These countries banned music — but artists still found a way

It’s one thing to ban songs from being broadcast, but some countries ban music altogether.

Music’s power to incite and unite has always been a double-edged sword. Whether for religious, political or moral reasons, songs that challenge the status quo are often banned. The BBC refused to play the Sex Pistols’ “God Save the Queen,” the US banned the Beatles, China banned K-pop for fear of its global influence, Nazi Germany banned jazz and Brazil’s military government censored 500 songs between 1964 and 1985.

Some bans are more severe, however. In 2021, the Taliban reinstated a previous ban on music after returning to power in Afghanistan. Yet, despite these restrictions, music has been able to resist repression and resonate around the world.

full text: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/music-censorship-cambodia-saudi-arabia