The number of artists that do their bit for the climate is still quite small and even fewer write songs about it, particularly with the potentially large carbon footprint associated with streaming and all that jazz...
Yet, it has always been difficult to find any playlists or articles that bring you current climate songs or tracks about climate change. We wanted to change that so buckle up and enjoy this ride!
Childish Gambino – Feels Like Summer
An absolute classic climate song that you will see across all ‘best climate songs’. Despite not being particularly active on the climate stage, CG has written himself in history for being a climate activist through music.
Billie Eilish – All Good Girls go to Hell
Billie has used her platform time and again to speak up about our planet and this track is no exception. By drawing attention to the world’s forest fires, and generally man’s inability to stop climate change. As a member of ‘music declares emergency’, a climate group reducing the carbon footprint of the music industry and putting pressure on governments to act, this is just one example of her climate dedication.
Jaden Smith – Young in Love
It goes without saying that Jaden Smith has already done so much for the environment than 99.9% of all celebrities at his age for the climate. After a 2018 clip of him resurfaced from a radio interview about how he was frustrated his young peers were not open to talking about the world’s problems, he was somewhat roasted on Twitter but it shows what Jaden is all about. His music is exactly the same.
The 1975 – 1975
They have a whole track dedicated to Greta Thunberg, which they would open with at many shows on tour. All proceeds from this track went to Extinction Rebellion. Interestingly though in an interview with their manager, they stated their shock about how few artists were willing to work with Greta. There really is a reluctance to stick your neck out for the climate in the music industry!
Lana Del Rey – The Greatest
The Greatest focuses on California crumbling in the wake of climate change. Although it covers other topics, climate change is front and centre alongside chaotic politics.
Jayda G – Missy Know’s What’s Up & Orca’s Reprise
If you follow Jayda G, it will be no surprise that she is on this list. The Canadian-born DJ is a key climate activist and has helped push the climate agenda forward in the house scene and the music industry. In fact, she studied environmental science at university with her master’s thesis on environmental toxicology.
Grimes – New Gods
Grimes is one climate-dedicated lady. Taken from her album Miss Anthropocene, New Gods embraces apocalypse in the midst of what she describes as the new gods in what seems very relatable to the influential novel and Amazon Prime series American Gods. She aimed to make climate change fun with this album and it is fun, but she is also pretty vocal about how each track is an embodiment of human extinction.
The Ecomusicologist Movement is putting our environment and our climate at its core.
But the reality is that musicians have been talking about the plight of the environment for some time in the modern era...
Although references to climate change, climate justice, environmentalism and everything in between has been on the rise in the last decade, there have been many instances of dedication from musicians in the past too. Particularly, with the Greenpeace movements in the 60s and 70s but even beyond that and back into the 19th century.
Timeless artists who released climate songs before the turn of the millennium include Bob Dylan, Robert Johnson, Paul McCartney, Joni Mitchell, The Beach Boys, Jon Denver, Prince, David Bowie, Marvin Gaye, U2, Michael Jackson, Sting, Gorillaz, Mos Def and many more…
Let us know if there are any more major climate songs you think we have missed!
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