Controversial Songs Throughout Music History
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- Опубліковано 15 жов 2023
- Edited by: Connor Sullivan (@csullyLIVE)
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Whether positive or negative, this is a list and conversation of songs that are controversial in one way or another. I decided to try and do a few different little sections of the ~themes~ that the controversies fall under. So, whether they defy social norms, cultural expectations, they discuss violence in a very direct manner, etc... here are some tracks that made people mad. (again, justifiably so sometimes, and extremely not justifiably so in other times)
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madonna like a virgin lady gaga born this way robin thicke blurred lines baby it's cold outside uoeno imagine john lennon bob dylan american idiot green day rage against the machine killing in the name strange fruit billie holiday eminem kim nwa tha police marvin gaye what's goin on rock around the clock crazy controversial review reaction video essay worst favorite
The thing that made Green Day's music so popular and still so everlasting is that it doesn't explicitly mention Bush or Iraq. Most other protest songs just couldn't break the mould and didn’t catch on.
all the best protest song fail to mention any specific names. War Pigs, SOAD's music, RATM's music, etc.
@@Dualis58 RATM namedrops constantly on s/t, but good point still
@@Dualis58 I've always wondered what exactly War Pigs was about exactly. It obviously had something to do with the Vietnam War, but is the name in reference to the Bay of Pigs invasion? That be a dumb question but it's always made me curious
For what it’s worth by buffalo Springfield another one
Huh? I’m a huge fan of the protest songs of the 1960s and ‘70s, and I can’t think of more than a handful that mention anything or anyone specific to that era. "Masters of War," "A Change Is Gonna Come," "We Shall Overcome," "What’s Goin’ On," "Give Peace a Chance," "For What It’s Worth," "The Sound of Silence," among so many others, don’t name anyone nor do they talk about specific incidents. That’s why protest music is so enduring; it applies to things today just as much as it did things 50+ years ago.
Like a virgin’s controversy is not just that it was sexually provocative. Having a woman named Madonna (like the VIRGIN Mary) wearing crucifix jewelry, dressed as a wedding night virgin was def her first of many times she challenged the repressive ideals of the Catholic Church. Pop genius!!!
Like A Prayer is still her best imo. She challenged so much with that one. I wish we still had the Madonna of that era and less of the corrupted by money and fame person she appears to be now.
@@thisiskitta I think she’s a very grounded person now. She focus on her kids and having fun. I wouldn’t say corrupt by money/fame at all.
I thought I heard in another video/documentary that the controversy didn't really start until her VMA performance when she fell and acted provocatively on the floor, even the camera person couldn't keep up. The audience didn't know how to react to it and it became a huge topic after that was aired.
It's about someone falling in love, for real, for the first time...
yet the song still idealizes virginity and plays into the male fantasy of the innocent or untouched virgin woman, not really ideal or radical when it comes to feminist
I would be down for an entire series of these
Green Day created a timeless song, American Idiot is arguably more relevant than it ever has been.
How so?
@@McCringleberry02 Yeah but they're clearly Iraq War-coded, how are they applicable to the modern day?
@@personalover2498the lyrics were intentionally vague. You only think they're "clearly" Iraq war coded because you know the song was made as a protest to the Iraq war
@@personalover2498
You think this only applies to the Iraq War era?
Don't wanna be an American idiot
Don't want a nation under the new media
And can you hear the sound of hysteria?
The subliminal mindfuck America
Welcome to a new kind of tension
All across the alien nation
Where everything isn't meant to be okay
In television dreams of tomorrow
We're not the ones who're meant to follow
For that's enough to argue
Well, maybe I'm the faggot, America
I'm not a part of a redneck agenda
Now everybody, do the propaganda
And sing along to the age of paranoia
Welcome to a new kind of tension
All across the alien nation
Where everything isn't meant to be okay
In television dreams of tomorrow
We're not the ones who're meant to follow
For that's enough to argue
Don't wanna be an American idiot
One nation controlled by the media
Information age of hysteria
It's calling out to idiot America
Welcome to a new kind of tension
All across the alien nation
Where everything isn't meant to be okay
In television dreams of tomorrow
We're not the ones who're meant to follow
For that's enough to argue
@@personalover2498 « Welcome to a new kind of tension
all across the alien nation » the US is more divided than ever before, « One nation controlled by the media
information age of hysteria » everything about internet, misinformation, and the loss of faith in credible sources
An alternative to Rock around the clock would be Link Ray-Rumble.
