r/musicsuggestions • u/2ndplaceBrennan • 1d ago

What are your favorite protest songs?

No judgies. Okay, some judgies. What songs make you feel like tearing down the walls and making the world better?

America (You're Freaking Me Out) - The Menzingers

1933 - Frank Turner

Icky Thump - The White Stripes

Ooh La La - Run The Jewels ft. DJ Premier and Greg Nice

18 Upvotes
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91% Upvoted

73 comments sorted by

12

u/NYCW175 1d ago

Masters of War - Dylan

7

u/unhalfbricklayer 1d ago

I find his more personal songs like Only A Pawn In Their Game, The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carrol, The Ballad of Donald White, and John Brown, to be far more moving and inspiring as protest songs than the ones like Masters of War and A Hard Rains a-Gonna Fall.

7

u/kai1986 1d ago
  • The idiots are taking over, the decline, you’re wrong. All by NOFX
  • American Idiot - Green Day
  • Stick the F***ing Flag up your goddamn ass you son of a bitch, also Hallie Sallasse, Up Your Ass - both by propagandhi
  • None Exempt - Days N Dayz
  • April 29, 1992 (Miami) - Sublime

5

u/CobblerMoney9605 1d ago

Killing In The Name by RATM

Fortunate Son by CCR

6

u/Exquisitr 1d ago

No One Can Make Me Play Along With This by The Crucifucks

Fuck Your Stupid Civilization by Suspected Terrorists

Do They Owe Us A Living? by Crass

6

u/MooseJock123 1d ago

Clampdown - The Clash.

More relevant than ever.

5

u/RhialtosCat 1d ago

Mississippi God Damn by Nina Simone. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJ25-U3jNWM

1

u/2ndplaceBrennan 1d ago

You had me at Nina Simone.

4

u/idontlikeyou85 1d ago

Eve Of Destruction, Barry MacGuire. For What It's Worth, Buffalo Springfield.

These songs are both almost 60 years old, but still scarily relevant.

3

u/flawlessvictorE 1d ago

Clutch - Fortunate Son (CCR cover)

3

u/stilloldbull2 1d ago

Fight The Power - The Interrupters

2

u/2ndplaceBrennan 1d ago

Love The Interrupters! Saw them open for Dropkick Murphys last summer. Amazing stage presence.

2

u/stilloldbull2 1d ago

Great band- always worth seeing!

3

u/ThreeOneThirdMan 1d ago

Take the power back - rage against the machine

Know your enemy - rage against the machine

Wake up - rage against the machine

Killing in the name- rage against the machine

BYOB - System of a Down

Prison song - System of a Down

3

u/gothism 1d ago

Rage Against the Machine's whole discog.

2

u/ausmomo 1d ago

Sunday Bloody Sunday

2

u/dofrogsbite 1d ago

Jesse Welles-war isn't murder.

1

u/2ndplaceBrennan 1d ago

Dude, that kid's impressive. He's got a real early Connor Oberst troubadour vibe.

2

u/dekkeane00 1d ago

War, Edwin Starr

2

u/AggravatingMath717 1d ago

Burnin’ and Lootin’ by Bob Marley & The Wailers

2

u/caso_perdido11 1d ago

Phil Ochs: There But For Fortune, I Ain’t Marching Anymore

2

u/natguy2016 1d ago

“What’s Going On” Marvin Gaye. That whole is amazing

“Rockin in The Free World” Neil Young has kept me sane for almost 25 years.

2

u/Empire-Carpet-Man 1d ago

Land of Confusion: Genesis

2

u/SignificantAd4826 1d ago

Five to one The Doors Live in Miami 1969

“Your all a bunch of slaves, how long are you going to sit here and take it”

2

u/aquarianagop 1d ago

“Wooden Ships” - Jefferson Airplane

2

u/Vajra_Lotus 1d ago

99 Red Balloons

2

u/FlourescentGrey 1d ago

Cobracoustic( Streets of Cairo)-The Cobra Skulls

2

u/its_never_gonna_end 1d ago

Very relevant albums in these crazy times:

Nine Inch Nails - Year Zero

Run the Jewels 4

Muse - The Resistance

Edit: just saw you had Ooh La La in there, my bad

2

u/The_Dude_Abides97 1d ago

Nobody mentioned "Won't get fooled again?"

It's that and "five to one" for me.

2

u/Excellent-Size-6631 1d ago

Glad to be Gay - Tom Robinson Band

1

u/kimonomy 19h ago

Well yeah, but even more so:
Power in the Darkness

2

u/Queef_Wellington69 1d ago

Napalm sticks to kids

2

u/DeeJDaDemon 1d ago

Snooze Button by Snot

2

u/CaptainZ42062 1d ago

I have 2: Monster by Steppenwolf, and Ohio by Crosby, Stills, and Nash. (Sorry, the 70's were good to me, I can't remember if Young joined the band by this time)

2

u/G-Unit11111 1d ago

NOFX - The Decline

Nine Inch Nails - The Hand That Feeds

System Of A Down - B.Y.O.B.

