Australian rock legends Hoodoo Gurus have come out swinging after discovering one of their songs was played at a January 26 rally linked to far-right political party One Nation, issuing a blistering public statement distancing themselves from the group and its ideology.
Posting to social media, the band said they were “disgusted” to learn their music had been used at the rally on the date, which has become increasingly contentious, with many Australians recognising it as Invasion Day in acknowledgment of the impacts of colonisation on First Nations peoples.
“We want nothing to do with you. In fact, we wouldn’t piss on you if you were on fire.”
“Like most Australians, we have always been appalled by Pauline Hanson and the toxic nonsense she spouts,” the band wrote. “We want nothing to do with you. In fact, we wouldn’t piss on you if you were on fire.”
No room for misinterpretation there.
The Gurus doubled down with a direct message to One Nation supporters: “Don’t play our music, don’t listen to our band, do not pass go!”
Artists Pushing Back On Political Co-Option
The statement lands amid renewed scrutiny around how artists’ music is used – often without permission – in political contexts, particularly around January 26 here in Aus.
Just days earlier, Men At Work frontman Colin Hay also publicly objected to his band’s music being used at anti-immigration demonstrations.
“Let me say that I most strenuously disapprove of any unauthorised, unlicensed use of ‘Down Under’,” Hay wrote. “‘Down Under’… does not belong to those who attempt to sow xenophobia within the fabric of our great land.”
Hay described the song as one of celebration, pluralism and inclusion, before signing off pointedly as “(immigrant)”.
Drawing a Line in the Sand
Together, the statements reflect a growing willingness from Aussie artists at the highest levels to draw hard boundaries around how their work is used – particularly when it’s repurposed to support political views that clash directly with their values.
And if Hoodoo Gurus’ message wasn’t already crystal clear, here it is again in plain English:
their music ain’t for you.
Further Reading
Briggs Has Trolled Pauline Hanson With A Billboard
Speed Depart From UK Download Festival In Protest Of Barclays Sponsorship
Listen to Lime Cordiale’s Colin Hay Tribute Song ‘Colin’, Featuring the Man Himself