That song was blacklisted for causing riots and Iggy Pop credits it as the first punk song.
Can’t forget Louie Louie by the kingsmen in that regard
Another one for protest songs: Nina Simone's Mississippi Goddam is an awesome song. It was banned in several Southern states. Boxes of promotional singles sent to radio stations around the country were returned with each record broken in half.
Rock around the clock slaps unironically
Love killing in the name of became a protest song for Christmas number 1 in the UK to fight against the music industry and led to rage doing a free gig
I was lucky enough to be there. It was a seriously joyous evening.
@@PrimevalMudd100%! X Factor needed toppling tbh
finally someone mentioning that Lady gaga IS one of us and not just an ally, ppl forget that's she's also bi
You know what's worse than robin thicke performing 'blurred lines'? The cast of glee performing it
in the context of the show (despite all of the actors being adults i believe?) that was a middle-aged high school teacher dancing down the hall with a bunch of teenagers twerking behind him. glee really was something else huh
@@ronan-outoftime and I don't think it was even the worst thing they did. It sure was a wild ride
@@angelaisacliche my mum was a HUGE glee fan when it was still around, i never really got to see much of it but i do enjoy listening to some of the music at times. i've watched a good couple of retrospective reviews on it (mic the snare's excellent video comes to mind first) and while i do see the appeal of a show like that it just feels like it doesn't know how seriously it wants people to take it
@@ronan-outoftime it definitely had a confusing tone at times. these days i just like to watch clips of some of the performances on youtube. i love mic the snare's videos!
Strange Fruit is unique for me in that it truly scared me and was all I could think about for a few days. It brought a guttural realism to the issue that I had never experienced before. That song is so important.
The same thing happened to me. Her haunting vocals mixed with the imagery of the lyrics seared that song into my brain for days
Another important factor of rock'n'roll is it's history of incorporating black music, especially blues (the bass lines, which is one of the most notably different features compared to for example swing and other at the time popular music), which also caused more diversity because suddenly there was something that younger people bonded over regardless of skin color or background, which was another big factor as to why it was called devil's music(which so far was mostly used to describe of off spring of blues, like rock and roll, and all the followings of that, and soul).
Rock and roll also was special because unlike previous rebellious music(blues and jazz mainly), rock'n'roll was party music, not slow and melancholic or so, but fast and upbeat.
Algo, many of its greatest are people of color, such as Chcuk Berry and Jimmy Hendrix
Jazz can be fast and upbeat. Think of the Roaring 20s Jazz Age, when southern bands of black musicians even went overseas. Hugely influential precursor to rock and a dedicated youth culture. There was even a term for the youth, the Bright Young Things, though that specific term tended to refer to wealthy white folks.
Then again, there have long been terms for youth culture, just not so mainstream, and mostly only for the privileged. Fops, macaronis, Corinthians, etc., through British history, for example.
Green Day and System of a Down are what I think of when I think of 21st century protest songs
Me too. And two of my favorite bands.
Honorable mentions:
Blowin’ in the wind/ like a rolling stone
A change’s gonna come
Darling Nikki
London calling (imo the best representation of a punk song, but I’d say the ramones debut album had a bigger impact)
Redemption song
regarding politics, Woody Guthrie's "This Land Is Your Land" is one of the most influential ever. likewise, "We Shall Overcome."
4 dead in Ohio , I don't like Mondays.
