Musician Tom Morello says apolitical artists deserve ‘extra hot layer of hell’

Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello is pushing back against the notion that musicians should stay out of politics, arguing in a new interview that artists who stay silent during moments of injustice belong in a special category of damnation.

Speaking with Germany’s Metal Hammer magazine, Mr. Morello was asked to elaborate on his recent remark that “every act of art is an act of resistance.” 

“When people say that musicians should not be involved in politics, it means they are people that disagree with your politics,” Mr. Morello told the publication, in remarks transcribed by Blabbermouth. “The second that you write a song that agrees with their politics, all of a sudden, they’re all for it. So, one, it’s very hypocritical, but two, I also think that, why should you give away your free speech rights in the job that you do? Because it offends someone?”

Mr. Morello argued the principle extends beyond musicians to anyone in any profession.

“I think that you do yourself and your times a disservice by censoring who you are in your work,” he said. “Not just musicians — in your work as a music journalist or in your work as a tour manager or as a bus driver, you should not leave behind who you are and what you believe.”

He reserved his sharpest criticism for those who go quiet during periods of upheaval.

“There’s an extra hot layer of hell for people in times of great injustice who censor themselves and remain quiet when they should have spoken out because they’re afraid of some internet troll,” Mr. Morello said.

Mr. Morello also cited Public Enemy and The Clash as artists who helped shape his own worldview, despite coming from very different backgrounds, saying their music made him feel understood in his beliefs and that “every song is like a beacon of hope for somebody.” 

Mr. Morello — a Grammy-winning, Harvard-educated musician who was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a founding member of Rage Against the Machine — has a long history of organizing activism-oriented events and remains one of modern rock’s most outspoken political voices.

His latest single, “Adjourn It,” recorded with System of a Down’s Serj Tankian, is described as a protest anthem he said was “inspired by the persecution of immigrants across the land and the heroic resistance to the rising tide of fascism.” 

Mr. Morello’s comments drew wide coverage across the music press, including, which noted that he had previously defended his political credentials after being accused of being another musician turned political commentator, pointing out that he holds an honors degree in political science from Harvard University. 

Mr. Morello is curating the Power to the People festival this October in Maryland, featuring Bruce Springsteen, Foo Fighters, Joan Baez and Mr. Tankian, billed as “a non-partisan celebration of peace, justice, solidarity, music and community action.”