Fight the Power

After organising last month’s anti-inaugural ball in los angeles, rage against the machine’s Tom Morello says the music world’s battle against the trump presidency has only just begun…

- Dorian Lynskey

When the rump of Rage Against The Machine teamed up with Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell in Audioslave back in 2001, they disagreed strongly about how political they should be. But when guitarist Tom Morello was organising the Anti-Inaugural Ball in Los Angeles on 20 January and asked Cornell to be part of a three-song Audioslave reunion, the singer didn’t hesitate. For seasoned activist Morello, that change of heart spoke volumes.

“Some artists are not known for their political songwriting or marching on picket lines, so when they say yes it’s meaningful,” says Morello. “The silver lining of Trump’s election is people being galvanised who are not usually involved in protests.”

The music world’s opposition to President Trump has hit the ground running. The LA line-up included veteran singer-songwriter and campaigner Jackson Browne, rapper Vic Mensa and Morello’s own Prophets Of Rage, a rock-rap coalition of Rage Against The Machine, Public Enemy and Cypress Hill. In Washington DC, Run The Jewels and Rage’s Zack de la Rocha played another anti inaugural concert, while The National and Common headlined a benefit for the prochoice organisation Planned Parenthood.