Strange Fruit got Billie Holliday hounded to death by Harry Anslinger (the head of the newly created Federal Bureau of Narcotics)
That songs always makes me cry. So raw and her voice is so haunting
It just rather sucks that one of the most beloved anthems of peace protests, "Imagine", was written by a misogynist with a proclivity for beating women.
Baby it’s cold outside is a classier song than blurred lines blurred lines is trashy and rapey as hell
Blurred Lines is probably worse, but Baby It’s Cold Outside is about a man COMPLETELY ignoring a woman who wants to go home and not listening to anything she says including the fact that her whole family will worry about her all night. There’s a line where he pours her a glass of alcohol and she says ‘hey what’s in this drink?’ That is creepy as hell.
Baby its cold outside is a playfull flirting song, not unwanted advances. The woman is playing hard to get, the man chasses, thats flirting, she never firmly tells him no otherwise it would be unwanted.
@@Meepo316she literally says "the answer is no"
It's so fascinating to read about the controversies that N.W.A and Eminem faced. Even tho government agents, politicians, the music industry and parents tried demonize and censor them, all it ended up happening was making their music bigger and pretty much giving them free promotion. This is why freedom of speech is important, we need to have this conversations to slowly fix and solve this main issues in our lives.
Listen to White America and The Way I Am by Eminem
"Strange Fruit" hits like a freight truck, even today.
liz phair's 'exile in guyville' was pretty controversial as an album, with people not being used to songs being so open. tori amos also had tons of controversial songs for the same reason (like 'me and a gun')
Thank you for including Billie Holiday’s “Strange Fruit”. Such a sad, important song.
Green Day actually released "Dookie" during my senior year of highschool; DJ at Prom NEVER heard of them; said: "Sounds made up & will never last, IF real"; here we are some 29ish years later & new music still coming
Me before clicking: why isn’t Madonna on the thumbnail?!? 😠😡
Me as soon as I hit play: 🤩🤩🤩
I would love to add to the conversation the whole existence of The Smiths. They were always controversial and never afraid to show their opinion. Songs like Panic or Shoplifters Of The World Unite expose the social critic The Smiths had to offer
Here are some examples of songs I consider to be important protest songs in their discography:
- Panic: Set after the Chernobyl accident, this song shows the apathy and censorship media portrays in an attempt to calm the people. Through this, Morrissey makes a call to "burn down the disco" and "hang the DJ" to stop these incidents from happening.
- Shoplifters Of The World Unite: This is literally the Communist Manifesto portrayed in a song. It makes a call for people to take the production lines.
- The Headmaster Ritual: Talks about the abuse in school grounds and how nothing really has changed in the whole education system, resulting in students doing whatever it's possible to avoid going to school.
This video was enjoyable. Although when you titled it "Controversial Songs" I kind of expected songs that became controversial, such as Blurred Lines. Not songs that directly brings up politics, such as Like A Virgin and F** Tha Police. So these songs are actually meant to be controversial.
The only thing mildly controversial about "Like a Virgin" was Madonna's performance of it at the MTV video awards, and even then it was applauded by most. The song and video were pretty much par for the course in its day. Madonna has done plenty of songs/videos that were deemed controversial, but not this one.
I LOVE that you went way back! I’d love to see a much longer exploration of this topic on more songs.
What about songs like CCR’s - Fortunate Son, Black Sabbath’s -War Pigs or Eric Clapton’s - Cocaine ?
The House that Jack Built is a phenomenal movie
Blurred Lines could be on there again due to it's controversial copyright lawsuit.
For 'throughout music history', this is incredibly US centric.
Hell, the only non-American you brought up was going through his 'New York phase'.
Was an alright video, but if you're going to do regional focus, probs make it part of the title
Yep, and also has a major modern bias. "Throughout music history" is apparently only the last two generations.
Eu realmente entrei no vídeo achando que iam mencionar músicas do mundo todo
Because America’s the best 🇺🇸
@@toddpacker4683 oh nojeira
I mean that's expected seeing how he pretty much only ever talks about US musicians and his audience is probably majority American.
