A Database of Protest Songs

The most comprehensive database of English protest songs now lives at the University of East Anglia, compiled as part of a two-year research project titled Our Subversive Voice: The History and Politics of the English Protest Song. Website users can search through a chronology of 750 songs dating back as far as 1600, using various filters specifying elements such as theme and composer. Alongside the songs themselves, you can find case studies, interviews, and written contributions on the history and politics of protest songs worldwide.

You can also check out the new podcast Anatomy of a Protest Song, which explores the intersection of music and activism in South Asia. The podcast is part of the Goethe Institute’s M.A.P. (Music. Activism. Politics.) project, which is currently accepting submissions via their website to help create a library of activist music.