Love them or hate them, there’s no doubt Irish hip-hop trio Kneecap are having a moment.
Their music – delivered in a powerful fusion of English and Irish – is known for its gritty lyrics about party drugs and working-class life in post-Troubles Ireland. More recently, the group has made headlines for its outspoken support for the Palestinian people.
British police have charged member Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh (known by his stage name Mo Chara) with a terrorism offence. Ó hAnnaidh was charged in May, after being accused of displaying a Hezbollah flag at a London concert in November.
But this isn’t the first time an Irish republican group has courted controversy for backing other oppressed peoples. This has been happening for almost two centuries.
Unsanitised and vocal support
Ireland is composed of 32 counties. Twenty-six are in the Republic of Ireland, while six are part of the United Kingdom in Northern Ireland. When the British government withdrew from most of Ireland in 1921, the Irish Free State was largely Catholic, while Northern Ireland was more heavily Protestant. But these divisions are becoming increasingly irrelevant.
While Ireland is still split across two nations, public support for Irish unity remains strong, particularly among citizens of the Republic.
Kneecap’s members are from Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland. They are also fierce republicans, which means they want to see Ireland united as one nation. One of their most popular songs, Get Your Brits Out, calls for the British state’s withdrawal from Northern Ireland.
Despite being undeniable provocateurs, they claim they aren’t interested in reigniting Catholic-Protestant conflict. They celebrate the similarities between both groups, rather than highlight their differences.
Ó hAnnaidh’s alleged terrorism offence came after he waved a Hezbollah flag at a London gig and chanted “Up Hamas, up Hezbollah”. Both Hamas and Hezbollah are considered terrorist groups in Britain. He will face court on August 20.
Irish-Māori solidarity
Kneecap is carrying on a long tradition of Irish groups who faced controversy for denouncing the oppressive acts of powerful states.
In the 19th century, several Irish nationalist groups expressed solidarity with other colonised peoples, especially Māori in Aotearoa New Zealand. Groups such as the Irish Republican Brotherhood (whose members were called Fenians) arguably saw Māori and Irish as co-victims of a tyrannical state.
Irish nationalist newspapers often wrote sympathetically about the colonisation of New Zealand, and tried to inspire Ireland to resist British subjugation, like Māori seemed to be doing.
This painting by Kennett Watkins, The Death of Von Tempsky at Te Ngutu o Te Manu (circa 1893), portrays conflict in 1868 between armed constabulary and Māori forces. Wikimedia
In July 1864, the Fenian newspaper The Irish People stressed British hypocrisy. It wrote, “savages we call [Māori], using the arrogant language of civilisation, but, honestly, they deserve to be characterised by a much better word”.
It also scoffed at the “unconquerable propensity of the Anglo-Saxon to plunder the lands of other people – a propensity which manifests itself most strikingly alike in Ireland and New Zealand”.
Similarly, in December 1868, the nationalist newspaper The Nation contrasted “valiant” Māori with “terrified” British. It sarcastically described Māori as “rebels (men fighting for their own rights on their own soil)” and mocked the British forces as “valiant men who could bully a priest”.
The article finished on a sombre note: “Mere valour will in the end go down before the force of numbers and the cunning of diplomacy”.
In Ireland, Parnell encouraged poor tenant farmers to pause rent payments to their British landlords. In New Zealand, Te Whiti encouraged Māori to dismantle colonially-constructed fences and plough the land for themselves. Both were arrested in 1881 within three weeks of each other.
The ‘No Rent Manifesto’ was issued on 18 October 1881, by Parnell and others of the Irish National Land League while in Kilmainham Jail. National Library of Ireland
So strong was the sense of kinship between Irish and Māori that, in the 1860s, there were persistent rumours of a joint Irish-Māori rebellion reported in the media and even New Zealand’s parliament.
In March, 1869, the conservative New Zealand newspaper Daily Southern Cross reported a large number of Māori “have decided on joining the Fenian Brotherhood, and have adopted the green flag as their national emblem”.
