A main purpose of music is to entertain while communicating information.
It is only natural for songs to be made either protesting or demanding change to spread the message orally. Music has been used in war since ancient times whether it’s to synchronize marches, inspire, to rally a country around a cause and to motivate and comfort families.
During the Vietnam war John Lennon and Yoko Ono and the Plastic Ono Band with the Harlem Community Choir, ‘Happy Xmas (War Is Over)’ which was made to peacefully protest the Vietnam war. John Lennon and his wife Yoko Ono declared “WAR IS OVER!….IF YOU WANT IT” translated in many different languages spreading the message to stop the war.
There’s a plethora of songs that promote peace, ‘One Love’ by Bob Marley, ‘Holiday’ by Green Day is an anti-war protest song and so is ‘Blowing in the Wind’ sung and written by Bob Dylan. In the song, Dylan asks a series of hypothetical questions about war and freedom.
During the 60’s and 70’s these songs became the soundtrack of daily life.
Now there is less anti-war music, but there was a definite rise in protest songs during the late 2010’s such as ‘This Is America’ by Donald Glover – reflecting the issues present in the USA. Similarly, the song ‘Freedom’ by Beyonce and Kendrick Lamar was named the best song of 2016 and became an anthem for the George Floyd Protests in 2020.
Music has the power to share not only a melody, but a powerful message for society.