"Kim" by Eminem is, to me, just pure art. At no point in the song does Eminem say anyone else should do those things. To me, that song is Eminem going to therapy in front of anyone who happened to have bought that album.
I am not human
the people saying the song is trash and takes no effort and that teenagers with no talent could make it just don't get it 💀
the instrumental is a masterpiece to me. It perfectly encapsulates the feeling of losing your mind like the world's going in circles.
@@remyhavoc4463 I couldn't agree more. It's a brilliant piece of art.
not at all, you can't deny the gratuitous sadism, the misogyny and the violence ideation, the song doesn't say anyone should do those things, but it doesn't say that anyone shouldn't either, it's the normalization of it, the view that it is in any way justifiable, i would mistrust instantly anyone who thinks that song is the encapsulation of "pure art" lol, i mean you can like it but failing to recognize the misogyny, its fatal flaws as an artpiece or even not having any kind of critical view about it is the concerning thing.
@@crisvelundertale2159 bruh, any sane mind would listen to the horrible screams and the choking of a slit throat in the song and be repulsed by it all. It de-romanticises the idea of abuse and murder-suicides in brutal fashion. Saying that Kim promotes/normalises violence is like saying Apocalypse Now is a pro-war movie because it portrays war so much without explicitly screaming "WAR BAD".
To really encapsulate this genre would take a video that would last weeks. A few other songs that come off the top of my head that would go well in a sequel would be the following: 1) Bronski Beat's "Smalltown Boy" (1984) This song, along with it's follow-up "Why?" dared to ask the question "Just what is so wrong with being gay?" at a time when homosexuality was very frowned upon by society. Smalltown Boy, despite the controversy, did mange to crack the charts in several countries, making it to # 1 in Italy, the Netherlands and the US dance charts. 2) Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper have too many controversial songs to list, but among them would be Jesus at McDonalds and Stuffin' Martha's Muffin 3) Devo's 1982 LP Oh no, It's Devo! had two very controversial songs on it, "Big Mess" and "I Desire." The latter's controversy was due to the writer of the lyrics - John Hinkley Jr., the man who attempted to take the life of then-president Ronald Regan in 1981. 4) Husker Du's Diane (1983) is controversial in the vein of Devo's Big Mess in that it tells the story from the viewpoint of a stalker hounding someone at a time when stalking was legal. 5) The Beach Boys 1968 song "Never Learn Not to Love" is controversial for it's co-author, none other than Charles Manson of the Manson family infamy.
No mention of almost every SOAD song? especially literally any song off of Toxicity
Great examples + very well written narration! 👍
I like to think that Rock Around the Clock and Rock n Roll started "pop music" with a bigger focus on the youth. I feel like songs before them were always more geared towards adults, and therefore less rebellious I guess, lol.
The second verse of Bulls on Parade alone says more than every hippy protest song combined. 🤘
For some strange reason, I feel like there were like, OTHER songs of political rebellion during Vietnam? 😉. Good call with Strange Fruit, though.I'd say Body Count's Cop Killer was more hardcore than F*ck The Police, but I'd imagine you had to pick one or the other. Public Enemy deserves a shout out, at least, and you can similarly take your pick from Springsteen's catalog, but hey! We all need a part 2!
I like this video, you should make another one on a bunch of other controversial songs.
No system of a down!?
Can we please let Baby It's Cold Outside go? I know what the literal words say, but the tone suggests she's being coy, she's making him work for it, she wants to stay but is playing hard to get. Layers of meaning!
Da king is back baby he neva miss
Dababy is back king
That's something I feel is missing from music today. Boundary pushing. Today most "Boundary Pushing" feels corporately safe but controversial enough to get Ben Shapiro to not like it. See Sam Smith. The only song that feels truly controversial today is Rich Men North of Richmond.
There is plenty of modern metal bands with songs. That could be considered controversial. Manufactured extinction by cattle decapitation and bring back the plague.
You totally forgot Billy Joel’s Only the good die young. Still won’t get played on some stations. Missing a bunch from the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s! You barely scratched the surface of censorship in America!
