15 Greatest Protest Songs Of The 21st Century

Key Lyrics: "We been hurt, we been down before // N*gga, when our pride was low // Lookin' at the world like 'Where do we go?'"

Through no will of his own, Kendrick Lamar's "Alright" became an integral part of the Black Lives Matter movement. In fact, he didn't even pen the track as a protest song, but a groundswell of protestors chanting the chorus' affirmation of "We gonna be alright!" created a natural link between the movement and the song.

When discussing the impetus for the track, Lamar was quick to point out that he didn't want to sound like he was "playing the victim," but was instead aiming for an uplifting, aggressive expression of unity and strength. Those intentions paid off, as "Alright" quickly became a unifier in black communities.

The message is clear and powerful in a way that glib personal attacks toward the government never could be: You can't ruin us. You can't break us down. We're too strong.