The 25 best hip hop protest songs of all time (2023)

When Eminem released his freestyle as part of the annual BET Hip Hop Awards cipher, it ended up being a 4+ minute video.an a capella speech against President Donald Trump🇧🇷 He accused the president of his most egregious transgressions: perpetuating racism, encouraging white supremacy, his irresponsibility with North Korea, his attacks on black NFL players, his abandonment of Puerto Rico. The list goes on.

Hip-hop fans, athletes andmainstream media, praised the lukewarm freestyle as urgent, necessary, powerful and great. “After 27 years of doubts about rap, I am now a fan”, sports commentator and politicianKeith Olberman tweeted🇧🇷 "The best political text of the year, period."

To suggest that Eminem's mediocre bars were anything but lukewarm sets an embarrassingly low bar for hip-hop artistry and what constitutes courage. Declaring Eminem's freestyle on Trump a turning point in hip-hop is lazy, uninformed. This is not surprising, however. White artists are often praised for their courage in speaking out against injustice, while black artists are often ignored or penalized for the same actions. When Beyoncé performed at the Superbowl inan outfit that paid homage to the Black Panthers, conservatives criticized and thePolice union calls for boycottof their subsequent world tour.

The reality is that rappers have been protesting the government, destroying systems of oppression, and addressing the pervasiveness of police brutality in black communities since the beginning of the art form. That's why rapper and Public Enemy member Chuck D dubbed hip-hop "Black CNN" decades ago.

To claim anything more than that points to a lack of understanding of hip-hop's history, rather than a reflection of its culture. So here are the 25 best protest rap songs (and a few albums) from the nearly 40-year-old genre that put Eminem's freestyle in its rightful place. Olberman, this is for you.

"To pimp a butterfly", Kendrick Lamar,2015

The single "Alright" from Kendrick Lamar's second studio album became the soundtrack to national protests following police killings of unarmed black people. Its hook "We gon' be aright" is an affirmation of black life, community and hope. The music is an obvious choice, but the whole album is this brilliant, genre-changing manifesto, with beats that are as smart as they are powerful.

"From Compton to Congress / Set tripping everywhere / Ain't nothing new but a flu of new DemoCrips and ReBloodlicans / Red state against blue state, which one do you rule?" Kendrick raps on "Hood Politics", equating notorious street gangs with politicians on both sides of the aisle. In "To Pimp A Butterfly", Kendrick confronts the dangers of capitalism and racist institutions in a variety of ways.

"Wesley's Theory" is a reflection of the pimping of black artists exploited by the entertainment industry. In "Complexion (A Zulu Love)", Kendrick addresses the longstanding legacies of color-based discrimination in the United States and around the world, and how that hierarchy continues to inform standards of beauty today. The album's content is expansive, yet rooted in blackness and social justice, through a fiercely radical lens.

"Changes", 2Pac,1992

2Pac's skill and fervor in addressing racial and economic disparities in black communities across America is inextricably linked to his ranking as one of the greatest rappers of all time. He compromised, was unapologetic, and uncompromising in his indictments of this country's internal pitfalls that kept people of color and the poor marginalized from both upward mobility and some basic civil rights.

Perhaps no song better captures that legacy than "Changes." His meditation on police brutality and the war on drugs in black communities is moving and painfully relevant decades after its release. Take the phrase: "The penitentiary is crowded and full of black people."

There are several quotable moments in the song, but the first verse is particularly powerful: "Cops don't give a fuck about a nigga/Pull the trigger, kill a nigga, he a hero/'Give the kids a chance, who the What?

"Georgia... Bush", Lil Wayne,2006

When Hurricane Katrina hit Louisiana and a massive flood engulfed New Orleans, the George W. Bush administration took a long time to react. Hundreds of thousands of people were displaced by the storm, but the most vulnerable people amid the looting of New Orleans were its predominantly black and poor residents. As a New Orleans native, Lil Wayne offered "Georgia...Bush" as an answer and condemnation of America's Commander-in-Chief. He also criticized the media for their focus on "looting" as people tried to survive.

"Look at the shit we've been through/Had our niggas sittin' on their roof tops/Hurricane Katrina, we should've called it Hurricane (Georgia) Bush/So they told you lies on the news/Him ​​for white people smiling, they like to all the best / But I know people who died at that pool / I know people who died at those schools," sings Wayne. He goes on to highlight the total abandonment of black lives in perhaps the song's most succinct and powerful line: "Trying to wash us away like we ain't on the map." It remains one of Wayne's most explicitly political songs.

