Podcast Summary

Podcast: New Books Network – New Books in Music
Host: Kristin Turner
Guest: Stephen Stacks, author of The Resounding Revolution: Freedom Song After 1968 (University of Illinois Press, 2025)
Date: February 24, 2026

Episode Overview

This episode features an insightful discussion with Stephen Stacks about his book The Resounding Revolution: Freedom Song After 1968. The conversation explores what happened to freedom songs and the act of “freedom singing” following Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination. Stacks challenges conventional narratives about the civil rights movement’s end, critiques collective memory and nostalgia, and illuminates the ongoing power of freedom singing in modern political activism. Key figures, case studies, and nuanced debates about music’s evolving role in activism are at the core of this rich conversation.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Stacks’ Path to the Topic (01:27–04:20)

• Stephen Stacks describes two pivotal experiences influencing his book:
  • Watching a 2014 YouTube video of Congress singing “We Shall Overcome,” where the disconnect in meaning among singers sparked questions about how songs’ significance has changed since the civil rights movement.
  • Being present at a protest against the “Muslim ban” at RDU airport in 2017, he was struck by the powerful, musical environment—challenging the notion that singing as protest is “old-fashioned.”
• “Clearly this song doesn’t mean the same thing to the people who are singing it. It doesn’t mean the same thing that it meant during the civil rights movement…” – Stephen Stacks (03:01)

Constructed Memory of the Civil Rights Movement (04:20–09:05)

• Stacks introduces the concept of the “consensus memory,” typically focused on the Montgomery Bus Boycott, MLK’s nonviolent activism, and key events like the March on Washington and Selma.
• He critiques the “sanitized memory” that dichotomizes the “good 1960s” (nonviolent, church-based activism with traditional songs) from the “bad 1960s” (rise of Black Power, radical politics), often villainizing or erasing later activism and the role of music post-1968.
• “We get these, this kind of dichotomy of different versions of the movement and we have absorbed the good 1960s into our public memory as just another narrative of American progress.” – Stephen Stacks (08:37)

Music, Protest, and the 1968 Lens (09:05–12:51)

• Stacks disputes ideas that music and singing were absent or unimportant in later, more radical phases.
• He introduces the “1968 lens”—a sanitized filter through which contemporary uprisings are interpreted, often used to critique or delegitimize modern movements by holding them to an idealized standard.

Nostalgia: Productive and Counterproductive (12:51–20:53)

• The role of nostalgia is dissected:
  • Productive nostalgia can inspire and motivate activism by recalling past struggles and victories.
  • Counterproductive nostalgia arises when movements or individuals long for an idealized, mythic civil rights era that “never really existed,” dampening present action or downplaying current complexities.
• Case Study: Warren County, NC, anti-PCB landfill protests (late 1970s–1980s).
  • Freedom singing played a unifying but also contested role in multiracial coalitions.
  • The act of singing, such as “Kumbaya,” raises questions about “who is being unified, and to whom?”
• Notable Quote: “When contemporary activists become nostalgic for a movement that never really existed or for this mythic good 1960s … that then hampers their ability to act in the present, that’s what I would consider to be a counterproductive nostalgia.” – Stephen Stacks (16:52)

Activists and Their Own Nostalgia (20:53–24:05)

• Discussion of how even veteran activists express nostalgia and reminisce about music’s unifying power but often with self-awareness, acknowledging tension and divisions within the movement.
• “At the end of the day, then you would sing a song and you would find … that was like, how you were able to work together the next day was you argued all day and then you sang and then you argued all the next day.” – Kristin Turner recalling SNCC members’ reflections (23:28)

Bernice Johnson Reagon & Musical Coalition Politics (24:05–35:58)

• Focus on Bernice Johnson Reagon as a pioneering figure—Freedom Singer, founder of Sweet Honey in the Rock, and key participant in the Southern Folk Cultural Revival Project (SFCRP).
• The SFCRP, co-founded with white activist Anne Romaine, used integrated musical tours to foster coalition, despite tensions and eventual breakdowns in relationships.
• Highlighted is the duo’s record about Joanne Little—showing their embrace of distinct musical traditions towards a shared goal, and refusing simple “nonviolent/radical” binaries.
• “We can come to struggle together. We can—neither of us have to not be who we are … and the traditions that we bring to this fight. But we find common ground and we fight together where we can.” – Stephen Stacks (31:41)