Later that year, the paper reported the supposed Fenians told a Māori resistance group that, “like the Maori, they hate the British rule, and are prepared to make common cause […] to overthrow that rule in New Zealand”.
However, these rumours were probably no more than a conspiracy fuelled by racist anti-Irish paranoia.
Actions and outcomes
Any tangible results of cross-cultural sympathy from 19th century Irish nationalists were mixed, at best. My ongoing research shows solidarity with Māori was partly motivated by humanitarian motives, but was also often used to make a point about Ireland.
Identifying with another oppressed peoples within the context of a corrupt empire was a powerful way to argue for improved political recognition within Ireland. Irish nationalists generally didn’t do much other than declare their sympathy.
Kneecap, on the other hand, seems willing to bear the legal and financial consequences of being vocal about human rights abuses in Gaza. Some of their shows have been cancelled, and funding providers have withdrawn.
While curated rebellion can be lucrative in show-business, Kneecap says the controversy following them is a distraction. They insist the world should focus squarely on Gaza instead.
On the unceded, ancestral territory of the Lheidli T’enneh lives a 41-year-old singer-songwriter. She is queer, she is disabled, she’s a mother and she has a dog with a special name (we’ll get to that later). Her name is Amy Blanding, and until recently she worked as a Director of Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility at the Northern Health Authority (“NHA”) in British Columbia, Canada.
After performing her song, Sunbirds, back in April of 2024, while wearing a t-shirt with a watermelon image on it, some members of her community sent a complaint to her employers urging them to take action against her.
Shortly after, Amy was removed from her potition at the NHA. Instead of letting her oppressors break her, Amy went into the studio to record her song, and with its release she started gathering funds for a pro-peace, non-profit organisation as well as raising awareness about the cause of the Palestinian people and all people suffering from the conflicts and terrors brought onto them by arms manufacturers and warmongering politicians around the world.
In short, Amy is fighting back. And she was kind enough to take the time to tell us her story.
Halldór Kristínarson: Thank you for participating and being open to answering a few questions. First off, for those out there who are not familiar, can you tell us a little bit about your background, and how you got into creating music?
Amy Blanding: I was born in the four corners region of Navajo, Hopi, Ute, and Zuni territory (Colorado, USA) and raised on the red shores of Epekwitk – Mi’kmaq territory (PEI, Canada). I am a white, disabled, queer woman, mother, equity specialist, and musician. I grew up singing in choirs, playing trumpet in band, and exposed to music through my parents. Music was always a part of my life, but it didn‘t become something I pursued professionally until I moved to Lheidli T‘enneh/Prince George (in British Columbia, Canada) where I now live. I co-founded a band called Black Spruce Bog and got my first exposure to touring, recording, playing shows, and eventually writing my own music and singing lead. When that band broke up, I set out on my own to continue evolving my sound and my voice. So in music industry terms, I‘m late to the game (I‘m 41 years old now). But I love it, I feel like my music holds a depth of experience and context that could only have been curated over time.
HK: Has your music always been conscious, or political? Some people say that music and activism should be separated, others believe the two are inseperable as the ought to be. What is your take on this? I can only imagine you have slightly more direct, very impactful take on this theme in light of recently being fired from your job due to you performing a song in solidarity with the Palestinian people.
AB: I write music about what I see around me, what I witness, and what I feel utterly compelled to speak out about. My music is personal and absolutely political – it has always addressed the world that I live in and the stories of the people I meet. I do see art and activism as being inextricably linked. The post racial reckoning, pandemic year of 2020 was a turning point for my music though. I gave birth to my son and I had to decide what my legacy was going to be with this platform my privilege had afforded me. If I was going to take up space in the music world, I knew I had to use it as a catalyst to move us closer to collective liberation. I owe that to my son.
