Can popular music achieve genuine political change?

Popular music can be a way of raising both consciousness and funds for political causes (Shuker, 2001). Billie Holidays ‘Strange Fruit’ is a great example of music being used to promote a political consciousness. It was written as a poem by Abel Meerpol in 1937 expressing his horror about lynching. The song was called propaganda by time magazine in 1939, but in 1999 they declared it the song of the century. Music can also be used to sway voters’ political allegiances. In 1985 Red Wedge formed to try and help labour win the 1987 election, but ultimately they failed as labour lost the election. Band aid used music to raise money and awareness for famine in Africa. They raised £8 million so they were successful in their aims. It is impossible to say that music cannot instil political ideals but it is hard to say the direct effect it has on political change as often change comes from a series of events as opposed to one key event.