Prophets of Rage Perform 3 Blocks from RNC
Supergroup Prophets of Rage, formed with the dedicated political activist members of Rage Against the Machine, Cypress Hill, and Public Enemy, made good on their promise to “cause a ruckus” at the Republican National Convention yesterday, playing a loud and outraged set about 3 blocks away from the convention at Cleveland’s Public Square. The set included originals by Rage Against the Machine, Beastie Boys, and Public Enemy’s song “Prophets of Rage,” which the supergroup released an updated version of today as a self-titled single. Prophets of Rage is playing one more show tonight in Cleveland, kicking off the group’s short tour. You can watch yesterday’s show in full below.
“This Land Is Your Land” Debate Over Entering Public Domain
Following in the footsteps of the “Bring ‘Happy Birthday To You’ to the Public Domain” lawsuit at the beginning of the year, people, specifically political activists, are trying to have the 1945 Woody Guthrie song “This Land is Your Land” song added to the public domain as well, claiming that the song is an American treasure and so deeply woven into our country’s fabric that its use should be free for the American people to use, sing, and build upon in the tradition of folk music. Standing in the way is Nora Guthrie, one of Woody Guthrie’s daughters, who says the family isn’t refusing the song’s release for financial gain, but to protect it from being exploited in ways her father stood firmly against, citing the song’s attempted uses by Ronald Regan, the NRA, and the KKK, and explicitly stating “It has to do with protecting it from Donald Trump.” The case on both sides is dense, and you can read more about it here.
-Taylor Wallace