HK: Can you also tell us a bit more about how that happened, the termination of your work because of a song/performance? The job you had sounds very inclusive and justice-minded, can you explain how such a workplace would fire someone for simply singing a song in solidarity with oppressed people? For an outsider looking in, it sounds baffling.
AB: As an insider looking in, it‘s still baffling! Last April I played a song I wrote called Sunbirds at a community concert – the song is about the genocide in Palestine. I also wore a watermelon shirt from wearthepeace.com at the concert‘s dress rehearsal. A group of local Zionists wrote a defamatory and factually incorrect letter to my employer claiming that my actions were Anti-Semitic, Pro-Hamas, jihadist, bigoted, etc. This letter was taken at face-value with no due process or inquiry, and I was removed from my role as Director of Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility at the Northern Health Authority. This amounts to defamation, a wrongful dismissal, and a violation of my right to freedom of expression in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. I have filed two lawsuits, against my former employer and the community members, and we will likely be going to trial in early 2026. You can watch the press conference here.
HK: After being fired for singing your song, you didn‘t let that break you, but instead you pushed onwards and went straight into the recording studio. Can you tell me what fueled you, what gave you strength to fight back and take something as negative as being fired for your art and turning it into a song release with benefits going to aid for Gaza?
AB: The ultimate aim of facsism, imperialism, capitalism, Zionism, all systems of oppression is to stifle our voices, and either wear us out or scare us into staying silent. If the goal of these systems and institutions is to silence the voices of the people, then the best way to retaliate is to deny them that.
I was told that Sunbirds was too political to sing. And then when I sang it I lost my job. I‘m regularly harrassed online and in-person by Zionists. I‘m told by friends and acquaintences that I should settle with Northern Health, take the money and move on. But this is how harmful people continue to hold power, and oppressive cycles remain unbroken. So instead, I decided to not only record and release Sunbirds, but to use it as a fundraiser for the very organization whose watermelon shirt got me in trouble in the first place, an organization sending humanitarian aid directly to Gaza. The song has gone viral now – people are talking about what happened to me and vocalizing their outrage that our Charter rights can be so easily undermined. Sunbirds is a catalyst for change, and I feel incredibly grateful to be a part of the movement.
HK: What inspires you to write a lyric or a melody? These are turbulent times and I can only imagine there is a lot happening that is fuelling your creative spirits? Are there certain issues that your more passionate about than others?
AB: I am always listening for a word or a statement that captures what I am feeling or seeing in the world in a new and unique way. I am a storyteller, a seeker of beauty and a reflection of the humanity all around me. Always with the goal of collective liberation. Musically and sonically I am inspired by other artists, by the land I live on, and just jamming out with my friends on my mandolin!
HK: What musicians, activists, or people in general, have inspired you and your music career? And how does the protest music scene look like in your neck of the woods? Are there a lot of artists in your area using their voice for good? Any music recommendations you‘d like to throw our way?
AB: I stand on the shoulders of so many giants. I‘ve recently felt in great community with fellow outspoken healthcare leaders like Vash Ebbadi-Cook, Dr. Yipeng Ge, Dr. Deidre Nunan, and Sean Tucker; I am continuously learning from Catherine Frazee, Bisan Owda, Kelly Hayes, Mariame Kaba, Francesca Albanese, Harsha Walia, Alice Wong, Adrienne Maree Brown, the Wet‘suwet‘en Land Defenders, and the Comrades from Independent Jewish Voices (IJV), Jewish Voices for Peace (JVP), Migrant Rights Network, and Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ). I‘m inspired by the music of Sinead O‘Connor, Billy Bragg, Allison Russell, The Tragically Hip. And you absolutely have to check out Kym Gouchie, Rachelle Van Zanten, Sam Tudor, Ride-by-Night, Chloe Davidson, Rae Spoon, Tanya Tagaq, Nemahsis, Kaia Kater – there are so many great musicians doing good work in Canada. I wish there were more artists speaking out, but those that are inspire me daily.
