Article Contributed by L. Paul Mann
Published on 2026-10-08
Power to the People Festival | Columbia, MD - photos by L. Paul Mann
Set beneath the autumn trees at Maryland’s Merriweather Post Pavilion, the Power to the People Festival on October 3, 2026, brought together generations of artists and fans around a shared message of civil rights, democracy, and political activism.
Curated by Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello, the day-long event gathered tens of thousands of fans and an unprecedented coalition of rock, hip-hop, folk, and punk icons.
Despite efforts by right-wing media to portray the event as an illicit campaign fundraiser for the Democratic Party, there were virtually no politicians invited to speak, and none of the musicians were there to endorse a particular candidate.
Instead, the message the event tried to portray was much simpler. The gathering was intended to promote antifascism in a world increasingly leaning into fascist ideas, while also promoting racial equality.
Killer Mike encapsulated the message at the end of his set when he concluded a diatribe against racism with a simple statement: “There is only one race, the human race.”
The gathering’s core message vibrated through every stack of speakers: music remains one of humanity’s most vital weapons against authoritarianism, injustice, and apathy.
With the nonprofit “Freedom Village” lining the concourse — hosting voter registration booths, union organizers, and human rights groups — the music provided an urgent, high-decibel soundtrack to a community demanding real-world change.
Early Sets: Sparks in the Afternoon Heat
The Neighborhood Kids
Kicking off the day’s festivities, young agitative rockers The Neighborhood Kids took the stage to set the early tone. With raw punk energy, the rising outfit charged through a ferocious 25-minute set.
Their sharp, socially conscious lyrics tackled modern labor struggles and youth disenfranchisement, proving that the torch of political rock is being eagerly seized by a new generation.
The Last Internationale
No stranger to Morello’s orbit, The Last Internationale delivered a blistering, soul-infused hard rock performance.
Frontwoman Delila Paz was an absolute force of nature, her vocals soaring across the pavilion during cuts like “Kick Out the Jams” and “Hard Times.” Edge-of-your-seat slide-guitar riffs, paired with Paz’s impassioned speeches on Indigenous rights, left the early crowd electrified.
Grandson
Bringing a modern alternative hip-hop and electronic-rock fusion to the main stage, Grandson delivered an explosive set that ignited the festival’s first massive circle pits.
Blasting through songs like “Blood // Water” and “Masters of War,” he used his platform to speak directly about mental health, corporate corruption, and political mobilization, leading deafening call-and-response chants with the crowd.
Heavy Metal Royalty & West Coast Hip-Hop
Jack Sabbath featuring Geezer Butler
One of the afternoon’s absolute high-water marks arrived with the rare appearance of Jack Sabbath, a supergroup featuring actor and musician Jack Black alongside an impressive youth backing band with serious rock-royalty pedigree.
Marking only their second-ever live performance, the outfit bridged heavy metal’s fabled past with its bright future.
Jack Black — Lead vocals and harmonica, commanding the mic with his signature theatrical intensity.
Roman Morello — Lead guitar. Tom Morello’s son matched ferocious riffs with technical mastery far beyond his years.
Revel Ian — Bass. The son of Anthrax rhythm guitarist Scott Ian locked in heavy, thrash-rooted grooves.
Yoyoka Soma — Drums. The viral teenage Japanese drumming prodigy brought relentless power behind the kit.
Hugo Weiss — Keyboards, providing rich, atmospheric organ textures.
The ensemble opened with Ozzy Osbourne’s solo classic “Mr. Crowley,” followed by Black Sabbath’s “The Wizard,” where Jack Black broke out the harmonica.
The pavilion then went wild when original Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler walked onto the stage to join the young band.
Butler anchored a roaring rendition of “War Pigs,” trading heavy low-end lines with Revel Ian, while Roman Morello went toe-to-toe with Butler during the iconic solo sections.
Cypress Hill
Shifting gears from heavy riffs to hip-hop, West Coast pioneers Cypress Hill brought their signature smog and heavy bass lines to the pavilion.
B-Real and Sen Dog commanded the stage, flawlessly blending hip-hop and rock energy that fit perfectly into the festival’s rebel ethos.
Key tracks included:
“Insane in the Brain”
“How I Could Just Kill a Man”
“Rock Superstar”
“How I Could Just Kill a Man,” reprised with Tom Morello making a surprise guest guitar appearance.
The Mega-Jams: All-Star Alliances
The Tom Morello Freedom Jam
The festival’s centerpiece was the Tom Morello Freedom Jam, an extensive, nonstop hour of cross-genre revolution.
Morello acted as master of ceremonies, wielding his Arm the Homeless guitar alongside an absurdly stacked guest list.
Run-DMC and Darryl “DMC” McDaniels performed an explosive version of “It’s Tricky” mixed with “Walk This Way.”
Public Enemy’s Flavor Flav and Chuck D led the crowd through furious performances of “Fight the Power” and “Don’t Believe the Hype.”
Cypress Hill joined in for a collaborative crossover on “Guerrilla Radio.”
Serj Tankian of System of a Down took the mic alongside Morello for “Adjourn It” and an Audioslave cover of “Like a Stone.”
Jack Black brought inexhaustible energy, pairing with a youth rock ensemble for a crowd-pleasing performance of “Killing in the Name.”