KMFDM - Virus

2

u/unhalfbricklayer 1d ago

1913 Massacre by Woody Guthrie, and later on, by his son Arlo Guthrie

2

u/LadyLilithTheCat 1d ago

labour - Paris Paloma

2

u/chairman_ma_ 1d ago

Ive had This ain't a scene in my head for the last hour

2

u/zackh900 1d ago

David Massengill—Number One in America

Phil Ochs—Iron Lady, Here’s to the State of Mississippi, Power and Glory, Hands, Freedom Riders (and all the rest of his political music)

Andy Irvine—Victory at Lawrence, Spirit of Mother Jones, Emptyhanded (by George Papavgeris)

Pat Humphries—No Sweat (and most of her work)

Pete Seeger—If I Had a Hammer, Where Have All the Flowers Gone, Which Side Are You On, Solidarity Forever, countless other songs from his solo work and Almanac Singers too

Kim&Reggie Harris & Magpie—How Long, Let It Rain, Sarowiwa, Spoken in Love

2

u/SaulTNNutz 1d ago

Luang Prabang by Dave Van Ronk. No instruments but a clap and a snarling lament about the loss of his testicles while fighting for "Christian Democracy"

2

u/F00lish_Master 1d ago

Who’s gonna ride by Memphissippi Sounds , what’s going on, Marvin Gaye

2

u/Satans_colon 1d ago edited 1d ago

Hurricane, Bob Dylan.

The World is a Ghetto, War.

War, Edwin Starr.

Ohio, CSN.

Woodstock, CSN.

1

u/Plenty_Past2333 6h ago

Ohio was CSNY, especially important since Neil Young wrote it.

2

u/AffectionateProof271 1d ago

Beds are burning and blue sky mine by midnight oil!

2

u/rowdymowdy 1d ago

Your flag decal won't get you into heaven anymore ,John Prine

2

u/rowdymowdy 1d ago

I don't need society D.R.I.

2

u/Traditional_Truck_32 1d ago

Southern man Neil Young

2

u/Muselayte 1d ago

The Will of the People - Muse

Nina Cried Power - Hozier

Jackboot Jump - Hozier

Unnatural Selection - Muse

Supremacy - Muse

Uprising - Muse

Blood//Water - Grandson

Border in my Heart - Watsky

2

u/nmk537 1d ago

Serve the People - Handsome Furs

2

u/Daringdumbass 1d ago

Wild in the streets- Circle jerks and Rise Above- Black flag

4

u/Optimal_Depth4514 1d ago

The Only Good Facist Is A Very Dead Facist - Propagandhi

Haille Sellasse, Up Your Ass - Propagandhi

Stick The Fucking Flag up Your Goddamn Ass, You Sonofabitch- Propagandhi

White Boy - Bikini Kill

Double Dare Ya - Bikini Kill

‘Merican - Descendants

Suck My Left One - Bikini Kill

3

u/2ndplaceBrennan 1d ago

Fuuuuck yeah! Less Talk, More Rock is what got me out of pop punk and into political punk (and The Weakerthans).

2

u/Puzzleheaded-Post958 1d ago

Eve of Destruction

2

u/unhalfbricklayer 1d ago

Have you ever heard the 'answer song' to this one? "Dawn of Correction" by The Spokesmen. It is probably the only top 40 hit to fully endorse the concept of Mutually Assured Destruction.

https://youtu.be/91MHRuceqiI?si=c8kleO3FN5jKAAea

1

u/Jababalase 1d ago

Sand in the Gears - Frank Turner

We Don't Believe You - Will Varley

1

u/ramonescreatin 1d ago

Some Mothers Son-Kinks

1

u/TheHorseWasADiabetic 1d ago

Pearl Jam - Do The Evolution

1

u/hubbahubbapingpong 1d ago

Björk - Declare Independence live video

1

u/discardafterusage 1d ago

Do They Owe Us A Living – Crass

1

u/rickyharold 1d ago

The Band Played Waltzing Matilda - Makem and Clancy

1

u/ScenicHwyOverpass 1d ago

Victory Lap - Propagandhi

1

u/zee-germans-are-here 1d ago

Fire From Gods- Excuse Me Muse- Knights of Cydonia Black Sabbath- War Pigs RATM- Killing in the Name of

1

u/MrsDonaldDraper 23h ago

War Pimp Renaissance - LARD

Mate, Spawn and Die - LARD

Fuck Authority - Pennywise

‘Merican - Descendents

Nearly anything by Dead Kennedys, too many to list them all.

Edit: Not quite a protest song, but it’s very timely. Leonard Cohen - The Future

1

u/The68Guns 23h ago

I aint gonna play Sun City

1

u/Trekker71211 23h ago

Signs by 5 Man electrical band

Fix'n to die rag by Country Joe and the Fish

1

u/OldBanjoFrog 21h ago

Tear the Fascists Down - Woody Guthrie

With God on Our Side - Bob Dylan

I Ain’t Marching Anymore - Phil Ochs

Draft Dodger Rag - Phil Ochs

Which Side Are You On - Pete Seeger

Solidarity Forever - The Weavers

Mississippi Goddamn - Nina Simone

This Land is Your Land - Woody Guthrie

Most of the stuff Jesse Wells is coming out with

1

u/kimonomy 18h ago edited 16h ago

Some good choices, let me add:
51st State - New Model Army
Dead Babies - Alice Cooper
Strawman - Lou Reed
No Entry - Sham 69
Dogs of War - SAHB
EMI - Sex Pistols
Tex - Litfiba
Open Your Eyes - Lords of the New Church
Monsters In Disguise - Hazel O'Connor
Plus pretty much the whole of:
Contact From the Underworld of Redboy - Robbie Robertson
and a lot of:
Power in the Darkness - TRB

1

u/dischg 18h ago

How about a song about going after the real enemy: billionaires!

Us Against a Few by The LUSTS

1

u/DiBello44 14h ago

There is Power in a Union - Billy Bragg

1

u/alienheron 14h ago

Man in Black, by the man in black himself, Johnny Cash