Yesterday was Election Day, and a few musicians have recently put out songs with a political tone to them. Demi Lovato has a new single out called, “Commander in Chief.” The anti-Trump song was co-written with Julia Michaels, Finneas, Justin Tranter and Eren Cannata. Lovato performed the song live at the Billboard Music Awards telecast. The music video includes children, deaf and hard of hearing people, queer, and Indigenous people singing the lyrics: “I couldn’t sleep, seriously / Do you even know the truth? / We’re in a state of crisis, people are dyin’ / While you line your pockets deep / Commander in Chief, how does it feel to still be able to breathe?” 

“FDT,” by YG and Nipsey Hussle came out in 2016, but the message still lives on. The lyrics refer to Trump as a “cancer,” and my personal favorite line, “I like white people put I don’t like you.” Though some may not like the song, it’s really catchy. The song includes a soundbite of Trump talking about building the wall and having Mexico pay for it.  

Eminem’s “Campaign Speech,” also takes aim at Trump in an eight-minute freestyle. Fun fact, in 2004 Trump endorsed Eminem for president at a mock convention. Eminem addresses Trump, the killing of Trayvon Martin and Colin Kaepernick. “The Storm” by Eminem also takes shots at Trump, while also defending NFL players taking a knee during the national anthem.  

Country artist Maren Morris released “Better Than We Found It,” which has a positive tone to it, in comparison to Eminem’s politically charged songs. In “Better Than We Found It,” Morris questions if history will look back kindly on how she rose, or if she didn’t to the occasion. “When lines of tomorrow are drawn / Can I live with the side that I chose to be on? / Will we sit on our hands do nothing about it? / Or will we leave this world better than we found it?”  

Morris uses her platform to share her feelings on the current world and encourages the idea of unity and coming together for a greater good. The music video features Morris performing the song acoustically in a church with a wooden cross in the background, which leaves no room to doubt how she feels. The video includes a personal message to her son about wanting to make the world better for his generation.  

Many people don’t like when their favorite artists get too vocal about politics. However, with the current world of politics, you can’t expect artists to not use their voice to speak up about it. Protest songs have been embedded in American culture by Bob Dylan and Nina Simone. Many celebrities have been using their platforms to try and encourage the youth of America to vote for change.