#428: SPOTLIGHT: Kim Madden

#428: Kim Madden 

May 27, 2025

A Backbeat of Community

Question for Kim:

Is there a specific song, song lyric, or music genre that is particularly meaningful and moving for you? What is it and in what way(s) has it had an impact?
 

Kim's Response: 

“Killing in the Name of” by Rage Against the Machine. 

During the first few months of COVID, my husband, teenage son and I found ourselves shut in our apartment, scared, angry, and sick of each other. This song helped us all. 

My son is quadriplegic and we stretch him out while listening to music. In May 2020, we listened to “Killing in the Name of.” Like many Rage songs, it has a shift in the middle. When the chorus changes, it’s so soft at first you can’t quite make out the words (Spoiler alert: “F you, I won’t do what you tell me”). My son’s eyes and smile grew large when he figured out the lyrics, and we all sang/yelled the words to and at each other in a huge emotional release. 

Later, in August 2022, we saw Rage live at Madison Square Garden - one of our first large-scale outings since the beginning of the pandemic. 20,000 people singing “Killing in the Name of” at the end of the concert was a spiritual experience and one that I tap into when I try to remember what community and collective action can feel like.