Power To The People was the Festival We needed this Election Year
Tom Morello performing at his Power To The People Festival. photo by kim moenich
There are some events that, when announced, you immediately realize you HAVE to attend, because they are going to be so monumental that you know they will have a lasting impact on your life. My first Musack Rocks carnival, when I filmed the video of Jesse Michaels and Tim Armstrong playing two Op Ivy songs, was one of those events. Another was the final NOFX show in San Pedro, where I spent two days at the center rail and one night onstage. The former got me my first viral videos, and the latter landed me this spot with In Spite, which reignited my love for photography and really kind of ended up changing my life. So when Tom Morello announced his Power To The People Fest (and I saw Dropkick was playing), I bought tickets right away. My gut told me that this was something I absolutely could not miss- and not just for the photos and videos I knew I’d get, but because I had a feeling that this was going to be an historic event, akin to Woodstock and Live Aid.
And I was not wrong. As the day of the concert grew nearer, Morello kept announcing more and more amazing acts: Bruce Springsteen, Joan Baez, Public Enemy, and the Foo Fighters; the list went on and on. I was also excited to see smaller acts that I had learned about from following Tom, like The Neighborhood Kids, who went viral a few years back for their anti-ICE protest song “Kids In The Cages," thanks in large part to Tom reposting their video. I managed to obtain press credentials for the event (thank you, Consequence of Sound!), which meant I could somewhat easily walk between stages, thereby getting to see all the incredible bands who would be performing that day.
The neighborhood kids started off the day and set the tone right away. They came out hard and fast, spitting anti-fascist lyrics that got the crowd riled up. Playing songs with titles like “Brainwash” and “Third World Problems," as well as “Kids In The Cages," The Neighborhood Kids were on point with their Power To The People message of defying this authoritarian regime.
I then ran to the main stage to catch The Last Internationale, a New York-based duo known for their socially conscious lyrics. To my surprise, they were accompanied onstage by Chris Barker, more colloquially known as Chris #2, from Anti-Flag on bass. While this was a bit of a bold choice (not going into that one...), The Last Internationale put on a blistering performance, including a rousing cover of “Kick Out the Jams” by MC5. I’d admittedly never heard of the band before they were announced for this event, and they definitely made a fan of me!
Next up were also new-to-me bands, State Radio. Boston-based punk/folk/reggae trio. State Radio was one of the most enjoyable acts I saw all day (and that’s saying a great deal!). They had a sound unlike anyone else, and their onstage energy was unmatched. The band had previously played alongside Rage Against the Machine at the 2008 DNC Convention, as well as going on tour with Power To The People performer Dave Matthews, and has a long history of social activism. They’ve worked with Oxfam, played charity performances, and even started their own charity, “Calling All Crows." It was truly a pleasure to watch them absolutely destroy the stage, and I hope to get to see them again soon.
One of the bands on the bill whom I had seen many times before was The Linda Lindas. I first saw these powerhouses back in 2022 at Riot Fest. Shortly after, they had gone viral with the video for “Racist Sexist Boy." Like The Neighborhood Kids, The Linda Lindas ended up on Tom Morello’s radar after that video, and it only made sense for him to put them on this lineup. They played a few songs off their incredible new album, “Gotta Get Out," and their performance had me screaming out lyrics from the photo pit. Go buy the new album right now, and you can thank me later.
The “most entertaining set of the day award” definitely went to Jack Sabbath. A Black Sabbath cover band comprised of Jack Black, Roman Morello (yep, Tom’s son), Revel Ian (the son of Scott Ian from Anthrax), Yoyoka Soma, and Hugo Weiss, this band has the chops. The kids range in age from 14 to 16, but you would never know from listening to them. They ripped Sabbath tunes like they’d been at it for decades, and Geezer Butler obviously felt the same when he joined them onstage for “War Pigs." Jack Black, bedecked in a sparkling, fringed spandex shirt emblazoned with "OZZY," sang his heart out, and it was truly a sight to behold.
