FROM FOLK TO POP - A BRIEF HISTORY OF WOMEN AND PROTEST SONGS

By Ann Marie Tierney

Music as a way to protest and talk (or sing) truth to power, goes way back. In fact, political angst and axes to grind have been documented by musicians since music was a thing. Music tells stories and if you are politically, socially or economically oppressed or disenfranchised then the very act of telling your story becomes an act of protest in and of itself. And throughout history, musicians have been putting their pens to paper and their guitars across their shoulders and telling tales from the front line.

There are certain genres that are more commonly associated with protest and politics than others. Most people are quick to think of folk or punk as genres through which to rage against the machine but in fact, most musical traditions have songs, artists or periods in which they challenged the status quo.

Women throughout history have often been denied a voice to bear witness to their own experiences and so it is no surprise that when we look back across the years and the genres that have produced songs of protest and challenge, women have been at the forefront of writing, performing and recording their stories and bringing to the wider public.  

But what is a protest song? The definition is wider than you think. It isn’t just about chants or tunes that can be sung on the front line of a march or as you handcuff yourself to the barricade, but it’s about the spirit of a song that is associated with a movement for social change or that takes a political stance on a contentious or topical issue. Pretty much every major social movement has a body of songs that embody the struggles and the triumphs. Whether it is the American Civil Rights movement; Anti-War protests; Feminist campaigns or Human Rights battles, every fight will have its soundtrack. As such, protest songs are a vibrant and eclectic collection of artists and sounds that together tell the underdog stories of battles for equality and dignity throughout the world.

As far back as the 18th century, there are documented examples of women subversively using music to express a political sentiment. Rights of Woman was a collection of lyrics designed to be sung to the tune of God Save The King and published in the Philadelphia Minerva paper in 1795. The author remained anonymous, more than likely to evade the consequences of penning such a shocking and revolutionary ode.

This ability to put words to music was instrumental in being able to spread a message, particularly in days where literacy and the ability to write views down was not widespread. By putting protest to song, there was a method of delivering the message to the masses and allowing them to forward the words on.

One of the first genres of modern music to use song as a way of expressing and documenting political and economic struggle is Country music. Some of the earliest recording artists in music were female Country artists and same goes for the first groups to tour. There were female only bands where all members were multi-instrumentalists and organised their own ways of getting across the country on their own, which was a revolutionary act in rural America in the 1920s.

‘Murder songs’ were a common feature of women’s Country offerings- songs about domestic homicides told through the narrative of the female victim. Coal miner’s daughter Loretta Lynn’s songs such as ‘Don’t Come Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ On Your Mind) and ‘The Pill’ were indicative that the sexual revolution wasn’t just restricted to the more liberal ladies of San Fran Cisco, but was topical for women in the Red states as well.

Black female artists were even more robust in using their position in Jazz or Blues to address numerous issues such as racism, sexism and social discrimination. Nina Simone had several hits which attracted controversy due to their combative nature. Mississippi Goddamn was banned from numerous radio stations, the reason given is that the use of the blasphemous phrase ‘Goddamn’, but the subject matter of the song surely played a part as well. Simone claimed the song was her first civil rights song and in it she responds to the murder of Medgar Evers in Mississippi as well as the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Alabama which killed four black children. By the end of the song she is pleading for an end to the tragedies endured by the Black community as she sings ‘You don’t have to live next to me/Just give me my equality. Her song Mr Backlash was also a controversial track, taking aim at the hypocrisy of the US government who are quick to use the labour and military service of the Black community whilst also treating them as second-class citizens:

You give me second class houses
And second-class schools
Do you think that all the coloured folks
Are just second-class fools
Mr. Backlash, I'm gonna leave you
With the backlash blues

The 1960s is the decade most associated with the stereotypical protest song, possibly because the 60s- with its counterculture, pursuance of peace and an end to war- saw the origin or resurgence of many social justice campaigns. Some of the most well documented were the Anti-War movement and the Civil Rights movement. One of the Doyennes of both these issues is Joan Baez- contemporary of Bob Dylan and a well-respected musician and activist. In a career that spans 60 years and 30 albums in at least 6 languages, most of the Baez back catalogue is an example of the protest song in the folk tradition. Her most well-known is her cover of the gospel song ‘We Shall Overcome’, a song which can be traced back to 1900 but has been used as a protest song for labour workers on strike throughout the first half of the 20th Century. The song was a common sound at protests throughout the 60s. Baez had a habit of adapting politically charged poems to music and creating her own brand of protest song which would bring with it a legacy already bound within its words. In 1967 she adapted the Nina Duscheck poem Saigon Bride to an acoustic track and laments the futility of the Vietnam War.

