How has one song stunned for nearly a century? How was it so powerful that the federal government targeted the singer for decades? And what can we learn from the story of “Strange Fruit” and Billie Holiday about how art is resistance?

This is The Art of Resistance, a podcast about using writing, music, and all kinds of art to resist the status quo. The show is made by Rebel Yell Creative and Amy Lee Lillard.

To make art that matters, every creative person needs support. Find yours at RebelYellCreative.com.

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Watch the performance of "Strange Fruit" from 1956, mentioned in this episode.

Get full episode transcript and sources at RebelYellCreative.com.

Mentioned in this episode:

Rebel Yell Creative

To make art that matters, every creative person needs support. Find yours at Rebel Yell Creative.com. Sign up for the weekly newsletter and get a free creative workbook!

Season 2 is coming Monday, January 12! New episodes will premiere every other week.

Mentioned in this episode:

Creative tools and support for 2026: Sign up at RebelYellCreative.com to learn about all the ways you can make dangerous, powerful art this year!

1. Make your podcast in 2026: 9-week email course
2. Expand your art: Art School for Adults
3. Be a neurodivergent artivist: How to be an Autivist workbook
4. Get everything! Art Lab Memberships

Books and more from Amy Lee Lillard: Start the year with new fiction, nonfiction, audio fiction, and music!

1. Story collections: Exile in Guyville and Dig Me Out
2. Memoir: A Grotesque Animal
3. Novels: A Woman is a God and Not a Stitch to Wear
4. Audio fiction: Wyrd Woman podcast
5. Music: Nuclear Shadow

In this bonus series we're looking at modern artists using art as a tool of resistance. Today: Caleb "The Negro Artist" Rainey. Connect with Caleb at TheNegroArtist.com

This is The Art of Resistance, a podcast about using writing, music, and all kinds of art to resist the status quo. The show is made by Rebel Yell Creative and Amy Lee Lillard.

Subscribe at rebelyellcreative.com to learn more about making art as resistance. And buy us a coffee to keep the show going!

Mentioned in this episode:

Rebel Yell Creative

To make art that matters, every creative person needs support. Find yours at Rebel Yell Creative.com. Sign up for the weekly newsletter and get a free creative workbook!