The Persistence and Friction of Coalitions (35:58–38:09)

• Breakdown and reforming of multiracial coalitions are normal, not aberrations—tensions are inherent to activist work.
• “When the tension comes up that, oh, this is not how it’s supposed to be? Well, of course, this is how it has always been.” – Stephen Stacks (37:18)

“Freedom Song” vs. “Freedom Singing” (38:09–41:51)

• Stacks theorizes an important distinction:
  • Freedom song: A canonized set of specific songs from the civil rights era.
  • Freedom singing: The ongoing, active, communal process of making music as protest, negotiable and alive in the present.
• “When we focus on the songs themselves … we tend to miss the ongoing act of freedom singing.” – Stephen Stacks (39:32)
• He limits his focus to vocal “musicking” but notes the broader relevance across instrumental and other forms.

Canon-Makers: Guy & Candie Carawan and Alan Lomax (41:51–54:58)

• White activist-collectors Carawan and Lomax played outsized roles in archiving, teaching, and shaping the canon of freedom songs.
• Their work preserved invaluable material, but also reflected their musical and cultural biases (favoring traditional spirituals over contemporary gospel or popular music), thus constraining the public memory.
• “They were the primary documenters … They had a lot of power in shaping … what gets left out.” – Stephen Stacks (43:57)
• Discussion of their workshops as centralized engines for propagating their idea of “authentic” movement music.
• Turner and Stacks highlight the grief among white activists as multiracial coalitions dissolved—and how their privileged position shaped the dominant written history.

White Memory and Its Limits (54:58–57:29)

• Early memoirs and historical accounts often came from white activists, whose own sense of exclusion post-1968 led to the pervasive narrative that the movement “ended.” This white memory dominated textbooks and public understanding for decades.
• Black activists often saw no sharp break—“it was only 10 years ago … just another instance of our ongoing experience.”

Contemporary Freedom Singing and Activism (58:52–61:51)

• Each chapter of Stacks’ book opens with present-day vignettes, emphasizing that freedom singing is alive and continues to energize movements.
• He references singing “Ella’s Song” outside an ICE facility and the recent “Singing Resistance” in Minneapolis as proof that music remains a core tactic in Black and allied activist traditions.
• “Freedom singing is not dead. It remains an active part of freedom struggles in our context.” – Stephen Stacks (61:31)

Stacks' Current and Future Research (62:11–63:23)

• Stacks is now working on Native music and identity, including the phenomenon of “Sonic Redface,” representation, resistance, and Black/Native musical collaborations.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Clearly this song doesn’t mean the same thing … as it did during the civil rights movement.” – Stephen Stacks (03:01)
• “We have absorbed the good 1960s into our public memory as just another narrative of American progress.” – Stacks (08:37)
• “We can come to struggle together. We can—neither of us have to not be who we are … but we find common ground and fight together where we can.” – Stacks, on Bernice Johnson Reagon & Anne Romaine (31:41)
• “When the tension comes up … that’s not how it’s supposed to be? Well, of course, this is how it has always been.” – Stacks (37:18)
• “When we focus on the songs themselves … we miss the ongoing act of freedom singing.” – Stacks (39:32)
• “Freedom singing is not dead. It remains an active part of freedom struggles in our context.” – Stacks (61:31)

Key Timestamps for Important Segments

• [01:27] Stacks’ inspiration for the topic
• [04:20] Collective memory and its narrative distortions
• [09:30] Music’s role in radical and contemporary movements
• [13:47] Case Study: Warren County protests and nostalgia
• [24:05] Bernice Johnson Reagon & the Southern Folk Cultural Revival Project
• [38:09] Defining “Freedom Song” vs. “Freedom Singing”
• [41:51] Carawans, Lomax, canonization, and workshops
• [54:58] The role of white memory and privileged storytelling
• [58:52] Modern vignettes and continuing activism
• [62:11] Stacks’ forthcoming research

Conclusion

This episode provides a deep and nuanced exploration of how the memory, practice, and meaning of protest music have evolved since 1968. Stacks urges us to move beyond static, romanticized views of the civil rights era and to recognize freedom singing as a living, adaptive tradition vital for contemporary activism and coalition building. The conversation is essential listening—and reading—for anyone interested in the intersections of music, memory, and social justice.