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!
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Planet B
Lyrics:
[Verse 1]
Open your eyes and light the fluid
Get into it, petrol siphon
Low on meals, browning fields
Bury children[Chorus 1]
Urbanization
Scarification
Population exodus
There is no Planet B
Open your eyes and see
[Guitar Solo][Verse 2]
Open your eyes and shoot the dingo
While this shit goes out the window
Multi-factions
Rusting tractors
Dying hero[Chorus 2]
Only way through is colonization
Acclimatization
Population exodus
Monetization
Civilization
The operation has begun
There is no Planet B[Bridge]
Patient seasons
Blacked out for ages
Dreaming of cake
Snowflakes blanket
Old deserts
Outskirts disperse
Earth is a blank verse
Last hearse
Dry nurse
(Oh!)[Refrain]
Open your eyes and see
There is no Planet B
There is no Planet B
There is no Planet B
There is no Planet B
There is no Planet B
There is no Planet B
There is no Planet B
There is no Planet B
Open your eyes and see[Outro]
Sinners are grinners, ear to ear
Baby Jesus sheds a tearI 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.
Just about any song by Jesse Welles these days…
A few examples:
Came to say this, upvoted.
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“CEOs come and go and one just went”
Referring to the United healthcare CEO in the song United Health.
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He had kind of a shit take after Kirk got murked tbh
Check out Jesse Wells
Bruce Springsteen put out this like 2 or 3 days after Pretti died
Syria has a few from 2011 يا حيف - سميح شقير جامعات بلا شبيحة [ نص تفاحة - محل زغير ومسكر بدنا نعبي الزنزانات الساروت - ساقط ساقط يابشاؤ Qashush , singing in the riots Qashush in the riots again post 2012 it escalated into a Civil War and the songs became about the civil war !
A Sound Of Thunder - Els Segadors is a metal cover of the Catalonian national anthem. Catalonia was anarcho-communist during the Spanish civil war, but was defeated because the liberals betrayed them. The cover was played at the independence protests in 2018, I think
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)
Carsie’s newest album with the burning hell is great.
While it came out 22 years ago, State of the Union still feels like it could have been written for now.
Prayer of the refugee holds a special place in my heart.
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!”
Not exactly what you asked, but I think it’s important to note how old protest songs are still so relevant. I listen to a lot of 1980s music (in fact, presently playing my 80s playlist, just went from Tiffany to Belinda Carlisle) and older music.
Listen to the 1971 song Won’t Get Fooled Again by British band The Who. I’m sure most of you have heard it. Listen to what he said 55 years ago and imagine it was written this year, and see how relevant it is.
Agree on old songs still having power in this context. Doesn’t feel old to me, Soup is Good Food by Dead Kennedys may as well have come out in 2025 instead of 1985.
No$hu Fuck ICE ICE Baby
https://massiveattack.bandcamp.com/album/boots-on-the-ground
https://zealandardor.bandcamp.com/album/wake-of-a-nation-ep - the opening track Vigil is flawless but the entire band’s discography is top tier.
https://runthejewels.bandcamp.com/track/close-your-eyes-and-count-to-fuck-feat-zack-de-la-rocha