HK: What is next on the horizon for you? Musically or activism wise? Can we expect a new album soon?
AB: BDS all day every day! It‘s working, we must keep talking about Palestine (and Sudan, and the Congo).
I will be in Afterlife Studio (Vancouver) in June to record my next album. My hope is to have that record out by the end of the summer. I‘ll be touring and playing music festivals all spring and summer. I‘d love to tour in Iceland, so hit me up if you know how to make that happen!
I‘m also focusing energy on curating spaces for art to happen that are accessible, slow, and deliberately, consciously designed in a different way than the industry standard. If we are to truly move toward collective liberation, we need to guarantee that all voices and perspectives are present and contributing to that vision. Art spaces need disabled voices, older voices, Indigenous voices. I see my job as helping to curate these spaces and removing access barriers to get the right people in the door or on the stage.
HK: Finally, in an Instagram post, where you thank your fans and people around the world for supporting the release of Sunbirds, you‘re accompanied by a very handsome furry guy, named Seeger. I think the Shouts audience would very much like to confirm where that name comes from.
AB: This may be my favorite interview question of all time! Seeger is my amazing rescue dog. She came to me 6 days after the death of protest folk legend Peter Seeger. I grew up listening to Pete Seeger‘s music, and my Dad (also a musician) actually shared the stage with him once. They even wrote a couple letters back and forth. Pete is an icon so it was only fitting that I name my best girl after him.
HK: Thank you so much for participating. Anything else you‘d like to shout from the rooftops?
AB: Thanks so much for the chance to share some of my story! Feel free to reach out, I love connecting with Comrades across the globe. Solidarity!
Happy New Year comrades, this is DJ General Strike, host of the weekly protest music radio show, Protest Tunes on 91.3 KBCS FM in Seattle, WA. I broadcast 2 hours of radical protest music of all genres and eras every Wednesday at 9 PM. 2024 was an active year for protest music, in light of the Presidential election in the US and the General election in the UK. Many great anti-war songs were also released against Israel’s ongoing war/genocide in Gaza. Over the last year I’ve compiled a playlist of over 800 of these protest songs, which you can listen to in its entirety here, and I’ve made 4 shows on my top protest songs of each season, or what I call Molotov Hot Tracks. I narrowed that high volume of songs down to my top 40 protest songs of 2024. I aired most of these songs on my show last Wednesday, New Year’s Day, which you can listen to an archive of here. I’ve organized these 40 protest songs by genre below for ease of listening (and alphabetically within genre), you can also listen to all 40 on this Spotify Playlist. Without further ado here’s my top 40 Protest Songs of 2024.
Folk
Grammy winning feminist folk-rock singer-songwriter, author and activist. One of the first artists to create her own label in 1990, she is called ‘the mother of the DIY movement’ and has sold over 5.5 million albums on her own Righteous Babe Records. New Bible is an anti-capitalist song, the 2nd single off of her album Unprecedented Sh!t’, Ani’s 23rd release, released July 12th.
Carsie Blanton is a singer-songwriter and guitarist based in New Orleans, US. Blanton says she “writes anthems for a world worth saving.” About this song this single released May 31st, she said it’s “a “f— the democratic party for sitting on its hands during a genocide” kind of a song.”
Petrie is an English folk singer-songwriter and guitarist from Leicester, England. She began performing in 2006, but in 2010 the advent of the Conservative-led coalition government influenced her, as a socialist, feminist, and lesbian, towards an increasing emphasis on political songwriting. This track is off of her new album Build Something Better, released March 8th.
Welles, is a singer-songwriter and guitarist from Arkansas, US, who was the frontman of the bands Dead Indian, formed in 2012, and Cosmic-American, formed in 2015. In 2024, Welles garnered attention on social media for authoring and performing satirical protest songs, like this viral anti-war-on-Gaza song, which satirizes common justifications for war.
