“Thanks to all those that have enjoyed it without understanding it”: Rage Against the Machine's most controversial track exceeds a billion streams

First released in November 1992, Rage Against the Machine's ferocious debut single, Killing in the Name, laid down the gauntlet for a career that would elevate the Los Angeles' rap-metallers into one of the most prominent voices in politically-driven music. Over 30 years after the single's initial release, the track has surpassed a billion streams on Spotify - an indication of its enduring power and potency

The RATM classic hinges around a raft of impactful drop D guitar riffs, and its repetitive, cross-burning referencing lyric was penned at a time when police brutality against minorities was pushed to the forefront of political discourse, particularly following the beating of black motorist Rodney King by four LAPD officers in March 1991.

Its chaotic closing section finds RATM wordsmith Zack de la Rocha relentlessly proclaiming "Fuck you, I won't do what you tell me" 16 times. This savage denouement against authoritarian policing might have had a clear focus in mind when it was written by Zack, but as the years have passed, the anarchic, rebellious spirit of the song has resonated far beyond its original meaning. It has become a revolutionary howl for the ages.

It even reached the top of UK singles chart back in 2009, following an organised revolt from the record-buying public against the dominance of Simon Cowell's X-Factor talent show. The winners of which would typically be a shoe-in for the top spot at Christmas. A fine example of the track being re-fitted for an entirely different struggle…

Rage Against The Machine - Killing In the Name (Official HD Video) - YouTube

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After hearing of the track's one billion stream-smashing accomplishment, guitarist Tom Morello took to X to thank those that love the song, as well as those that (in recent years especially) have misinterpreted the actual target of the song (and just what the 'Machine' of the band's name actually refers to). "KILLING IN THE NAME' just hit 1 billion streams on Spotify! Thanks to all those who listened to it: those who love it, those who hate it, and those that have enjoyed it without understanding it. Righteous proof that rebel music and irony are alive and well."

In recent years, Morello has been vocally outraged by those who would seek to co-opt Rage Against the Machine's music into campaigns and causes of which he, or the band, have any truck with.

"Never ceases to amaze me how many folks who've heard RATM are in Paul Ryan mode, having literally ZERO understanding of anything that band was about and even less understanding where any of us might stand on contemporary issues" Morello said on X.

He also shared the story of an encounter with a woman who drew on the song's disobedient fire when justifying her refusal to take the Covid vaccine: "Recently was talking to a couple at a restaurant who were big fans of 'Killing In The Name'. The nice lady said, 'I love that song. It helped me rage against my parents and later against the jab!' I said, 'Ma'am that song is about racist cops who often behave like the Ku Klux Klan in service of historical white supremacy and are boot licking lackeys and thugs of the racist capitalist ruling class.' She sat there chewing and blinking, chewing and blinking."

This reported encounter triggered some heated responses. To one of which, Tom responded, "My brother. She can do anything she damn well pleases. She can cough Covid into her MAGA grandpa's mouth for all I care. But if she presumes to tell a fella who was actually in the room when the song was written what the song is 'really' about then I reserve the right to raise my hand and say, 'no, ma'am.'"

Regardless of the ongoing discourse around the song, and indeed the band's political legacy and how it fits into the modern political landscape, Killing in the Name will perhaps always remain the go-to song when in need of a musical shorthand for nonconformity.