In an election season marked by stark divisions and high stakes, a chorus of celebrity voices is rising up in an effort to mobilize voters and shape the outcome. With the 2024 presidential race heading into its frenzied final days, iconic musicians from Stevie Wonder to Stevie Nicks are releasing politically-charged anthems aimed at tipping the scales in this historic contest.
According to inside sources, the pre-election polls suggest this could be the closest presidential election in modern U.S. history. Amid such a razor-thin margin, seemingly every public figure is looking to make an impact, however small. While celebrity endorsements have become a fixture of presidential campaigns, this cycle has seen an uptick in stars channeling their political passions into music.
A-List Artists Aim to Tip the Scales
Leading the charge is legendary singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder, who recently concluded his Sing Your Song! As We Fix Our Nation’s Broken Heart tour. The 10-stop trek, which ran through October, sought to promote “joy over anger, kindness over recrimination, peace over war.” It featured an original song, “Can We Fix Our Nation’s Broken Heart,” with lyrics preaching compassion and unity:
‘Cause if we listen to different thoughts and points of views
All my brothers and sisters, we don’t have to lose humanity
We’re family, so can we please
Fix our nation’s broken heart?– Lyrics from Stevie Wonder’s “Can We Fix Our Nation’s Broken Heart”
Wonder, who has hit the campaign trail alongside Vice President Kamala Harris, is part of a wave of pro-Harris musical mobilization in the homestretch. On Monday, rapper Will.i.am released “Yes She Can,” an acoustic number hailing the VP as voters’ best hope for the future.
“If you’re a woman then vote for your rights / and don’t let them take away your rights,” Will.i.am declares over protest footage. The song serves as a callback to his star-studded “Yes We Can” video from the 2008 Obama campaign.
Rock Legends Rally the Resistance
Where Will.i.am aims for inspiration, other pro-Harris voices have taken a more confrontational approach. Fleetwood Mac icon Stevie Nicks recently unveiled “The Lighthouse,” a rock anthem that began taking shape after the Supreme Court’s earth-shaking 2022 ruling overturning federal abortion rights.
Calling the track “the most important thing I ever do,” Nicks issues a battle cry to defend reproductive freedom:
They’ll take your soul, take your power, unless you stand up, take it back
Try to see the future and get mad.
In a similar vein, alt-rock legend Paral Jam recently released “Wreckage,” an ominous track that, according to frontman Eddie Vedder, may or may not be about Donald Trump. With lyrics decrying how “Spoils go the victor and the other left for dead,” the song captures the existential dread gripping many left-leaning voters.
Meanwhile, R.E.M. has revived their 1986 song “I Believe” with a new lyric video calling back to the band’s history of activism around issues like reproductive rights, gun control and alternative energy. In a message accompanying the clip, vocalist Michael Stipe said “the choices in this election could not be more stark or more important.”
But Can Celebrity Songs Sway the Race?
As these anthems multiply, the eternal question arises of just how much impact celebrity activists can have, especially in such a hyper-polarized climate. A-list endorsements are often a double-edged sword for Democrats, projecting strength and cultural cachet but also fueling perceptions of liberal elitism.
That risk is magnified when stars pivot from statements to songs, which skeptics may write off as self-congratulatory posturing. It’s notable that the major pro-Harris releases this cycle have come from veteran stars largely targeting older audiences.
By contrast, the online-savvy likes of Billie Eilish and Olivia Rodrigo have restricted their advocacy to social media, understanding that for their Gen Z base, the appearance of trying too hard is the ultimate sin. Other youth-skewing acts have withheld full-throated endorsements over issues like Harris’ record on Israel-Palestine, where she’s struggled to court young progressives.
Ultimately, it seems unlikely that the smattering of 11th-hour election tracks will prove any more decisive than the typical celebrity plugs and PSAs. In an age of all-encompassing cynicism, rousing the people through song is a tall order indeed.
But even if these musical manifestos fail to move the needle, they offer a revealing glimpse at the all-hands-on-deck urgency seizing left-leaning stars as a nation holds its breath. For a weary electorate deluged by months of doomsaying ads and ominous polls, they provide a final dose of inspiration and, if nothing else, a diversion as the long-awaited judgment day dawns at last.