Seth Staton Watkins is a folk singer from St. Louis, US, who is best known for his renditions of traditional Irish rebel tunes. He records and produces all of his music in his home studio. He released “Stand Together”, a rewrite of his 2023 song “It’s Not the Poor Folk”, this November in the wake of Trump’s electoral victory.
Sister Wife Sex Strike is a Seattle-based anarchist folk punk band comprised of Sister Pigeon and Sister Moth. The band’s name is inspired by a real life sex strike that they went on in 2021. They released this anti-Zionist single on July 4th, off of their new album Sister Wife Sex Change, which dropped August 2nd.
Rock and Roll
Frank Turner is an English punk, folk and indie-rock singer-songwriter who began his career as the vocalist of post-hardcore band Million Dead, then embarked upon a primarily acoustic-based solo career following the band’s split in 2005. This anti-authoritarian song off of Turner’s new album Undefeated, is a rewrite of an old unreleased song of his, called Practical Anarchist.
MC5 (Motor City 5) was an American rock band formed in Lincoln Park, Michigan, in 1963. The last two members of the band, Wayne Kramer and Dennis Thompson passed away this year, while they were working on their all-star comeback album Heavy Lifting which features guests like Tom Morello, Slash, Vernon Reid, and more. The album was released this October, timed to the band’s posthumous induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Primal Scream are a Scottish rock band originally formed in 1982 in Glasgow by Bobby Gillespie and Jim Beattie. Primal Scream had been performing live from 1982 to 1984, but their career did not take off until Gillespie left his position as drummer of The Jesus and Mary Chain. This epic nine minute track compares settler colonialism in Ireland, Scotland and Palestine.
R&B/Pop
This Welsh musician, composer, producer, filmmaker and author performs solo and with rock band Super Furry Animals, who obtained mainstream success in the 90s, and the electro-pop band Neon Neon. He’s considered a figurehead of the era known as Cool Cymru, a Welsh cultural movement in music and film in the 1990s and 2000s. This anti-government corruption song is off of his newest album Sadness Sets Me Free released last January.
Shaina Taub is a Vermont-raised, Brooklyn-based composer, singer-songwriter and performer. This song is newly written for Taub’s musical about the Women’s Suffrage Movement, “Suffs” upcoming Broadway run. Taub wrote the music, lyrics, and book for the musical and also stars as Alice Paul in “Suffs”.
The 74 year old living legend, had his first Billboard No. 1 hit at the age of 12, and has won 25 Grammys (the most by any solo artist). This is Stevie’s first new song since 2020, and it encourages people to get involved and seize the crucial moment that the U.S. and the world find themselves in right now.
Sunny War is a Blues/Folk/Punk guitarist from Nashville, US. “Walking Contradiction” is the first single from her album Armageddon In A Summer Dress, which drops on 21st of February 2025. Sunny War wrote its songs after moving into her late father’s 100-year-old house in Chattanooga. A big fan of Crass, the influential British anarcho-punk collective, she recruited Crass’ Steve Ignorant to perform on this track.
Reggae/Ska
DJ Pamplona is an independent audio engineer from Rio de Janeiro Brazil, of the group Dub Ataque. He is now based in Florida where he owns his own studio and record label, Pamplona Beats. This anti-war-on-Gaza song features Soom T, a Scottish reggae singer of Indian origin.
Zion I Kings, a family of producers and musicians from three respected roots production houses, finished and released this posthumous track by the late Peetah Morgan in July. Peetah, who passed away on February 25th, was the lead singer of Grammy-winning contemporary reggae band Morgan Heritage, formed in 1994 by five children of reggae artist Denroy Morgan.
The Undercover Hippy is UK based singer-songwriter Billy Rowan, who spent 7 years DJ’ing and MC’ing on the Drum & Bass circuit, then started The Undercover Hippy as a solo act in 2007 and now plays with a 5 piece band. 100% of proceeds from this track are donated to Palestinian charities: Sanabel Team, The Sameer Project and We Are Not Numbers.
