“The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” is a spoken-word song written and performed by Gil Scott-Heron on his 1971 album Pieces of a Man.1 Spoken over jazz- and funk-influenced instrumentation and infused with biting social commentary, the song is a precursor to today’s rap music. One critic called Scott-Heron “one of the most important progenitors of rap music,” adding that “his aggressive, no-nonsense street poetry inspired a legion of intelligent rappers while his engaging songwriting skills placed him square in the R&B charts later in his career.”2 In 2012, Scott-Heron received a posthumous Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and in 2021 he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
In addition to his musical work, he wrote novels and taught literature and creative writing for a time at a college in Washington, DC. He also served a few short prison sentences for drug possession.
“The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” has become an iconic song. Several rappers have sampled it in their tracks, and its lyrics have been displayed at protests worldwide. This year, Rolling Stone listed it as number 14 in their “100 Best Protest Songs of All Time,” and Kendrick Lamar referenced it during his Super Bowl halftime performance.
In what follows, we’ll provide historical context for the song, explore its messages, and evaluate it from a Christian perspective.
Context and Meaning
Civil rights struggles, urban riots, and anti-Vietnam War protests characterized the late 1960s and early 1970s. Racial riots in Watts, California (1965) and Detroit, Michigan (1967) left dozens dead and resulted in millions of dollars of damage. In 1968, Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated, further inflaming racial tension. The Black Power movement gained traction, with groups like the Black Panther Party advocating armed self-defense and economic empowerment. Under President Richard Nixon, elected in 1968, the Vietnam War escalated, sparking massive anti-war protests. “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” was written against the background of these tumultuous years. At least four themes in the song reflect Scott-Heron’s criticism of what he observed in American society.
Critique of the Media
Television was seen by many Black activists as controlled by the White establishment and distorting the reality of the struggles of Black people and the war in Vietnam. Scott-Heron suggested that television creates a false sense of reality, distracting people from social and political issues. The “plug in, turn on, and cop out” phrase critiqued the escapism that television provides. The mention of “skag” (heroin) and getting “beer during commercials” highlighted the distractions that keep people from engaging with reality. Television shows of the era, like Green Acres and The Beverly Hillbillies, were satirized for only reflecting the interests of White culture. As a result, the revolution (more on this below) can’t be televised but “will be live.”
Critique of Consumer Culture
By contrasting the lived experience of revolution with the sanitized, commercialized images seen on television, Scott-Heron critiqued American consumerism. This explains his references to corporations like Xerox and Coke, consumer products like mouthwash and diet supplements, and television commercials of the time (“a dove in your bedroom / The tiger in your tank”).
Advertising and mass production created a culture where material possessions equated with success and happiness, contributing to apathy and a lack of engagement with social and political issues.
Critique of Social Inequality
The song references the California city of Watts where, as noted earlier, riots protesting racial inequality took place in 1965. Tensions with local law enforcement were a significant factor, and Scott-Heron declared that “There will be no pictures of pigs [police officers] shooting down brothers on the instant replay.” The song also rebuked civil rights leaders Whitney Young (head of the National Urban League) and Roy Wilkins (head of the NAACP) for compromising with the White establishment and failing to take more aggressive action on behalf of Black people.
A Call to Action
Scott-Heron wrote, “You will not be able to stay home, brother” and “The revolution will be no re-run, brothers / The revolution will be live.” He called for active engagement, as reflected in the many protests of the time. This likely resonated with young people who were increasingly skeptical of institutions and determined to make change through direct action. The goal was to “put you in the driver’s seat,” rather than passively consuming what comes through the television.
Thinking Christianly about the Revolution
There are several ideas in “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” that Christians can affirm. Concerning the media, which often promote values and priorities that are out of line with the kingdom of God, we should “test all things” and “hold on to what is good” while staying away from “every kind of evil” (1 Thessalonians 5:21–22). Dallas Willard rightly observes that we are “constantly hammered by the innumerable fists of an ‘information society’ and an inescapably media-saturated social consciousness set squarely against the reality of the kingdom of God.”3
As Christians, we need to develop the discipline of managing our attention4 and evaluating everything we encounter through a biblical lens.
There is also truth in Scott-Heron’s critique of consumerism. Jesus stated, “No one can serve two masters . . . . You cannot serve both God and money” (Matthew 6:24). He also warned, “Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions” (Luke 12:15). Moreover, as one scholar observes, “To the extent that we seek security in consumption, we in effect worship another god, thereby arousing the anger and jealousy of the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”5
Finally, every Christian should long for and, when appropriate, act to bring about justice in the world. As the prophet Micah declared, “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8, italics added). Regarding the importance of taking action, rather than sitting on the sidelines, James warns us, “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds?” (James 2:14).6
At the same time, some elements of “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” run up against a Christian worldview. An implicit Marxism seems to underlie the song’s messages, including a call to overthrow an existing social order, antagonism toward those viewed as oppressors, and a belief in an achievable secular utopia.
To Scott-Heron’s credit, contrary to Marxist thought, he indicated that the song was not a call to engage in violence. In one interview, he stated that the song was:
. . . about the fact that the first change that takes place is in your mind. You have to change your mind before you change the way you live and the way you move. So, when we say that the revolution will not be televised, we were saying that . . . the thing that is going to change people is something that no one will ever be able to capture on film. It’ll just be something that you see, and all of a sudden you realize . . . I’m on the wrong page, or I’m on the right page . . . . ”7
There is, however, a great deal of antagonism directed toward White people and their culture. Scott-Heron undoubtedly saw many Whites as oppressors, but to attack an entire race seems to commit the same transgression that he criticized White people for.
Scripture, on the other hand, calls us to love our enemies (Matthew 5:44), leave vengeance to God (Romans 12:19), and, to the extent that we can, be reconciled with those who offend us and seek to live in peace with everyone (Matthew 5:23–24; Romans 12:18).
As Martin Luther King Jr. warned,
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction. . . . [This] chain reaction of evil . . . must be broken, or we shall be plunged into the dark abyss of annihilation.8
Finally, the song looks to personal awakening to bring about a revolutionary cultural change, but overlooks the fact that this will only come about through Christ and his kingdom. Given humanity’s fallen state, we can only ultimately trade one set of failings for another. Marxism looks for evil in external systems and hierarchies but fails to acknowledge the evil we carry in our own hearts. Evils like racism are just one symptom of the disease, rather than the disease itself, which is our fallen, sinful natures. As Thaddeus Williams points out, “A biblical worldview sees evil not only in systems (Psalm 94:20), where we ought to seek justice, but also within the twisted hearts of those who make those systems unjust. All the external activism in the world won’t bring about any lasting justice if we downplay our need for the regenerating, love-infusing work of God through the gospel.”9
Christopher L. Reese (MDiv, ThM) is the founder and editor of The Worldview Bulletin and a general editor of the Dictionary of Christianity and Science (Zondervan) and Three Views on Christianity and Science (Zondervan). He is the author of 100 Old Testament Quotes by Jesus: How Christ Used the Hebrew Scriptures (Rose/Tyndale), and his articles have appeared in Christianity Today, The Christian Post, Bible Gateway, Beliefnet, the C. S. Lewis Institute, and other sites.