The Women’s Equality Day Playlist You Didn’t Know You Wanted

by Hanna Lustig

Today is Women’s Equality Day, the anniversary of (pardon me, *white) women gaining the right to vote in 1920. We started in Seneca Falls, and now we’re here – 95 years later, fierce and feminist as ever. To celebrate, we’ve compiled fifteen “Suffrage Jams” paying homage not only to the activists who pushed for the 19th Amendment, but to the millions of badass women who have since enjoyed and exercised that right. There’s still room for progress, of course – when it comes to politics, women are a long way from getting fully even. But we’ve come hella far, BUSTies. And right now, I just wanna rock.

First up…

1. Riot Rhythm // Sleigh Bells

A musical feminist battlecry! I’d march to this any day. 

2. Fuck You // Lily Allen

This one goes out to the patriarchy, then and now. Lily Allen wrote Not Fair about guys who orgasm too early and The Fear tackles all the bullshit women face in society, but Fuck You is a legendary feminist clapback. Honorable mention goes to Kate Nash’s Dickhead (pssst…here’s a killer remix). 

 3. Werkin’ Girls // Angel Haze

“Werkin’ Girls” is an open letter to anyone who’s ever doubted you or badassery. Like, did we not TELL you we run this shit? We do. We very much do. 

 

4. Ain’t Nuthin’ But A She Thing // Salt-N-Pepa

Salt-N-Pepa had to be on this list. They couldn’t not be on this list. Honorable mention goes to another SNP hit, “Independent.”

5. Rebel Girl // Bikini Kill

 When she talks, I hear the revolution. In her hips, there’s revolutions. 

6. Kool Thing // Sonic Youth

Tell it like it is! Ya’ll, Kim Gordon speaks to my soul. No, to the very fiber of my feminist being. 

7. Hot Topic // Le Tigre

Who doesn’t love a lil’ feminist name-dropping? Don’t stop, Kathleen Hanna. We won’t stop.

 8. Bad Girls // MIA

You know what they say about women who behave. 

9. No Scrubs // TLC

Liberated women sooooooo do not have time for fuckboys. 

10. The Lady is A Vamp // Spice Girls

A quirky Spice Girls deep cut with amazing lyrics.  

 11. Woman Power // Yoko Ono

You’ve heard of a woman nation, and well, that’s coming, BUSTies. Or maybe it’s already here? 

12. Respect // Aretha Franklin

The one, the only. ‘Nuff said.

 

13. Man! I Feel Like a Woman // Shania Twain

 Because ‘eff it, I LOVE being a female-identified person. Also, it’s impossible not to shimmy to this track. Simply impossible.

14. Run the World (Girls) //  Beyoncé 

You knew this would make the list. And I knew you knew. Honorable mention: Grown Woman, also by Queen Bey. 

And lastly…

15. This, my darlings, is a collaborative cover of Lesley Gore’s 1963 classic “You Don’t Own Me” sung by all your feminist heroes, including Sia, Miranda July, Lena Dunham and Natasha Lyonne. This video originally served as a PSA for the Department of Peace, but it remains a prime example of the Suffrage Jam. 

 

Read more on BUST.com:

Kim Gordon Chats With Kathleen Hanna: Uncut Version!

4 Alternative Summer Jams To Add To Your Repertoire

Peaches’ New Music Video Features Kim Gordon and Wrestling

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Founded in 1993, BUST is the inclusive feminist lifestyle trailblazer offering a unique mix of humor, female-focused entertainment, uncensored personal stories, and candid reporting that tells the truth about women’s lives.

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