One of the things that makes America wonderful is the freedom and the room to protest peacefully, to speak one’s mind and to demand that the country do better and be better. Our list of the best songs for your Independence Day playlist aren’t just full of references to red, white and blue (though we do have those, too!). They’re also songs with messages about what America is really like for those who live here, and how we’d like America to be: Land of the free, home of the brave and a place where everyone has the liberty to survive, thrive and chase their dreams, regardless of their skin color, ethnicity or socioeconomic background. The best 4th of July and most patriotic songs aren’t just about flags and abstract freedoms. These songs about America are about putting in the work to make those freedoms a reality and to make and keep our country a place of liberty, peace and justice for all.
50 Songs About America
Woody Guthrie, “This Land Is Your Land”
Woody Guthriewrote “This Land Is Your Land” as a sarcastic response to Irving Berlin’s “God Bless America” after he got sick of hearing Kate Bush’s rendition of the tune on the radio. Originally titled “God Blessed America,” one of the first draft verses of the song was a social commentary on wealth inequality and poverty, in which Guthrie sang, “One bright sunny morning in the shadow of the steeple / by the relief office I saw my people / As they stood hungry / I stood there wondering if God blessed America for me.”
Bruce Springsteen, “Born in the USA”
“Born in the USA” is decidedly not an outwardly patriotic song, as a lot of people who only hear the chorus think—the Bruce Springsteen classic slams the treatment of Vietnam War vets—but what’s more patriotic than protesting in the land of the free?
James Brown, “Living in America”
James Brown penned a great soundtrack to a road trip through America’s cities.
Simon and Garfunkel, “America”
“America,” written about a hitchhiking trip Paul Simon took with an ex-girlfriend to find a literal and figurative America, is considered one of his greatest songwriting efforts.
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, “American Girl”
Tom Petty’s “Oh yeah, alright” refrain will make for a great Fourth of July singalong.
Ray Charles, “America the Beautiful”
Ray Charles’ piano and smoky voice make “America the Beautiful” more beautiful than ever.
John Philip Sousa, “Stars and Stripes Forever”
John Philip Sousa was considered America’s “March King.” “The Stars and Stripes Forever” was declared the National March of the United States in 1987.
Dolly Parton, “Color Me America”
Dolly Parton released “Color Me America” in 2003 as a soothing balm post-9/11, singing, “I am red and white and blue / These are colors that ring true / To all I am and feel and love and do / I stand proud and brave and tall / I want justice for us all / So color me America, red, white and blue.”
Steve Miller Band, “Living in the USA”
Steve Miller told PEOPLE of his 1968 tune, “I had come out of a radical environment at the University of Wisconsin in the early ’60s. I had been a Freedom Rider in the Civil Rights campaign and then I got involved in the Vietnam War demonstrations and debates. That was all going on, and then I ended up out in California where the psychedelic revolution was taking place. So when you combine those things, it was very powerful.” He added that the song was conceived and produced “with the idea of playing at the Democratic National Convention in 1968 in Chicago. That was the one where the cops beat everybody up—Mayor [Richard] Daley brought out the Chicago police. So it was a political tune. It came out, and it was kind of a hit. Then it went away, and then about five or six years later it sold 100,000 copies in a week in Philadelphia for no reason whatsoever.”
Don McLean, “American Pie”
Don McLean penned this hit about “The Day the Music Died” (when a plane carrying Ritchie Valens, Buddy Holly and The Big Bopper crashed), but most people just love it for the chorus. With other references–Karl Marx; Lenin or, more likely, Lennon; the Fab Four; the Byrds; James Dean; Charles Manson; the Rolling Stones; the “widowed bride” Jackie Kennedy; and the Vietnam War—McLean’s “thinly veiled ode to the passing of almost everything good and wholesome about American life,” as Parade editor Neil Pond points out, might not be the most positive song, but it’s certainly a realistic and honest song about our country.
Elton John, “Philadelphia Freedom”
Elton John and Bernie Taupin wrote “Philadelphia Freedom” for friend Billie Jean King, but it works just as well as an ode to the country’s first capital.
Aretha Franklin, “My Country Tis of Thee”
Never did this song have more soul than when Aretha Franklin belted it out at President Barack Obama’s inauguration.
Neil Diamond, “America”
Neil Diamond wrote a moving, simple song about immigrants coming to America to find a better life—and to be free.
Hamilton Cast, “My Shot”
This perfect patriotic song about America from Hamilton introduces not just Alexander Hamilton, but also often-unsung revolutionary heroes Hercules Mulligan, John Laurens and Marquis de Lafayette.
Titus Andronicus, “A More Perfect Union”
This song opens with words from Abraham Lincoln’s Lyceum Address.
Funkadelic, “One Nation Under a Groove”
Dance your way to freedom!
Jay-Z and Kanye West (The Throne) Feat. Frank Ocean, “Made in America”
Frank Ocean sings beautifully on the hook of this tune, which honors Martin Luther King, Jr., Coretta Scott King and Malcolm X, and among others.
Lenny Kravitz, “American Woman”
Lenny Kravitz covers Canadian band The Guess Who’s biggest hit in this rock smash.
Gary Clark Jr., “This Land”
Acknowledging racial injustice is indeed patriotic, and Gary Clark, Jr. does so with an `incredible bluesy guitar to boot. Clark Jr. told Rolling Stonethat the song was inspired by his life growing up in the south, where his family was subjected to racist remarks and actions (including dog feces in their mailbox and frequent verbal abuse with slurs), as well as an incident in his adult life: Clark Jr. owns a home with supermodel wife Nicole Trunfio, and recalled, “My neighbor comes to me and says, ‘Who owns this house? There’s no way you can live here—who’s the owner?’ Maybe it wasn’t racial, but in my mind I was thinking of that. And I’m tired of having to think that way.”
