"What's Going On": The Evolution of Protest Music

With the current state of American politics, the prolongation of massive global disasters, and heinous online behavior, Marvin Gaye’s simply titled “What’s Going On” comes to mind. Feelings of helplessness and desperation for change are not novel. History reminds us we have lived through periods of peril for a very long time, as marginalized groups continue to experience the darkest and most gruesome forms of oppression. But where do we turn when we feel like the walls are closing in and no one can hear us? Art. Poetry. Music.

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What is Protest Music?

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Protest songs can be described as a means to call out issues and incite societal change. They are meant to signal a movement against certain issues (e.g. race, class, war, government, famine and human rights), hold up a mirror to the people who are at the hands of cruelty, and invite passive bystanders to join the resistance against gross injustice. They are genreless and can feel like an anguished cry, a vengeful scream or simply an eerie warning, like Simon and Garfunkel’s “7 O'Clock News / Silent Night” where Christmas lullaby “Silent Night” is sung over a radio news clipping from 1966.

Since protest music is a commentary on current events, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of protest songs throughout history. In the United States, protest music can be dated back to the revolutionary war. “Yankee Doodle,” a song Americans associate with the country’s history, actually started out as a song written by a British doctor to mock the colonists and American allies. Protest music, even in its earliest forms, informs us of issues people want to bring to a wider audience, even if doing so is uncomfortable or dangerous. With so much fear and uncertainty in the current world, it is important to see how protest songs have evolved throughout history.

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Early Examples of Protest Music

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“Strange Fruit” by Billie Holiday is one of the earliest mainstream protest songs, written by New Yorker Abel Meeropol under the pseudonym Lewis Allan in the 1930s. The song was initially written as a poem, inspired by a photo Meeropol saw of a lynching which “haunted him for days”.

Southern trees bear a strange fruit,

Blood on the leaves and blood at the root,

Black body swinging in the Southern breeze,

Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees

Holiday was given the song and recorded it in 1939, prompting an unprecedented response. Thought it never explicitly mentions “lynching,” a song so blatant in making light of a horrific injustice paved the way for protest music to come. It was so groundbreaking that it sold a million copies and became Holiday’s best selling record, but the subject matter– incredibly taboo at the time– led to her being met with immense backlash. The US government attempted to shut down any public performances of the song, but Holiday refused, causing issues in her personal life which led to her eventual death at age 44.

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Despite all of the external factors working against Holiday’s performances of the song and southern radio’s refusal of airplay, it song was named Time magazine’s “Song of the Century” in 1999 and has been re-recorded and sampled by dozens of artists well into the 21st century. Though injustice towards Black Americans would not come to an immediate end, it radicalized people to speak out and demand change.

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Protest Music in the Late 20th Century

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During the 1960s and 70s, the Vietnam war waged on and was at the forefront of American culture. The war was incredibly controversial and divisive. Citizens did not understand why the US military was deployed there in the first place and were begging for the soldiers to be taken home before more died. Simultaneously, the Civil Rights Movement was in full swing. With the March on Washington, the Civil Rights Act being passed in 1964, and integration in schools, everything was heading in the right direction, but racism was so deeply embedded in the culture that these changes were not going to be met with open arms. With so much darkness in humanity revealing itself during this period, protest music attempted to counteract current events. Artists like Joan Baez; Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young; Creedence Clearwater Revival and of course Bob Dylan, popularized protest music and leaned heavily into a folk rock sound. Bob Dylan’s “Masters of War” directly points its finger at the U.S. Government with lyrics like, “That even Jesus would never forgive what you do.”

