Made famous by Frank Sinatra — who grew to hate it — "My Way" represents the quintessentially American outlook that nothing in life matters more than living on your own terms.Read More
Recorded after a traumatic period in the singer's life, Gloria Gaynor's disco hit quickly found its true audience: LGBT communities, survivors of domestic violence and others pushed aside by society.Read More
Curtis Mayfield's previous songs for The Impressions had often been broadly inspirational — but here, he aimed his pen directly at black listeners, pledging that better times were ahead.Read More
American Anthem: In U2’s ‘I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For,’ A Restless Search For Meaning
Inspired by gospel, the standout from U2's American experiment, The Joshua Tree, has become a rock 'n' roll hymn, even finding its way into real-life church services.Read More
Dolly Parton's classic singalong aims a catchy beat at a serious point, listing the ways the daily grind exploits and exhausts people — some more than others.Read More
The official anthem of the capital city, "En Mi Viejo San Juan" also serves as a nostalgic lament, evoking memories of the island for the many forced to leave it behind.Read More
Ever since a 17-year-old Lesley Gore sang it in 1963, the coolly mutinous song has moved women to reject passive femininity. Its writers, though, say there are layers of resistance in its words.Read More
Gangsta rap had been known as aggressive, rebellious and political, but the Geto Boys' 1991 hit made it something new: vulnerable. Hip-hop's relationship with mental health has never been the same.Read More
Petty's song has been used by striking workers in defiance, by political candidates to show grit, on national stages in the aftermath of tragedy. We asked what "I Won't Back Down" means to you.Read More
There's a grainy video of the first time Nirvana played "Smells Like Teen Spirit" live, at a small club in Seattle in April 1991. Nirvana was largely unknown outside of punk and indie rock circles in the Pacific Northwest. The band hadn't even recorded the song yet, which meant that nearly everybody in the room was hearing it for the very first time. Still, the reaction Read More
The song was everywhere during the 1967 gatherings in San Francisco. After it was used in a public service announcement, it became an anthem for the rest of the world.Read More
Written by a feminist poet who struggled with bouts of depression, the song is an aspirational counterpoint to "The Star-Spangled Banner" — calling on America to use its riches for the common good.Read More
It's not enough to say the Bruce Springsteen hit is misunderstood. Its contrasts — between grim verses and a joyous chorus, damning facts and fierce pride — are what give it its anthemic power.Read More
Though often associated with the Vietnam War, Buffalo Springfield's signature song was inspired by a confrontation back home, which erupted on a few famous blocks in Los Angeles.Read More
How did Samuel Barber's stirring, lush work for strings — music that has become America's semi-official music of mourning — morph into a beloved and endlessly remixed dance floor anthem?Read More
Lady Gaga's 2011 megahit has been praised as inclusive and criticized as exploitative. But there's a little history to the song's origins that isn't often discussed. Read More
The breakout song from Disney's Frozen has inspired many marginalized groups — but its message of rejecting stigma holds special resonance for disabled people and their families.Read More
Born as a vessel for one person's trauma, the song by MILCK became an anthem overnight after the 2017 Women's March. But it wasn't done growing.Read More
More than 40 years after its release, Lynyrd Skynyrd's Sweet Home Alabama is still one of the most recognized rock anthems celebrating the deep South. It's also a song with a complicated legacy.Read More
When NPR asked listeners for their personal American anthems, many responded with Simon & Garfunkel's "America." We asked them to tell us why.Read More
Sometimes it takes an outsider to see a culture clearly. Czech composer Antonin Dvorak's Ninth Symphony was an ode to what American music could become.Read More
From family memorials to jam sessions to every show at the Grand Ole Opry, the familiar singalong helps people feel connected to those who have died — whether legendary musicians or loved ones.Read More
Sixty years ago, a Mexican folk tune sung entirely in Spanish became a rock and roll phenomenon. Generations after Ritchie Valens, young Latinos are still harnessing its power.Read More
The Bob Dylan classic came out in 1963 and was embraced by the civil rights and anti-war movements. Decades later, young people are finding it vibrates with new meaning.Read More
Don Gonyea visits musician Lee Greenwood to talk about the song that, after three decades in political campaigns, might be more popular than "Hail to the Chief."Read More
There's an episode of The Johnny Cash Show from 1969 where the man himself makes a little speech with a pretty big error. "Here's a song that was reportedly sung by both sides in the Civil War," Cash says, guitar in hand, to kick off a performance of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic." The real history is clear: Julia Ward Howe wrote the song as a pro-Union, anti-slavery Read More