Demi Lovato, “Made in the USA”
Demi Lovato sings a patriotic love song that celebrates date nights from coast to coast across America.
Childish Gambino, “This Is America”
Yes, Childish Gambino points out the dark side of Uncle Sam, but remember: We cannot rectify what we don’t acknowledge.
Faith Hill, “American Heart”
“American Heart” was Faith Hill’s first new music video in five years when she released it in 2012. “The concept and the idea for this comes from a lyric found in the song: ‘It bleeds, it scars, but it shines when times get hard,’” director Trey Fanjoy explained in a behind-the-scenes video from the “American Heart” set. The titular American heart in the video was 15 by 17 feet. He said of the piece, “There’s a really special metaphor found in all of it, and each of the bulbs represents a different part of our country and a different spirit in our nation. Together, they form something that is bigger than all of us.”
Lynyrd Skynyrd, “Red White and Blue”
Written shortly after the 9/11 attacks, Lynyrd Skynyrd flaunted their patriotism with this patriotic 2003 tune about America.
Johnny Cash, “Ragged Old Flag”
This Johnny Cash classic references several historical events, including World War I, World War II, the Vietnam War, the Alamo, the War of 1812, the American Revolution and more.
Kiss, “Rockin’ in the USA”
For those who’ve jet-set around the world and love their good old American soil the most, this patriotic song about America is a must-listen.
Johnny Horton, “The Battle of New Orleans”
Johnny Horton sings about President (then Colonel) Andrew Jackson’s victory over the British in the Battle of New Orleans from the War of 1812.
Sammy Hagar, “Remember the Heroes”
The onetime Van Halen frontman honors those who fought (And still fight) for the freedoms we hold dear.
John Mellencamp, “Pink Houses”
Indiana native John Mellencamp honors the simple life in “Pink Houses,” but also hints at some of America’s darker sides, crooning, “And there’s winners, and there’s losers / But they ain’t no big deal / ‘Cause the simple man baby pays the thrills / The bills and the pills that kill / Oh but ain’t that America, for you and me / Ain’t that America, we’re something to see baby / Ain’t that America, home of the free, yeah / Little pink houses for you and me.”
Lee Greenwood, “God Bless the USA”
This 1984 track got a whole new life after the September 11, 2001 terror attacks.
Steve Goodman, “City of New Orleans”
Steve Goodman croons of traveling on a railroad from Chicago to New Orleans. Numerous artists have covered the song, including Arlo Guthrie (making it his only top 40 hit), Willie Nelson (for which Goodman won a posthumous Grammy), Johnny Cash, John Denver, Jimmy Buffett…and even David Hasselhoff.
Kim Wilde, “Kids in America”
From the synths to the “whoa-oh” gang vocals, this celebration of youth from the West to East Coasts will get people dancing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_GH6M7cUq4
Estelle Feat. Kanye West, “American Boy”
John Legend gave protege Estelle the idea for “American Boy” when he suggested she write and perform a song about dating a Yankee.
Dave Matthews Band, “American Baby”
In this Dave Matthews Band hit, the titular “American Baby” is a source of optimism and hope, even when times are profoundly tough.
Amy MacDonald, “4th of July”
Scottish singer Amy MacDonald croons about a fleeting romance under the flag and fireworks that lingers years later in her mind and heart.
Trace Adkins, “Arlington”
Trace Adkins sings a heartbreaking song from the first-person perspective of a soldier who died in battle making his way to Arlington National Cemetery. It’s a poignant reminder of the sacrifices troops have made for generations.
Brooks & Dunn, “Only in America”
Brooks & Dunn released “Only in America” in June 2001—mere months before the September 11 terror attacks—and the song had a surge in popularity following the tragedy, largely in part to its opening lines: “Sun coming’ up over New York City / School bus driver in a traffic jam / Staring out at the faces in a rear view mirror / Lookin’ at the promise of the Promised Land.”
Miley Cyrus, “Party in the USA”
Because really, we all could use a party in the USA right now.
John Mellencamp, “Our Country”
John Mellencamp points out sociopolitical differences in ideals, but more importantly, what we all have in common, urging that there’s room for us all, especially in the fights against poverty and bigotry.
Brad Paisley, “American Saturday Night”
Brad Paisley croons about all of the different cultures that come together—and that many take for granted—in order to create an American Saturday night.
Toby Keith, “Courtesy of the Red White and Blue”
Toby Keith dropped this salute to the American military-industrial complex in 2002 in response to the 9/11 terror attacks.
Carrie Underwood, “All-American Girl”
Small town dreams of a father, a husband and a father-to-be are wrapped around the finger of an “all-American girl” in this cute tune from Carrie Underwood.
Weezer, “I Love the USA”
From Patton Oswalt in the video to the borderline nonsensical lyrics, this Weezer tune will get your guests talking on Independence Day. Frontman Rivers Cuomo said of the song, “We were on tour abroad, and it got me thinking a lot about America, which led to me write ‘I Love The USA.’ When Apple and NASA asked us to be involved with Juno’s historic landing on July 4th, this song seemed like the perfect fit.”
Phil Vassar, “American Child”
This sweet song honors kids growing up in the land of the free with the freedom to do whatever and become whoever they want. Need a place to create and save your 4th of July playlists? We’ve got you covered: These are the best music streaming services.
