Original Protest Songs...

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ajrosales: Dec 19, 2003

Ah yes, the fine art of the protest song... From its humble origins in the 18th Century, to the apex of the fertile 1960's, many musicians have felt the need to express (in song) their feelings and thoughts about the socio-political climate they live in.
A little history on this trend in the US, if you must: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protest_songs_in_the_United_States

It seems like we are overdue for a swath of protest songs to come streaming out of the void, since we are in the midst of a rather tumultuous point in world history. Some musicians purposely eschew the idea of politicizing themselves (potentially a tactic to avoid alienating some of their fans...) but unless your song is overtly direct in someway - which would be bad songwriting - you're probably unlikely to do that.

I've always been of the mind that it's important to have some voice about current events, just to be a part of the zeitgeist. So I recently spent a little time writing a protest tune that I call "If Not Today". Basically, my questions would be "How will we turn around the tide of misinformation and hate we are currently seeing? And when will it take place?" I felt strongly enough about this issue that it just *had* to come out in a song. And this was the result:

https://vimeo.com/259580381

So, I'm curious if anyone is writing any protest songs besides me. If you have an original protest song, post it here. Or if you know of someone who's not entirely famous who has written one, post it here. Or, maybe even obscure historical protest music would be interesting. Or, lastly, write a protest song if you haven't and post it in here!

The purpose of this thread would be to give a voice to un-established artists instead of mainstream ones. IE: no Rage against the Machine, System of a Down, Bob Dylan, REM, U2, etc.. etc.. that stuff is already part of our consciousness.

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MrSargent: Dec 23, 2003; Sometimes, there's a man, well, he's the man for his time and place. He fits right in there. And that's Jimmy T.

After the Parkland shooting, I was incredibly inspired by the young men and women from Stoneman Douglas who chose to speak out against gun violence, even in the face of far-right media attacking them and labeling them as "crisis actors". It really struck me when listening to these kids, especially during the town hall, that they were the adults in the room, asking the tough questions and challenging the status quo. I started writing a track (sample-based hip-hop) and my buddy has been writing some lyrics to rap over and am calling it "Listen to the Kids". This is one of the first times where I have been inspired to write a song because of something that happened in the world and it feels really natural. Once I get closer to finishing the track, I will share it here. Thanks for making this thread.

# ? Mar 12, 2018 05:59

ajrosales: Dec 19, 2003

Cool! Looking forward to hearing another original tune.

To generate some interest, I'm going to start posting a few (relatively) unknown protest songs (at least from a modern perspective..)
The first one is from the "Hutchinson Family Singers" and it's called "Get off the Track". (1845)
It's an pro-emancipation tune they wrote and it sort of sounds a little bit like an early broadway musical. It's an interesting listen.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hutchinson_Family_Singers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyoC-JccYcc

# ? Mar 15, 2018 04:43