Great video man😊
I'm like 80% sure that President Ronald Reagan himself was really upset when "Like a Virgin" was released.
Fantastic content yet again.
I mean i think mucisians should be able to sing about drugging women and doing wrong stuff, u see all this in movies withour anyone asking the question to those directors if thats something they do or support
Bro has to turn his new york times to dark mode, i got flash-banged
Another great video!
If you ever make a part 2, can you include Call Me by Your Name?
great video man
Green Day really changed the game with American Idiot. One of the greatest albums of all time.
Some of these were never actually all that controversial. I'm sure there's some Fox News correspondent somewhere who didn't like American Idiot but it was not a hot button piece of debate by any means. And Killing in the Name was mostly out of sight and out of minds of most people who would have found it particularly offensive. And Imagine was a number one hit that was quickly embraced pretty universal as a milquetoast call for peace.
These are songs that seem like they would potentially offend certain conservative types in theory but by and large they mostly never actually took the bait.
What songs, in your mind, are better examples of controversial songs? I think you have a decent point here, but the emphasis on general popularity leads to some issues. If a song is more obscure, can it be said to be all that controversial? For a song to be controversial, specifically in the context of this video, it has to be fairly popular in a broad sense. To kinda illustrate my point, yes, Imagine is very broadly popular and liked, but it is still talked about today in a negative context. Ben Shapiro even made a video about it.
I totally agree. Politically, I lean the same way Alfo Media does, but I think his liberal bias is blinding him a little bit here.
@@taylorphillips7030 I mean, several of the other songs in the video (Strange Fruit, F the Police, Eminem, etc) legitimately were good examples of songs that caused actual controversy. And no I don't really think a song that's obscure really can be said to be "controversial" on the scale this video is talking about, to be talked about and debated a song needs to have some kind of high profile unless it's something that's specifically famous for being controversial like Ice T's Cop Killer or something.
...the soundtrack of our lives. i give this a 10 out of 10. for me, music gives meaning and deeper understanding to personal and social events. all hail music!
High school Confidential by rough trade is a great song and definitely controversial
And it’s sad that we still have the racists around…it’s been from 1939 and continues now almost 100 years later
Polly by Nirvana?
Not mamy ppl are confuse about this one but thats only because the story behind the song is somewhat famous
Your videos have definitely helped me to broaden my horizons, but I'm starting to notice a pattern in your videos which includes a blindspot of about 30 years of punk/hardcore through the 70s, 80s,and 90s. Discussing American Idiot without invoking something even so obvious as the Sex Pistols' "God Save the Queen" for context just doesn't feel right. All the same, keep up the great work.
"mediums" is not a word!!!!!!! the plural of medium is media
In the future we will be using music as a way to teach history because it is unbiased and based on the experiences considered outlawed during times where talking with a knife at your throat was the nirm
I liked all about that bass, I'm curious to hear someone else's take on it.
Another good thing to come out of Blurred Lines? Weird Al's 'Word Crimes'.
6:00 I thought he was going to say sitting in between these 2 Billies
what about god save the queen by the sex pistols or bring the noise by anthrax and public enemy for breaking a genre wall?
I always had a problem with Lennons Imagine because of the opening lyrics
of denying the Christian belief of heaven and hell
I’m surprised every 2nd song wasn’t green day😂
Tutti Fruitti by Little Richard ?
4.33 has the guy on the left in black got 2 faces? Has anyone else seen it??
It would be so cool if song lyrics were constitutionally protected expressions of freedom of speech any entity interfering with that right to expression was met with consequences for undermining said constitution.
Unfortunately the rights can be violated whenever those entities feel like they don't want them to apply in a certain situation
Another band that belongs here is the Manic Street Preachers. If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next is a tune
I have the word imagine tattooed on my arm with musical notes
Kim always read to me about the dangers of obsession and ease at which people include and blame others for their own problems... it was absolutely a warning more than anything.