Jazz/Spoken Word
aja monet is a poet, writer, lyricist and activist based in Los Angeles, US. She was the youngest poet to ever hold the title Nuyorican Poets Café Grand Slam Champion at the age of 19 in 2007. This song was inspired by Langston Hughes’ 1938 poem, “For the Kids Who Died.”
Meshell Ndegeocello is a singer-songwriter, poet, and bassist. Her music incorporates a wide variety of influences, including funk, soul, jazz, hip hop, reggae and rock. She’s been nominated for 11 Grammys, and won two. This epic 8 minute track is off of her new album, No More Water: The Gospel of James Baldwin, which pays homage to the eminent writer and activist, James Baldwin.
Hip-Hop
Abe Batshon is a Palestinian American songwriter, artist and entrepreneur born in San Francisco and raised in Hayward, California. This single, released in February about the war in Gaza, also features Lebanese singer Samer and Detroit-based Palestinian-American hip hop artist Sammy Shiblaq.
Arrested Development was formed in Atlanta, US, in 1988 by rapper and producer Speech and turntablist Headliner. They were the first hip hop band to win a Grammy for Best New Artist, in 1993. This track is from their new album Bullets In The Chamber, released in January, which is so full of great protest songs, it was hard to pick just one.
Brother Ali is a blind, albino rapper, community activist, and member of the Rhymesayers Entertainment hip hop collective from Minneapolis, US. In this track Ali, who is Muslim, and anti-zionist Jewish producer unJUST tackle Israel’s assault on the Palestinian people. They released this single in March, off of their collaborative album Love and Service which came out in April.
Eddie Mack is an Arab-American Hip-Hop artist from Detroit, US. Mack engineers and produces and writes all of his own music. His distinct sound combines vintage Hip-Hop tracks with contemporary production methods. This sequel to his October 2023 protest song against Israel’s war on Gaza, The Sound Of War, was released in August.
Harris J, AKA “the Muslim Justin Bieber” is a young British Muslim artist whose debut album, Salam, was released in 2015. This song features rapper Lowkey, an Iraqi-British rapper and activist from London. These two London-based Muslim artists collaborated on this anti-war track against Israel’s war/genocide in Gaza.
Kimmortal is a Queer Filipina emcee and singer-songwriter based in Vancouver, BC. Their debut album Sincerity was entirely crowd funded by her community. In this follow up to Kimmortal’s November 23’ single against Israel’s war on Gaza, Stop Business As Usual, they feature Toronto R&B/Hip-Hop artist Phoenix Pagliacci of TRPP and transgender American-Peruvian rapper Bobby Sanchez.
The Seattle star rapper released this follow-up to his viral Spring protest single on September 20th, and performed it live for the first time in Seattle the next day at the Palestine Will Live Forever benefit concert. The track features Palestinian-American artists Anees and Amer Zahr, Gaza-born rapper MC Abdul, and the LA Palestinian Kids Choir. Just like the first song, Macklemore is donating the proceeds from “Hind’s Hall 2” to UNRWA.
Considered one of the pioneers of female rap, MC Lyte first gained fame in the late 1980s, becoming the first female rapper to release a full solo album in 1988. She’s back after ten years with a brand new album, called ‘1 of 1’. In this song MC Lyte, Stevie Wonder, and Common address systemic injustice and the pervasive impact of racism on African Americans.
Rapsody began her career at North Carolina State University, where she joined hip hop collective H2O and its spinoff group Kooley High, despite not having rapped before. She launched her solo career in 2008. This song off her new album Please Don’t Cry is about the police murder of Breonna Taylor, and samples Bob Marley’s “I Shot the Sheriff”.
Metal/Hardcore
Formed in LA in 1990 and fronted by rapper Ice T. who first established himself as a rapper then co-founded the group with lead guitarist Ernie C out of their shared interest in heavy metal music. Body Count have been credited for paving the way for the rise of rap metal and nu metal, even though Ice-T does not rap in most Body Count songs. This track critiques the American two party system, comparing the Democrats and Republicans to warring gangs.
