain of others, it’s their ego. Like what happened with Bob Dylan’s fans in London; they didn’t want to hear the music as it was and be uncomfortable with the truth that many are forced to live with (Phull 45). Instead they looked to music as an escape which is why they were adamant to hear Dylan’s old music, trying to chase nostalgia instead of facing the reality of others. Like what Aaron Copeland said in his text How We Listen to Music, they went to the concert to “ enter an ideal world” (Copeland) and when that privilege was denied to them their first instinct was to heckle. People like it when they are able to associate music with things until the thing is something they feel like they can’t stomach like war, famine, racism etc.Then it just defeats the purpose for them; the uncomfort that they are forced to feel that can help them realize a fraction of the discomfort others are constantly going through. That is the effect protest music is supposed to have.

Protest music is a special category of music that isn’t bound to any specific genre. There are many different forms of protest music from slow tempoed melancholy folk to upbeat funk. The goals that artists usually strive for when making protest music is that it should bring awareness to issues and have a guiding message or theme like Bob Dylan’s Tombstone Blues. Some artists lean more towards boosting morale for active supporters of a social movement rather than appealing to new audiences, like James Brown’s Say It Loud—I’m Black and I’m Proud. It is also important for protest songs to  directly call out those in power who can actually create immediate change and also explain the reason why the injustice happening is wrong from the perspective of the artist like Phil Ochs’ I Ain’t Marching Anymore. Songs with these different characteristics made by popular artists have historically had a powerful impact on the social movements associated with them and in part helped them get closer to their goals.

Works Cited

Gasaway Hill, Mary Lynne. The Language of Protest: Acts of Performance, Identity, and Legitimacy. 1st ed., Springer International Publishing, 2018, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-77419-0.

 Phull, Hardeep. Story behind the Protest Song : A Reference Guide to the 50 Songs That Changed the 20th Century. Greenwood Press, 2008.

Ochs, Phil. “I Ain’t Marching Anymore”  Farewells & Fantasies, 1965. Genius

https://genius.com/Phil-ochs-i-aint-marching-anymore-lyrics

Brown, James “Say It Loud: I’m Black and I’m Proud”  Star Time, 1968. Genius

https://genius.com/James-brown-say-it-loud-im-black-and-im-proud-lyrics

Dylan, Bob “Tombstone Blues” Biograph, 1965. Genius

https://genius.com/Bob-dylan-tombstone-blues-lyrics

Martinelli, Dario. Give Peace a Chant: Popular Music, Politics and Social Protest. 1st ed. 2017 edition., Springer International Publishing AG, 2017, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-50538-1.

Copeland, Aaron “How We Listen To Music” McGraw Hill, 1988, https://springmuse.hunter.cuny.edu/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Copland-How-We-Listen-To-Music.pdf

Cooke, Sam “A Change Is Gonna Come” Ain’t That Good News, 1964. Genius

https://genius.com/Sam-cooke-a-change-is-gonna-come-lyrics

Cantwell, David. “The Unlikely Story of ‘A Change Is Gonna Come.’” The New Yorker, 2015, www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/the-unlikely-story-of-a-change-is-gonna-come. 

Submitted 4 December 2024