Freemuse: Music during wartime

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NEWS
10 June 2003

Music during wartime
The war on Iraq has in many ways affected freedom of musical expression; from The Dixie Chicks receiving death threats and being boycotted by many radio stations, to a new wave of protest music. Below is an extensive collection of links to articles related to music and the war on Iraq.

February 2003:

From BBC: "This is intended to be a musical not a political vote". Anti-war band Seize The Day dropped from BBC awards

From BBC: Madonna: "I'm not anti-Bush"

From MTV: Shakira calls for peace

From LA Weekly: "Where are the new protest songs?" Extensive article on music and protest

From BBC: Brit Award winners attack war plans

From Drudge Report: At the Grammy Awards Sheryl Crow performed with "No War" written on her guitar strap

From New York Times: The new antiwar songs are virtually absent from commercial radio stations

March 2003:

From BBC: Youssou N'dour has cancelled a tour of North America in protest at a possible US-led war on Iraq

From BBC: Top Of The Pops refused to let George Michael wear a T-shirt bearing the words "No war, Blair out"

From CNN: Dixie Chicks pulled from air after bashing Bush

From BBC: Stars sing out against war

From BBC: A folk song condemning war in Iraq has become one of the biggest underground hits in the Arab world

From BBC: Dixie Chicks albums burned by a Louisiana-based radiostation following their anti-Bush remarks

From 'Citizens Against Celebrity Pundits: A new US initiative claims "wealthy Hollywood celebrities are abusing their status to speak for us"

From BBC: Robbie Williams has denied a song on his forthcoming single is anti-war

From IndyMedia (NL): Unconfirmed internal memo from MTV Europe regarding what videos should air on MTV during the war

From New York Times: Editorial on Dixie Chicks CD-burning rally and the link between Clear Channel and Bush

From The Guardian: UK radio stations have banned certain records

From NME: BBC pulls song which mentions bandages too often

From Billboard: Radio Reaction To Chicks' Comments Diminishing

April 2003:

From Rolling Stone: US Army questioned the mother of a Spearhead band member. "The fact that people would be paying this close attention to what we're doing as musicians is a bit freaky", says Spearhead frontman Michael Franti

From BBC: Patriotic US anthems vs protest songs - a retrospective view on the debate

From BBC: Madonna has withdrawn a promotional video for her latest single, saying it is "inappropriate" at a time of war

From BBC: "I don't bang the war drum," country singer Toby Keith said. "I just don't trust the next celebrity who thinks they know more about it than I do"

From BBC: The Dixie Chicks have said they fear for their lives following the backlash against singer Natalie Maines' comments about George Bush

From New York Times: Iraq's artists strive for freedom

May 2003:

From BBC: Dixie Chicks have angered US radio programmers after singer Natalie Maines' apparent jibe at fellow country star Toby Keith at an awards ceremony

From BBC: Dixie Chicks booed at music awards

Freemuse conference on freedom of musical expression

Video: Damon Albarn on music during wartime

Related sections:
War
Music and politics

See also special report from The Guardian: The arts world and the Iraq war

It was a victory over censorship and death threats when Dixie Chicks 'swept' the most prestigious honours in the global music calendar, the Grammy Awards

12 February 2007

USA: Dixie Chicks film about censorship censored

The American tv-network NBC and the CW Television Network has refused to air ads for the new Dixie Chicks documentary, ‘Shut Up & Sing’

30 October 2006

USA: Documentary film about Dixie Chicks: 'Shut up & Sing'

A documentary film about the country trio Dixie Chicks and the three years of hysteria that followed after they criticized president George W. Bush at a concert in London in 2003

10 November 2006

USA: Country band banned on radio stations - again

Songs of the American country band Dixie Chicks have been banned on country radio stations, and ticket sales are reportedly way off in southern US cities

22 June 2006

Iraq / USA: Interview with exiled oud player

Interview with Iraqi oud player and composer Rahim AlHaj - a former political prisoner of Saddam Hussein who escaped Iraq and relocated to the US, New Mexico, in 2000

26 November 2008

Music during wartime

An extensive collection of links to articles related to how the war on Iraq affected freedom of musical expression - from American country albums being burned to the rise in protest music

10 June 2003

USA: Anti-Iraq war rock song claimed blacklisted by US government

American rock musician Mick Star claims that his anti-Iraq war song 'Jets' is not getting air time due to pressure on radio stations from the White House

25 October 2005

USA: What if they gave a culture war and nobody came?

Extensive article on the history of music censorship in the U.S., detailing the occasions when judicial and legislative authorities have focused attention on popular music as expression

28 January 2003

Iraq: Students are still hiding their instruments

Students of Iraq’s Music and Ballet School still risk being attacked because of their love of music. This article summons the latest news from the musical life in Iraq.

05 June 2008

USA/UK: Media giant claimed to threaten British music

“Texan media firm Clear Channel Communications is increasingly casting its shadow over the music scene in Britain,” writes Granville Williams

23 February 2006