One of the most well known and celebrated political singers of the 50s and 60s was American singer, guitarist and human rights activist Odetta. Odetta had impeccable activist credentials- she sang at the Civil Rights March in Washington DC in 1963 and she has often been referred to as THE voice of the Civil Rights Movement. Raised amid the tradition of Blues, Jazz and Folk, Odetta interpreted music as a way to ‘teach and preach’ her message of liberation and justice. She could call Martin Luther King Jr and Rosa Parks fans and her versions of rural worker’s songs such as All My Trials and Take My Hammer are considered classic protest songs.

The Vietnam War was an inspiration for a lot of art that challenged the disastrous war- books, films and music. Even artists who were normally not particularly known for their political tracks got in on the act. Freda Payne was a singer most known for her 1970 Motown hit ‘Band of Gold’. In 1971 she had a hit with Bring the Boys Home- an overtly anti-war song that advocated for the return of fighting troops in Vietnam.

Fast forward to the tail end of the 1970s and punk became the musical force that pushed provocative and revolutionary political messages. Poly Styrene of X- Ray Specs, Ari Up of The Slits and Siouxsie Sioux of Siouxsie and the Banshees took political sloganeering and anti-conformity to the next level- snarling, shouting and forcing society to confront issues of sexism, poverty, hypocrisy and disenfranchised youth.

Throughout the 90s and up to today, protest songs have become more focused in their aim, raising awareness of specific issues, injustices and atrocities. This has had the effect of bringing to the fore narratives and perspectives that may otherwise not be heard.

M.I.A. is a British-Tamil rapper, singer and refugee icon. Her music career has been littered with controversies due to her outspoken manner and tireless political activism. Her hit Paper Planes was inspired by M.I.A’s issues obtaining a visa to the United States and the lyrics are a sarcastic litany of immigrant stereotypes that may be held by American authorities and citizens. She has drawn both praise and criticism for her commentary on the oppression of Sri Lankan Tamils and was a regular on political discussion shows talking on the subject as well as challenging the oppression of other peoples such as the Palestinians. M.I.A has been forthright in her view that her music has given her an opportunity to express her political ideas and that this is a revolutionary act that the authorities fear:

“Sometimes I repeat my story again and again because it's interesting to see how many times it gets edited, and how much the right to tell your story doesn't exist. People reckon that I need a political degree in order to go, 'My school got bombed and I remember it cos I was 10-years-old'. I think if there is an issue of people who, having had first hand experiences, are not being able to recount that – because there is laws or government restrictions or censorship or the removal of an individual story in a political situation – then that's what I'll keep saying and sticking up for, cos I think that's the most dangerous thing. I think removing individual voices and not letting people just go 'This happened to me' is really dangerous. That's what was happening ... nobody handed them the microphone to say 'This is happening and I don't like it'.

Mona Haydar is a rare sight in the mainstream music scene in that she is a female, Muslim rapper. Born to Syrian parents, Haydar is an American poet and activist who challenged the prejudice she experiences as a Muslim woman with her song Hijabi (Wrap My Hijab). The song was named one of the best protest songs of 2017 by Billboard and demonstrates that the art and the significance of protest songs are alive and well.

Racism is a ripe topic for this particular style of song and with the growing cultural influence of the Me Too movement, sexism and violence against women have also been addressed by modern musicians.  2017 was a particularly bountiful year for the resurgence of the protest song thanks in large part to the global Women’s Marches. Artists like German feminist pop sensation Zolita included the rallying cry My body/My choice/My rights and my voice in her 2017 track Fight Like A Girl. Swedish folk due First Aid Kit recorded a powerful anthem for the Me Too era with their song You Are the Problem Here which directly speaks to those who commit acts of sexual harassment and assault. MILCK (stage name of LA-based singer Connie K Lim) gained acclaim after a video of her performing her song ‘Quiet’ at the 2017

There are so many incredibly inspiring examples of female musicians throughout history and across genres, using music to bring a voice to the voiceless of turn a spotlight on a vital social or political struggle. Whatever type of music you like, or cause you are interested in, do some digging and you will be sure to find a soundtrack that will educate and elevate.