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Sam Cooke’s “A Change is Gonna Come” (1964) and Bob Marley and the Wailers’ “Get Up, Stand Up” (1973) both wrestle with the violence that Black Americans were faced with, and would continue to face through the decades that followed to today. Many of the protest songs from this period focused on peaceful resolution. Marvin Gaye’s, “What’s Going On” (1971) plead:

“Picket lines and picket signs

Don't punish me with brutality

Talk to me

So you can see

Oh, what's going on (What's going on)”

Gaye was itching to record a song about social issues, but his label, Motown, was not as keen on letting Gaye explore the world of protest. When Gaye was given "What's Going On," it had already been pitched to The Four Tops, but they were not interested in recording a protest song. Upon hearing the song, Barry Gordy, the founder of Motown said “Marvin, why do you want to ruin your career?” The label tried incessantly to block its release, but once it was finally in the hands of the public, it resonated immediately, soaring to #2 on the Billboard Pop and #1 on R&B charts.

‍This period was extremely important to the foundations of protest music and its potential to be a springboard for change. While peaceful protest songs were popular during this time, the next decades proved people were tired of being ignored so artists decided to try a more brash approach to grab the attention of oppressors.

The 1980s and 90s saw Rap and Hip Hop music rise to the top of the charts due to its raw expression of lived experiences. It is no surprise then, that some of the genre’s earliest hits were protest songs that shed a light on the mistreatment of minorities. Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five wrote “The Message” (1982) and N.W.A wrote “F*** tha Police” (1988) to highlight the imbalance of power and abuse toward marginalized groups within power structures.

For similar reasons, Public Enemy wrote “Fight the Power” (1990) for Spike Lee’s film Do the Right Thing. In the making of his film, Spike Lee was, “looking for an anthem,” that focused on rising tensions in a Brooklyn neighborhood between Black and Italian Americans. The movie ends in a riot and a police officer killing a character in the Black friend group. Public Enemy was ultimately recruited for the gig, and with Lee’s request of an unapologetic and in-your-face song in mind, Chuck D and the group wrote a bold anthem with lyrics such as:  

Elvis was a hero to most

But he never meant s- to me you see

Straight up racist that sucker was

Simple and plain

Mother f- him and John Wayne

'Cause I'm Black and I'm proud

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In the film, the song blares through the boombox and is played a total of 15 times, making the audience acutely aware of the subtext of this film regarding Black culture and unjust subjugation. Do the Right Thing in tandem with “Fight the Power” were both praised and ridiculed – the film battled accusations of inciting violence and the song was shunned from mainstream radio while simultaneously being nominated for Oscars and selling half a million copies.

This period of protest music felt like a visceral response to the escalation of violence toward minorities, which made the protest music of the time more aggressive and distinct following the softer approach of previous decades. These artists were no longer pleading for peace, and tired of being silenced.  

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21st Century Protest Music

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The early 21st century’s protest music has taken on a variety of issues and musical genres.  Following the events of September 11th 2001, the War on Terror proved to be a confusing and frustrating period, marked by the juxtaposition between a resurgence in patriotism and the unease felt by some Americans regarding US Imperialism, which echoed the widespread sentiment felt during the Vietnam war. Protest music was waning during this time due to the uptick of patriotic music, but songs like “Where is the Love?” (2003) by the Black Eyed Peas, “Skylines and Turnstiles” (2002) by My Chemical Romance and “Let’s Impeach the President” (2006) by Neil Young all refused the status quo and discussed the problems within the US surrounding the war. This was immensely brave during this period because anti-war sentiments were not considered acceptable until later in the decade. Specifically, “American Idiot” (2004) by Green Day took a direct approach at calling out the country’s dysfunction.

Don't wanna be an American idiot

One nation controlled by the media

Information age of hysteria

It's calling out to idiot America

Frontman of Green Day, Billie Joe Armstrong, was outwardly critical of the war and the state of the US as a whole, so the song was written as a response to all of the information being tossed around, driving the country into a sort of madness. Bassist Mike Dirnt stated, “The world’s in a confused state. I’m pissed off, and I’m angry, and I feel like I’m not fully represented.” “American Idiot” was born out of frustration in the political leaders and distrust of the media. The song has stood the test of time as US politics and news sources continue to confuse and anger Americans into the present day.