Killer Mike had me all up in my feels with his inspiring lyrics and gospel backing band. I’ve long admired Mike for his willingness to speak up about the inherent devaluation of Black lives under the capitalist system and to call out police brutality at every turn. I appreciated that Tom Morello chose Mike for this event, and his performance did not disappoint.
This was a day of many firsts for me (seeing THE BOSS being #1!), but one of the performances I was most looking forward to was Public Enemy. Having been a massive fan in the 90s, it has always bothered me that I’d never gotten to see the group perform live. (The closest I’d ever come was when I once ran into Flavor Flav in a Perkins at 2:00am, and he bought my crew and me milkshakes!) Getting to witness Chuck D and Flav live onstage, singing the songs I’d cranked up in my car when I was 16, made the whole day just that much more special.
My boys in the Dropkick Murphys did what they always do, brought their very best to the stage, and whipped the crowd into a frenzy. Having been very outspoken about this administration and what it’s doing to the working class, the Dropkicks were the epitome of what Power To The People was all about. They brought Jimmy Williams, Jr., the General President of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, onstage to talk about worker’s rights, and you could see several social media influencers like Jolly Good Ginger and Matt Gordon (@usmcangryveteran) on the side of the stage, singing along. Getting to see the band I love so much standing on the right side of history made me so very happy.
The next set was filled with all-star performances like Serg Tankian of System of a Down singing a Soundgarden song with Tom Morello. My favorite was when Tom was joined onstage by DMC, Flav, Chuck D, and Cypress Hill for “Fight The Power." The crowd went absolutely wild, and the feeling of hope from those 20,000 fans was palpable. Everyone was out of their seats, screaming along. We were even gifted a few Rage songs, with Roman playing right beside his dad. When they played “Killing In The Name Of," there was no vocalist, but the crowd sang every word, and it was a truly beautiful moment. I’ve watched my video of that so many times since!
The Foo Fighters and Dave Matthews put on very polished performances that had the stadium on their feet. I’d never seen either live, so it was fun to get to photograph their performances.
But then it was time for what I’d been waiting months for, the legendary Bruce Springsteen! Every night before dinner during my childhood, my dad would play records in the dining room, and, from the day it came out, Born In The USA, was in constant rotation. I knew every word on that album before I knew my times tables. Bruce Springsteen has always been at the top of my icon board, and knowing that I was going to be photographing him had my stomach in knots for days. And then there he was, on that stage in front of me, and I nearly forgot how to use my camera. Hearing that golden voice singing songs that reminded me of childhood was simply everything to me. I looked around while Bruce performed his song, “Streets of Minneapolis," a song he wrote to speak out about the murders of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by ICE agents in Minneapolis last year, and there was not a dry eye to be seen, including my own. While I know I should have seen The Boss live long before now, a part of me is very thankful that I saw him live for the first time that day, at that festival, on that stage. This was a day created to inspire hope and spur people to action, and that’s exactly what his performance did. I overheard a fan after Bruce’s set say, “I don’t remember the last time I felt this hopeful being here with all these like-minded people." I think we might actually be able to effect change.”
The night ended with a stage full of legends- Tom Morello, Bruce Springsteen, Joan Baez, Stephen Stills, Foo Fighters, Dave Matthews, The Linda Lindas, The Neighborhood Kids, Grandson, DMC, Scott and Revel Ian, Roman Morello, Taylor Momson, Nathaniel Rateliff, The Last Internationale, and more, singing Woody Guthrie’s greatest protest song, “This Land is Your Land." If you ever feel overwhelmed by the dystopian nightmare that is America right now, feel free to come to my page and watch that video (or find the better version on Power To The People’s YouTube channel).
I knew going into this day that it was going to be a lineup for the ages, but I underestimated just how life-changing it would be. I think it is safe to say that every single person who left that night was filled with a sense of purpose and community that they did not realize they needed so badly. Yes, the performances were inspired, and the booths were filled with all the best causes and information, but what Tom Morello created was so much more than that. He showed us, on a grand scale, that the power really does belong to us if we are willing to come together and take it. I hope everyone remembers that as we head to the ballot boxes over the next few weeks. Fight the Powers that be because the Power truly belongs to the People.
Hope. photo by kim moenich
