Ed Sheeran – Apolitical 
Well, Ed Sheeran would claim to be political, of course, for he was more than keen to dedicate his music to the Ukrainian cause. But suddenly, once the lives of Palestinian children came into the equation, there was a swift step back from the political front and a timid exercise of feigned ignorance.
In his defence speech on stage during his Loop Tour – the one Macklemore was removed from – he said he “never wanted to be an activist musician” and that he has found himself “in the middle of an important and passionate argument about freedom of speech and the most complex political issue on the planet”.
He still failed to take a side, presumably hoping to perform without political pressure derailing his career. But unfortunately, we’ve all seen through it now – these are unavoidably political times in which one of the most influential artists in the world has chosen to be apolitical.
No one would have thought over a decade ago, as we were all bobbing our heads to ‘Thrift Shop,’ that the fun and light-hearted rapper Macklemore would become such a prominent political artist.
Yet here we are. In 2024, he released the song ‘Hind’s Hall’, which made his stance on the conflict between Palestine and Israel pretty clear. Since then, he’s been using his platform to denounce the silence of others in the music industry.
The political nature of his recent shows has landed Macklemore in hot water, as he said “Free Palestine” while supporting Ed Sheeran on tour, a move that saw him dropped from Sheeran’s run of shows. Macklemore stood tall, though, saying: “If those words cost me the stage, while turning the conversation back to Palestine, then it was the most successful tour I’ve ever been on.”
James Hetfield – Apolitical 
The very DNA of heavy metal as a genre is rebellious. It’s about furiously resisting the status quo through wild musical release.
Ultimately, it has to be, given the fact the very band who helped pioneer the genre, Black Sabbath, did so through songs that were not only sonically raucous, but lyrically vicious: “Evil minds that plot destruction”, Ozzy Osbourne famously sings in ‘War Pigs’. So, it’s not only disappointing but also surprising to see Hetfield and Metallica turn their backs on such an ideology now that they’ve left their working-class beginnings far behind.
It’s not speculation; Hetfield confirmed this during their recent performance at the Sphere, stating: “I just gotta say, Metallica is not here, like some other entertainers, to influence you with their bullshit, OK?”
The frontman continued, “We are here, no bullshit – we’re here to forget about all the outside shit, OK? Metallica’s agenda is love, energy and heavy music, baby.” It turns out the inside of the Sphere really is a bubble.
Bruce Springsteen – Political 
One of the biggest turning points in Bruce Springsteen’s life was when he heard Bob Dylan for the first time. “I was very influenced by Dylan,” he said. “I always say he’s the father of my country. He initially provided me with a picture of a country that I recognised. One that feels real, feels like the truth.”
Ever since hearing Dylan, Springsteen has written music and performed with the intention of sending a message. Music, for him, is the most political thing on the planet (besides politics itself), and so he uses it as a way to show his audience the world through his own eyes. His most recent comments about Donald Trump on the Land of Hope and Dreams Tour are evidence of as much. Throughout the decades, no matter what is happening in the world, Springsteen has provided some form of commentary.
Gene Simmons – Apolitical 
Gene Simmons absolutely reeks of hypocrisy of late, as he has tried to condemn artists who stick their heads above the parapet and fight for social justice. He said, “Basically, shut the fuck up. Do your art and shut up. Nobody is interested in your opinions, that includes me, who I vote for, and who I like. Who do you think you are?”
Simmons’s rant continued, “People in America work hard for a living, and they don’t want to be lectured to by people who live in mansions and drive Rolls-Royces. It’s time for everyone in the entertainment industry to shut their pie-hole and just do your art, nobody cares what you think – I don’t.”
This is from a man who not only urged bands to avoid playing live shows in Russia and called out anti-Vaxxers during the pandemic, but also voiced resolute support of Israel while it commits a bloody genocide in Gaza. Clearly, Simmons needs to rephrase his argument into something more along the lines of ‘keep your mouth shut, so long as you disagree with me’.
Tom Morello – Political 
I mean, the band he became famous for playing in is literally called Rage Against the Machine – what did you expect? Tom Morello is one of those artists who embeds his opinions on politics and society into everything that he does.
Even his guitar, the instrument with which he writes these conscious tunes, comes with its own message akin to Woody Guthrie’s ‘This machine kills fascists’. Morello said that ever since he was young and started listening to the likes of punk and hip-hop, the idea of expressing your opinions within your music was made clear to him.
“I discovered the Clash and then Public Enemy that made me realise you could have great music that also reflected the ideas that were in my soul,” he said in an exclusive interview with Far Out. “You know, that kind of music is rebellion as self-care. And it’s rock and roll or hip hop is self-defence in troubled times.”
Alice Cooper – Apolitical 
Don’t be fooled by Alice Cooper’s practical political jokes, where he consistently runs for president; ultimately, he’s doing it to prove just how little he cares. Yes, despite being a rock and roll star through the Vietnam War, the questionable Nixon presidency and the rampantly commercial Reagan administration, Cooper seemingly sees nothing worth protesting against.
“I am extremely non-political,” he told Rolling Stone in 2010. “I go out of my way to be non-political. I’m probably the biggest moderate you know. When John Lennon and Harry Nilsson used to argue politics, I was sitting right in the middle of them, and I was the guy who was going, ‘I don’t care’.”
Ultimately, he believes that rock and roll is a source of escapism, which is admittedly true. But two truths can exist together, and so the genre’s engagement with political injustice is equally important and, for a voice as popular as Cooper’s, shouldn’t be ignored.
Joan Jett dispels any notion that a musician shouldn’t be political. Throughout her career, her songs have come packed with emotion and meaning, which has allowed her to make a name for herself as one of the most socially conscious rock stars out there.
“Saying ‘shut up and sing’ has never really been what musicians or artists do,” she said. “From way on back.”
This is a mindset that Jett still carries in 2026 as well. In an interview with Far Out, she said that she stays connected with everyday life, and that helps her write music, which she feels passionate about. “I don’t really do anything specific to stay inspired. I just stay plugged into life,” she said.
“It’s kind of crazy to put today’s stuff in context, so that’s been inspiring to want to get back to the music and do things that are joyful, even if sometimes they’re about heavy subjects.”
Neal Schon – Apolitical 
Neal Schon came close to choosing a side when he took legal aim at his bandmate Jonathan Cain over his public support for Donald Trump, but then quickly backpedalled. Rather than highlighting his disappointment with Cain’s Trumpian leanings on humanitarian grounds, it was more on the basis of his defying Journey’s band-wide rule of staying out of politics.
“We were never going to affiliate politics with our music, and we’re never going to affiliate any one religion, not that we’re unreligious. Everybody has their own religion,” Schon said. “But why attach yourself into one portion of something? Why be red? Why be blue? Why be green?” he continued.
“Because you know what? You’re going to lose half your fans when you do that. It’s everybody’s music. I just don’t agree with it. I still don’t. And it’s probably one of the reasons that things are still a bit shaky,” Schon noted.
Graham Nash – Political 
Throughout his career, Graham Nash has always written music which is a reflection of the times in which he finds himself living. This means that a lot of his songs are personal, as they pay homage to whatever his current feelings are.
However, he also references politics and makes his political opinions clear for all of those who listen. You can find them as recently as 2023 on the album Now, as he called out Maga on the track ‘Golden Idols’.
In an interview with Far Out, Nash spoke about how much he embraces politics within his music and said that the whole thing stems from a quote from Nina Simone. “I really still think every day about a quote by Nina Simone,” he told me, “Who said ‘Every artist, whether you’re a songwriter or a piano player or a sculptor or a painter, you have to reflect the times in which we live’.”