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One of the most notable events during this period wasn’t directly linked to a protest song, but in the years that followed, paved the way for this group to lean more into a carefree attitude when it came to making waves in their music. The Chicks are a country trio that had an amazing career and multiple classic 90s hits that resonated with country audiences and beyond, like “Wide Open Spaces” (1998), “There’s Your Trouble” (1998) and “Goodbye Earl,” (1999). The band rode high, and even earned a Grammy for Best Country Album in 1998. This all came to a halt when, in 2003, the band was touring in Europe. Natalie Maines, the lead singer of the trio, uttered the fateful words at a show in London:

“We’re ashamed the president of the United States is from Texas.”

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Once the media broke this story, country fans were outraged - there were public burnings of the group’s CDs, people called radio stations pleading them to not play their music, and even had the term “Dixie-Chicked” coined that equated to the present-day term of being “canceled.” The Chicks were completely ostracized from the country music community and constantly ridiculed for years because Maines stated her anti-war opinion. They are a key example of how speaking your mind can have lasting effects on your career as an artist, which is the price artists have to pay in certain cases of protest. The group would continue to make protest music like “Not Ready to Make Nice” (2006), but the damage the comments made would take much longer to repair.

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Protest songs in the 2010s and 2020s have explored topics that hadn’t been discussed in previous decades: climate change, gun violence and LGBTQIA+ rights reared their head in mainstream music with tracks like “Born This Way” (2011) by Lady Gaga and “The 1975” (2020) by The 1975. However, racial inequality and bigotry stayed at the forefront of protest music, over 50 years after the Civil Rights Act was passed. Beyonce’s “Freedom” (2016) featuring Kendrick Lamar, A Tribe Called Quest’s “We the People” (2016) and Childish Gambino’s “This is America” (2018) are some of the most notable examples of protest music of the early 21st century, with irony and nuance oozing from these songs.

Kendrick Lamar’s “Alright” (2015) is arguably the protest song of the 2010s. In the first 20 seconds, you know exactly what the song is - pure, passionate and powerful. The lyrics woven together paired with an immersive composition and thanks to producer and co-writer Pharrell Williams, makes listeners feel the unease drawn from the fearlessness of the chorus. The beat is infectious and Lamar’s reiteration of the sentiment, “We gon’ be alright” in the chorus is a poignant approach to protest music.

Wouldn't you know

We been hurt, been down before, n****

When our pride was low

Lookin' at the world like, "Where do we go, ni****?"

And we hate po-po

Wanna kill us dead in the street for sure, ni****

I'm at the preacher's door

My knees gettin' weak and my gun might blow

But we gon' be alright

The inspiration for the song came from Lamar visiting a prison in South Africa where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for 18 of his 27 year sentence. He was moved to write “Alright” as a way to sort through the intense experience:

"Four hundred years ago, as slaves, we prayed and sung joyful songs to keep our heads level-headed with what was going on," Lamar said. "Four hundred years later, we still need that music to heal. And I think that 'Alright' is definitely one of those records that makes you feel good no matter what the times are."

The song shifts back and forth lyrically, hopeful for the day when the mistreatment of minorities is no longer a concern and knowing there’s still a long road ahead. The tone of “Alright” and other protest music of the last decade is pointed and unafraid since the alternative is sitting back watching the world collapse. “Alright” has served as a theme for protests, starting with those tied to the murder of George Floyd and the continued Black Lives Matter movement.  

Protest music is the lifeblood of culture. It is supposed to shake individuals to the core and invite people to participate in change. It is a risk to be so honest in critiquing powerful elites and controversial events that happen in our world, but more importantly, it is crucial for inspiring future generations to feel heard and to spread awareness. The history of protest music is full of rich and poignant views from the artists who have used their voice to demand better even at the expense of their careers. These brave artists have used their influence to encourage individuals to stand in solidarity with the oppressed and reject the status quo, even for the more privileged who are not negatively affected by it. In an age of deceitful news coverage, social media content overload and freedom of speech rights being in question, it is imperative that songwriters and artists continue to challenge and question current events. We only have our voice, and using our voice in our art is crucial in standing tall together to reject injustices.

“There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest.” – Elie Wiesel, human rights activist and author

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