Billy Bragg, the British folk-rock singer and lifelong figure in protest music, has shared a new song for Palestine. The release coincides with the launch of the Global Sumud Flotilla, which set sail yesterday (August 31) to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza. Written and performed by Bragg, with additional keyboards and backing vocals by JJ Stoney, “Hundred Year Hunger” takes its title from the book of the same name by E Mark Windle. Give it a listen below.
Bragg explained the song’s backstory on Instagram, writing, “‘Hundred Year Hunger’ looks at the current famine that Israel has created in Gaza through the lens of a century of enforced food insecurity and malnutrition imposed on the Palestinian people, firstly by British imperialism, then as a weapon of mass displacement by the state of Israel.”
“Sumud is an Arabic word which translates into English as steadfastness or perseverance,” he continued. “It is used by Palestinians to describe their nonviolent everyday resistance against Israel’s occupation. Sumud emphasises the commitment of the Palestinian people to remain on their land despite hardship and oppression, elevating their everyday existence into a form of resistance. Lan narhal translates as ‘we will not leave’. Together ‘Sumud! Sumud! Lan narhal’ conveys the determination of the Palestinian people to refuse to be displaced.”
It’s been four years since Bragg last released a full-length album, 2021’s The Million Things That Never Happened. He did team up with R.E.M.’s Michael Stipe for a collaborative cover of Eric Bogle’s “My Youngest Son Came Home Today” in 2023, though. Bragg originally covered that track for his 1990 album The Internationale, slightly modifying the 1982 war protest song, which was inspired by the Troubles.
Read “Cease-Fire Now: 16 Benefit Compilations for Palestine.”