FEVER 333 is a political rap-core trio formed in Inglewood, US, in 2017 by members of Letlive, Chariot and Night Verses. Originally named The Fever, 333 represents the band’s three core principles of community, charity and change. This anti-police brutality single, released in August, is off of their new album ‘Darker White’, released on October 4th.
English rapper and songwriter of Indian origin. Hyphen had an usual start in music – he was working in finance and feeling depressed and lacking purpose, and started making music to help him deal with depression, which gave him a new sense of purpose. He released this immigrant rights, anti-1% single this October.
Ren is a Welsh songwriter, musician, rapper, producer, director and disability rights activist, he has had chronic Lyme disease for over 10 years. He was a member of the indie hip-hop band Trick The Fox and the British busking band The Big Push. He released this anti-capitalist single on October 18th.
Serj Tankian is an Armenian-American musician and activist, best known as the lead vocalist, primary lyricist, keyboardist, and occasional rhythm guitarist of the heavy metal band System of a Down, formed in 1994. Tankian says he wrote this song during the early days of System of a Down. It’s about the Armenian genocide that took place during WWI, and how it still impacts his family and the broader Armenian community.
Tom Morello, is a guitarist, singer-songwriter, and political activist, best known for his tenure with Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave. This new solo single, off his upcoming solo rock album, Morello calls the song “a salute to the transformative power of music”. It features a guest guitar solo by his 13-year-old son, Roman Morello.
Punk
Destroy Boys are a teen punk band from Sacramento, US. Their name was taken from words that singer Violet Mayugba wrote on her chalkboard at home during a period of relationship troubles. This feminist anti-assault/harassment anthem from their new album, Funeral Soundtrack No. 4 features fellow feminist punks Mannequin Pussy, from Philadelphia, and Scowl from Santa Cruz, California.
Dropkick Murphys are Celtic punk band from Massachusetts, US. About this song, frontman Ken Casey says, “For nearly a decade, the division between red and blue, right and left, has grown deeper, darker and uglier…Nobody enjoys this more than the billionaires, who are making record profits off the blood, sweat, and tears of the working class… They love it when we fight amongst ourselves, because their biggest fear is us joining together to come after them…THE REAL ENEMY.”
Punk rock band from Santa Cruz, US, formed in 1986. Known for their energetic sound and thought-provoking lyrics, the band briefly disbanded before reuniting in 2012. They released this protest single as a call to action ahead of the U.S. election on October 22nd.
Lady Parts is a band created for the British sitcom, We Are Lady Parts, created, written, and directed by Nida Manzoor, who alongside her siblings, also writes and supervises the music for the show. The series follows a British punk rock band named Lady Parts, which consists entirely of Muslim women. This track is off the show’s soundtrack, We Are Lady Parts (Music From The Original Series – Seasons 1 & 2) released May 31st.
Lambrini Girls are a queer feminist three-piece punk band from Brighton, UK, known for their energetic, emotive lyrics and political commentary. About this single released in February the band said “’Gods Country’ is our long, overdue call-out of the government and rise of the far right… We have the audacity to call our country ‘Great’. So we ask you, ‘Are you sure?”
This 7-member Irish Folk Punk Band from Germany, started out as a duo, playing in small barns and pubs as “The O’Reillys,” and a little later mutual friends joined them as the “Paddyhats” and turned the duo into a full band. This anti-fascist song is “directed against political and social currents that endanger democracy – and calls on people to speak up, rise up and fight together for freedom and justice.”
Pop punk band with grunge influences founded in Baltimore, US in 2019, after the three members met at Johns Hopkins University. Pinkshift has used their platform to advocate for racial diversity, Palestine, and gender inclusivity. This anti-Trump song began its life as an “anti-fascist poem” written by vocalist Ashrita Kumar.