Dave Grohl stepped out as a featured guest vocalist, leading the supergroup through a wildly fun, stadium-sized cover of KISS’s “Rock and Roll All Nite.”
Suns of Soundgarden
Following the high-octane Freedom Jam, the energy pivoted to a deeply felt tribute honoring the legacy of Soundgarden and Chris Cornell.
Dubbed Suns of Soundgarden, the specialized lineup gathered top-tier musicians who delivered a tight, heavy, and emotionally charged trio of grunge classics.
The lineup:
Matt Cameron — Soundgarden / Pearl Jam — drums
Mike McCready — Pearl Jam — lead guitar
Tom Morello — Rage Against the Machine / Audioslave — rhythm guitar
Robbie Mangano — Ghost Light / Rickie Lee Jones — bass
Taylor Momsen — The Pretty Reckless — lead vocals
Songs performed:
“Loud Love” — Driven by McCready’s blistering riffs and Momsen’s fierce vocal growl.
“Outshined” — A heavy, headbanging rendition featuring trading guitar leads between McCready and Morello.
“Spoonman” — Anchored by Cameron’s signature polyrhythmic drumming and Mangano’s rumbling bassline.
Twilight Sets: Acoustic Roots, Folk Royalty & Union Solidarity
Dave Matthews & Guests
As dusk fell, Dave Matthews took the stage solo for an extraordinary acoustic set that became one of the evening’s emotional high points.
Matthews opened with a powerful six-song solo movement before welcoming an incredible cast of iconic guests to share the stage.
Solo opening:
“Peace on Earth”
“So Damn Lucky”
“Papertown”
“Save Me”
“Mercy”
“Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)” — Marvin Gaye cover featuring guest vocalist Cindy Mizelle
Collaborative performances:
“Deportee (Plane Wreck at Los Gatos)” — Woody Guthrie cover with Joan Baez and Nathaniel Rateliff
“Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around” — Traditional civil rights anthem led by Joan Baez
“For What It’s Worth” — Buffalo Springfield cover featuring Stephen Stills joining Dave Matthews
Dropkick Murphys
Closing out the secondary stage opposite the main pavilion, Celtic punk stalwarts Dropkick Murphys turned their area into a giant, dust-kicking street party.
Armed with bagpipes, banjos, and roaring guitars, they delivered a blistering 11-song set focused heavily on labor rights, anti-fascism, and working-class solidarity.
In a defining labor movement moment midway through their performance, the band invited Jimmy Williams Jr., General President of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, onto the stage to speak directly to the crowd.
Williams reminded the thousands gathered that “the people can’t have power without strong unions” and rallied the audience with the call: “In the labor movement, we fight fear with passion, we fight hate with love, and we fight division with unity!”
Dropkick Murphys setlist:
“We’ll Stand With Us”
“The Boys Are Back”
“Citizen I.C.E.”
“Don’t Call Me a Fucking Terrorist”
“Johnny, I Hardly Knew Ya”
“Bury the Bones”
“First Class Loser”
“The Men Behind the Wire”
“Rose Tattoo”
“Worker’s Song”
“I’m Shipping Up to Boston”
The Headliner: Bruce Springsteen
After the collaborative brilliance of the twilight sets, Bruce Springsteen took the main stage for an incredible, landmark performance that bridged folk-protest roots with incendiary rock and roll.
Springsteen opened alone with an urgent acoustic rendition of the unreleased protest song “Streets of Minneapolis.”
Joan Baez later joined him for a moving duet on Bob Dylan’s “Chimes of Freedom.”
Switching from acoustic to electric guitar, Springsteen brought out Tom Morello’s backing band for a fiery performance of The Clash’s anti-authoritarian classic “Clampdown.”
“The Ghost of Tom Joad” featured Morello stepping forward to deliver his signature electric guitar solo alongside Springsteen’s roaring vocals.
The all-star collaborations continued with Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Fortunate Son,” featuring Dave Matthews, Tom Morello, and Nathaniel Rateliff sharing vocal and guitar duties.
Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World” then brought the main set to a deafening peak.
The Grand Finale
To close out the historic night, Tom Morello and Bruce Springsteen re-emerged and brought artists from across the festival lineup back onto the main stage.
Bruce Springsteen, Joan Baez, Dave Grohl, Chuck D, B-Real, Serj Tankian, Jack Black, Dropkick Murphys, Stephen Stills, Nathaniel Rateliff, Cindy Mizelle, IUPAT General President Jimmy Williams Jr., and dozens of others stood shoulder to shoulder.
“This Land Is Your Land,” the Woody Guthrie classic spearheaded by Springsteen, Baez, and Matthews, became a giant, triumphant singalong ringing out into the Maryland woods.
“Power to the People,” John Lennon’s anthem, was led by Chuck D, Jack Black, and Joan Baez, with the entire ensemble and thousands in the audience singing the chorus together.
The Verdict
The Power to the People Festival was far more than an impressive display of star power. It served as both a living museum and an active arena for American protest music.
By connecting the 1960s civil rights folk era of Joan Baez and Stephen Stills with 1980s golden-age hip-hop, 1990s alt-metal, modern labor leaders like Jimmy Williams Jr., and today’s rising punk artists — including the next-generation rockers of Jack Sabbath — the event demonstrated that while genres change, the struggle for human dignity and freedom remains a constant, unifying beat.
It was a loud, defiant, and unforgettable declaration that music still has the power to bring people together and spark a movement.
