15 Greatest Protest Songs Of The 21st Century

Key Lyrics: "Mosh pits outside the Oval Office... // For this monster, this coward that we have empowered... // How could we allow something like this // Without pumping our fists now?"

You might cackle at the idea of Eminem -- hip hop's version of Dennis the Menace -- writing a politically-nuanced song, but sometimes the best versions of a protest song don't mess around with subtlety and shades, they come at you full bore. That's what "Mosh" excels at.

Marshall Mathers may have went after political figures in the past -- he talked about ripping Hillary Clinton's tonsils on his breakout album, The Slim Shady LP, and told both Tipper Gore and Lynne Cheney to f*ck off with their Parental Advisory crusade in "White America" -- but those were merely aggressive, spiteful musings.

"Mosh" is a legitimate call to action that was released just before the 2004 U.S. presidential election. The lyrics break down everything Eminem considered to be wrong with the George Dubya presidency -- following in George Sr.'s footsteps with another war in the Middle East, lying to the public about his intentions, etc. -- and ended by urging his listeners to vote Bush out of the White House.

Eminem’s vitriol against Bush was so fervent that the Detroit rapper was actually put under investigation by the Secret Service for threatening the president. That's the sign of a powerful protest song.