"Sé livre", J. Cole,2014

After the police murder of teenager Mike Brown in Ferguson, an artistic outpouring broke out in the hip-hop community. But J. Cole's tribute to Brown was one of the most influential. His power wasn't in Cole's lyrical prowess, though the skill was there. Rather, it was the depth and emotion he communicated.

Using a timbre that sounded like a voice worn and exasperated by repeated screams, his pain was audible. And Cole spit out lines that summed up the brutality in a matter of words, like this one: "Can you tell me why? Every time I go out I watch my homies die" or "All we wanna do is break the chains."

What was especially significant about "Be Free" was the inclusion of the harrowing eyewitness account of Mike Brown's friend Dorian Johnson. The breakneck pace continues as Johnson recounts what he saw that August day. "He turned around, put his hands in the air and started down," Johnson said, "but the officer still came out with his gun drawn, fired seven more shots and my friend was killed."

"All we want is to be free", concludes J. Cole.

"Untitled", Nas,2008

"Untitled" was not the original title of Nas' ninth studio album. No, the album that dove head first into the state of America's race relations, with a cover showing Nas' bare back with whip scars in the shape of a letter "N", was initially called "N****r" . In hip-hop, everyone knew the album's true name and that "Untitled" was just a stand-in, indicative of America's propensity to erase its racial history rather than address it.

In "Untitled", Nas is relentless in his accusations against the United States, from the onset of the genocide of Native Americans ("Diplomatic Relations Murders/Nation-Building Native American Murders") to the issue of segregation in the education system. ("Schools with obsolete textbooks, we are the forgotten ones"). Yet it also reflects his love for the black community and the resilience he witnesses ("I love you all; pyramids to cotton fields"). When you think of hip-hop and protest, "Untitled" is a powerful example of a body of work that has made it to its packaging.

"Fuck the Police", NWA,1988

Indicative of the ways in which black communities are targeted and treated by many police departments, particularly in big cities like Los Angeles, where NWA came from, there are many anti-police songs in hip-hop. But NWA's "Fuck the Police" is iconic. In it, members of the group bring the LAPD to trial. Ice Cube raps ferociously: "A young black boy had a hard time 'cause I'm brown/Not another color so the police think/They got the authority to kill a minority."

"Fight the Power", Public Enemy,1989

"Fight the Power" was originally conceived as part of the soundtrack to Spike Lee's seminal film "Do the Right Thing". It has since become one of Public Enemy's best-known songs, with the chorus: "Fight the power/ We gotta fight the powers that be". Look at the oppressive systems in the dead place.

"A Song for Assata", common,2000

"A Song for Assata" is a moving tribute and retelling of the trial of activist and Black Panther member Assata Shakur. Her case was highly publicized and controversial, and it is believed that she was framed for the murder of a police officer. He successfully escaped arrest and sought political asylum in Cuba. "I read this sister's story, I knew she deserved a verse/I wonder what if it was me?/All this just so we could be free," sings Common.

"Police State", Dead Prez,2000

In "Police State", Dead Prez addresses the ways in which black communities are surveilled, oversurveilled and incarcerated in America. The duo called for a revolution, where wealth was redistributed and black freedom realized: "Put the power back in the street where the people live / I'm tired of working for scrap metal and cramming prisons."

"Revolution", Arrested Development,1992

"Revolution" is a rap anthem from the soundtrack to Spike Lee's biopic Malcolm X. Arrested Development is known for its socially conscious lyrics, but "Revolution" is one of the most pointed. "The UN, the US/ We can't let/ Tell us a kid in the ghetto/ Isn't as important/ A kid in Bosnia."

"Land of the Free", Joey Bada$$,2017

Joey Bada$$ released this politically charged song on President Donald Trump's inauguration day, and takes a close look at inequality, mass incarceration, and even the Ku Klux Klan. "Leave us dead in the street to be your organ donors/ They disorganized my people, they left us all alone/ They still have the last names of our slave owners." More powerfully, the music video features a firing squad of police officers and shows Joey immune to their bullets.

"Reagan", Killer Mike,2012

As the title suggests, "Reagan" is an account of former President Ronald Reagan's tenure for black communities. "They declared the war on drugs a war on terror / But what he really did was let the police terrorize whoever they were," sings Killer Mike, and then: "I guess that's the privilege of policing for a profit. /But thanks to Reaganomics, prisons turned into profits." The music video is a chilling animation of the policies and effects of the Reagan presidency on black lives.

