Billy Bragg
Billy Bragg
Stephen William "Billy" Braggis an English singer, songwriter and left-wing activist. His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, with lyrics that mostly span political or romantic themes. His music is heavily centered on bringing about change and getting the younger generation involved in activist causes...
NationalityBritish
ProfessionFolk Singer
Date of Birth20 December 1957
believe opportunity player
I never met a politician who didn't want to be a guitar player in a rock band. I've got the opportunity to say what I believe in.
audience bands believe british-musician change lesson naive quite taught thinks
That taught me one lesson which is that you're naive to believe that bands can change the world. Bands are very naive to think that just if their audience thinks that they can change the world, that they can. That was quite a lesson for my career, really.
believe bring change elsewhere job news offer people singing trying
A part of my job is to bring the news from elsewhere to here and to take back some news from here. . . . You can't change the world singing songs, believe me, but you can offer people an alternative perspective, even on their own situations. So that's what I'm trying to do.
music protest
Protest music was prematurely declared to be unfashionable,
cop face public talked walked
The thing about Strummer was he walked it like he talked it, ... He didn't cop out. He didn't show one face to the public and have a different face in himself.
country care patriot
A patriot is someone who cares what happens in their country.
struggle cutting reality
Start your own revolution, cut out the middleman In a perfect world we'd all sing in tune But this is reality so give me some room So join the struggle while you may The Revolution is just a t-shirt away
jobs generations worst
Being spokesman for a generation is the worst job I ever had.
gay sticks common
Just because you're gay, I won't turn you away. If you stick around, I'm sure we can find some common ground.
america use bloody
An isolationist America is no bloody use to anyone.
sleep dancing politics
A nation with their freezers full are dancing in their seats, while outside another nation is sleeping in the streets.
poetry guilt answers
Don't saddle me with your ideals, and spare me all your guilt. For a poet with all the answers, has never yet been built.
thinking artist important
The most important thing for anyone, I think, is to be engaged, whether you're an artist or a journalist is to be engaged in the process at some level.
girl country song
But, in the end, even a song that's as politically bland as Blowin in the Wind, you probably wouldn't get up and sing that now, whereas some of Bob Dylan's love songs that were contemporary with that, like say Girl from the North Country, you can still get up an play now.