Do you think there’s no good protest music these days? So did I, until I started looking for it. The truth is, it’s always been out there, but it’s sometimes just a bit difficult to find. Every month, I search it out, listen to it all, then round up the best of it that relates to that month’s political news. Here’s the round-up for January 2023.
1. WINKY D – EUREKA EUREKA
On January 1, Zimbabwean musician Winky D released his new album, which blasts the ZANU-PF government and its derailing of the country’s decolonisation. Its track “Dzimba Dzemabwe” asks: “Is this the land we cry for, we die for?” The song “Ibotso”, meanwhile, rails against divisive policies that keep the poor killing each other “whilst the authors of their misery and poverty remain unscathed”. The album sparked a backlash from pro-government forces, including the Economic Empowerment Group, which arranged a press conference where it called for Winky D to be de-platformed. Its move followed similar actions against Zimbabwean protest musicians in the past. A week later, the African People’s Socialist Party held an update on a copycat crackdown on the African diaspora in the US. The move came after the US Federal Bureau of Investigation targeted party members in raids last July. LISTEN>>>
2. RASHA NAHAS – AMRAT
On January 26, Israeli soldiers killed seven Palestinians, including two civilians, Palestinians said. The move followed controversial Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin…
