Guitarist Tom Morello Metal Hammer Q&A session where he discussed his music with Rage Against the Machine , his political ideals, and more.
Morello was asked how he feels when fans tell him not to talk about politics, arguing that "music and politics shouldn't mix." The guitarist responded directly to those who think that way: "First of all, you don't trigger a freedom of speech exemption when you pick up a guitar; that right remains intact."
“Secondly, people who are offended by my posts about politics on Twitter or Instagram, please know that it’s because you weren’t smart enough to know what the music you’ve been listening to all these years was about. For the music, you’re welcome, but if you’re a white supremacist or a proto-fascist, that music isn’t written for you – it’s written against you,” he fired back.
Tom Morello's work has been entirely political from the start; his career with Rage Against the Machine has always been based on his political actions, and even in his solo career, where the guitarist addresses other themes , politics is always present. In addition to his activist streak, which is practically genetic since both his parents are and were activists, Morello graduated from Harvard with honors in Political Science.