"The Point of No Return", Geto Boys,1996

The Geto Boys take turns berating the government for various injustices (police brutality, mass incarceration, war on drugs) and accusing them of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X and Fred Hampton. By the end of the track, his frustration with America and its oppressive systems is palpable. “I'm the type of nigga that throws a party when the flag burns / I'm at the point of no return”, Willie Draps.

"Words I Never Said", Lupe Fiasco,2011

In "Words I Never Said", Lupe Fiasco looks out. "I really think the war on terror is a load of bullshit," he spits, adding the scathing line: "The Gaza Strip was being bombed, Obama didn't say anything." Though the song was released before Trump even imagined a political career, Lupe addresses the Islamophobia that has been central to his rise. "Jihad is not holy war, where is that in worship? / Murder is not Islam and you are not observant."

"El mensaje", Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five,one thousand nine hundred and eighty-two

"The Message" is one of rap's first socially conscious songs and helped transform the genre from being just a party soundtrack to where it began to become an art form capable of telling stories of survival and resistance. "Sometimes it's like a jungle / It makes me wonder how to keep from going under," says Hook.

"America Black Again", Comum,2016

common saidof this track and its title: "This song could have been written in the 60's, it could have been written in the 1800's and still applies, and now it's 2016." Indeed, it is a moving song that traces black life and survival from slavery to the present, connecting everything else together. “The new plantation, the mass incarceration/Instead of educating, they'd rather condemn the kids/As dirty as the water in Flint, it's the system,” he sings.

"Da Police Sound", KRS-One,1993

This is KRS-One's remarkable take on the police brutality and racism he sees ingrained in the institution. "Being an officer? You're badseer!" he spits. He then connects the injustice on the streets with the past injustice of early American colonialism. "There could never be justice on stolen land," he says.

"Math", Mos Def (now Yasin Bey),1999

Here, Yasiin Bey uses the numerical approach to illustrate oppressive socioeconomic statistics that perpetuate a hierarchy and keep blacks and the poor at the bottom. “Tougher stipulations attached to each sentence/Budget cuts, but greater police presence/And even if you get out of prison, you're still alive/Join the other 5 million under state supervision,” he spits.

"UNITY." Queen Latifah,1993

This song by the legendary emcee tackles misogyny in three places: society, the home, and hip-hop. Latifah covers it all through a verse about street harassment, domestic violence and sexist slurs in rap, focusing specifically on what it means to endure such sexism as a Black woman. "Love a black woman from / infinity to infinity (you are not a bitch or a whore)," the book says.

"High for Hours", J. Cole,2017

J. Cole released this song on the last day of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., revealing the hypocrisy of American history. "They came here looking for freedom," he says of the first settlers, "then they ended up owning slaves / They justified it with Christianity that saves."

"Sol", Pusha T,2015

On this track, Pusha T departs from his usual account of the trials and tribulations of being a drug dealer to call attention to some of the recent high profile killings of unarmed black people by police and how, even with video footage of such shootings, there is no accountability and there is no justice. "Woo! It's still a target, but the badge is the new tie/ Yeah, we all see it, but the cell phones aren't proof enough/ So we still lost."

"Bin Laden", immortal technical feat. Yasin Bey, Jadakiss, Eminem,2005

Immortal Technique and an all-star cast let their conspiracy theories run wild in "Bin Laden." Although sometimes extravagant, railings have the force of truth. "They funded Al-Qaeda and now they blame the Muslim religion/Even though Bin Laden was a CIA strategist/They gave him billions of dollars and funded his purpose," sings Technic. "This shit is run by fake Christians, fake politicians."

"I like it a lot", Oddisee,2017

Oddisee dispels right-wing talking points on "Like Really" while launching some direct attacks on Trump. "How you gonna make us great, when we were never really that great (nah like, really) / Back to what, I don't think hanging black lives is fun (nah like, really)."

"No Disagreements", Dave East,2016

In this song, Harlem native Dave East adjusts his voice to tell an evolving story of police interactions from kids to teens to adults. His encounters become increasingly alarming and violent, until the last one marks the end of his life. "This attitude is programmed / Imagine being chased by you for a lifetime / All day and all night / They say prison is the new slave ship."

"FDT (Fuck Donald Trump)" by YG. nipsey hustle,2016

Before Eminem called out Trump, YG had already created an entire song, one leading up to his election to the presidency. The addictive hook? "Fuck Donald Trump."YG thesethe tip resulted in the Secret Service investigating his handwriting. It's really about inspiring people to get engaged and vote. The Los Angeles Police Department also canceled filming for the music video. All the backlash and concern illuminated the power of music and hip-hop's influence in general, as a genre at the center of popular culture with the ability to shift political perspective and dialogue.