When Music Becomes Political Protest

In a year of historic protests, on the eve of a critical election, we’ve been thinking a lot about the place of music in movements for social and political change. In this episode, Pitchfork Editor Puja Patel speaks with Jason King, professor at NYU and founding faculty member of the Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music, and Allison Hussey, Pitchfork Associate Staff Writer, about the changing role of protest music across American history, from 19th-century Black spirituals to Public Enemy, Lady Gaga, and Janelle Monáe. They also touch on the secret history of a Bob Dylan classic, and the new ways pop stars have engaged with activism in the social media era.