Didn't t John Lennon's imagine come out in 1981 and not 1971 as the videos says?
I always thought that baby it's cold outside was just about a dude that was concerned about a lady possibly getting sick, but that's just me
Was it on purpose that the first three songs were all songs that Weird Al Yankovic parodied?
I was surprised not to see Ice-T in his Body Count days with, “Cop Killer”.
Public Enemy had so many, it’s hard to choose, and 2 Live Crew pushed the envelope of the 1st Amendment to its breaking point.
am I an idiot for thinking rock around the clock wasn't about dancing all day and instead about party for a clock in the center
Eminem, Green Day and RATM let's go.
Can yall go away with "what about" and enjoy the video for what it is?
One song that I like that I heard was controversial in Japan is Ado's "Usseewa"
wait why is it controversial?
@@basilcreates8146it was edgy and parents didn't like kids singing such a explicit song
What about YOASOBI's Yoru Ni Kakeru (En title: Racing into the Night) of which the video was shadow banned for a while, because of the self life ending theme. Happy sounding song with a dark meaning (lyrics) hidden behind the poppy sounding bgm.
@@basilcreates8146edgy song critiquing salaryman culture
@@basilcreates8146 Also adding to this, Useewa literally means something like "Shut up!" or "Shut the fuck up!". Which adding to the lyrics that is a clear criticism and rejects the salaryman culture and the heavy emphasis on meeting expectations that the Japanese culture has, you can see why it was controversial. It doesn't help that at the time, Ado herself was a fresh out of highschool girl.
I'm surprised 'handlebars' by flobots wasn't on this list.
I don’t remember any controversy around that song??? I know why there should have been, but I don’t remember anyone talking about it, sadly
The bigger picture is genuinely disappointing for a song about such an important message. Why would he change the lyrics excluding one about all “whites aren’t racist” when performing at an award show Lil baby is a sell out
Blured lines is an ok idea handles poorly. Its suppose to be about women playing hard to get, and turned out. bad.
Youth of the nation by POD is about school shootings and you suicide
Try go outside the states too pls.
Thanks
If i remember correctly, Lennon was not happy about being more popular than jesus
Tbh I don’t care about the message if they sound good
How in the world is "All About That Bass" bad for society?
I don’t know if it’s what he meant, but what bothers me about it is that it still pits fat and skinny women against each other. It’s still putting one group down to try and raise up the other.
@@TheStarGhost I don't know but it seems to me the "putting down" of fat people has been a heck of a lot meaner than the "putting down" of skinny people. Perhaps skinny people could use a dose of their own medicine.
While I was slightly annoyed by the ”skinny bitches” part, it has been pointed out to me that stupid people calling you that is less awful than not getting a job younare qualified for because you are fat.
Elvis presley's "If i can dream" needs to be on here
,,Fight The Power” by Public Enemy should be here
You missed the Sex Pistols shame on you
No SOAD is weird
Oh, and way to completely ignore what Billie Holiday was referring to as the "strange fruit" in her song. That "fruit" was the bodies of Black men who'd been lynched and just hanging around, swaying in the breeze for all the world to see. Nope, just a little song against "racism" without really explaining the racist act being attacked.
He mentioned lynching. It wasn't an in depth review.
None of this changed the world. This is the definition of putting way to much importance on something you like. Popular music doesn’t change the world.
I didn't know that Born this way is about the LGBTQ+ community & also I'm still shocked on how Blurred Lines is in NBA 2k14.
How did you not know? She literally sings “No matter gay, straight, or bi, lesbian, transgender life
I'm on the right track, baby, I was born to survive”
@@jimmy9439 its been a while since I've heard that song
Blurred Lines- I hate that this crappy song is going to be rembered for anything. It was awful let it and the terrible message die.
chuck berry did the song lets rock and roll then bill harley sampled aND STOLE THE SONG
The weird songs are the only ones that are controversial. The good songs that people like Fox News hate, the imperialists hate, nah-those are all classics. Love them.