Political Songs to Whip You into a Rebellious, Socially-Conscious Frenzy (Somebody Will Wind Up Offended)

{Insert_Witty_Username_Here} is ready to rock 'n roll, political-style.—Sparkitors

Guess what! It’s summer, which means I have waaay too much time on my hands! And the best thing to listen to during the summer is, and always will be, angry/inspiring rebellious music that may or may not be punk! With no further ado, here are my favorite political anthems:

1. Icky Thump by the White Stripes. First of all, I am an avid fan of the Stripes. Jack White is on my list of “People who can do no wrong,” along with Stephen Colbert, Harry Potter, and Hayao Miyazaki. And this song? This song is maybe my favorite. It focuses on the double standards and unfairness of our nation’s policy on immigration, particularly of the illegal kind. And it includes the best lyrics ever: "White Americans, what, nothin’ better to do/Why don’t you kick yourself out? You’re an immigrant too.” Yes, all the lyrics are that wonderful. From a hyper-liberal angsty teenager’s perspective, at least.

2. Warchild by Emmanuel Jal. To understand this song, you need to know the artist’s back story. Emmanuel Jal is a Sudanese rapper who was forced to fight for the Sudanese People’s Liberation Army when he was about seven, soon after his mother was killed. After running away and being adopted by a British aid worker, he fell in love with hip-hop and now is a social activist working towards peace through his music. Yeah. This song is heartbreaking and brutal, and if you don’t feel inspired to do something after hearing it, you have no soul. Go back to punching kittens, Voldemort!

3. Don’t Need You by Bikini Kill. Do you like femmecore, hardcore, radically feminist angry punk music from the 90’s? Of course you do! What a silly question. Anyway, Bikini Kill is largely credited with launching riot grrrl, a genre of 90’s feminist punk rock. And riot grrrl is largely credited with launching third wave feminism! Which is controversial. So Google it yourselves because I don’t want to start a flame war.

4. Sunday Bloody Sunday by U2. This song describes the horrors of violence, particularly the Bloody Sunday incident in Northern Ireland. It is considered one of the best songs, to which you might reply, “By what criteria?” and I would reply “ALL OF THEM!” Seriously, a great and moving song by one of the best bands of all time.

What do you listen to when you want to get riled up? Do these songs make you think about politics, or do they just make you want to DANCE CRAZY?

Related post: Book Recommendations: Politics Edition