WXPN’s Philly Anthems begins today with a new song from Eric Bazilian
Twelve established and emerging Philadelphia musicians wrote original songs exploring liberty, equality, justice and the pursuit of happiness
We recently celebrated the Semiquincentennial with a Philly-centric World Cafe Sense of Place series, the Sound of History music project, a Free At Noon with Zeek Burse and Laurin Talese, and Philly 250, our July 4th list of pivotal songs and moments from, by and about Philadelphia.
But wait, there’s more.
Today we launch Philly Anthems, an original song project supported by a grant from The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage. Twelve established and emerging Philadelphia musicians have written songs based on the principles of the Declaration of Independence, songs that speak to ideas of freedom and independence and how those ideas continue to resonate today.
The original songs capture the spirit, complexity, and ongoing story of America. This is not simply a celebration of history. It’s an artistic reflection on where we’ve come from, who we are now, and where we’re going next, honoring 250 years of American freedom, creativity, resilience, and reinvention.
We challenged the musicians to write songs that challenge and inspire us, exploring liberty, equality, justice, and the pursuit of happiness. We asked them to consider how those founding ideals echo or clash with the America we live in today, and how they might evolve into the America of tomorrow.
The established Philadelphia musicians include Grammy Award winning jazz bassist Christian McBride, Eric Bazilian of The Hooters, R&B and rock singer-songwriter Devon Gilfillian, singer-songwriter Eliza Hardy Jones of The War On Drugs, and house music legend Lady Alma.
WXPN will release a new Philly Anthems track from each of these artists, starting today with Eric Bazilian’s “Better Times.” The release schedule continues with Eliza Hardy Jones (July 27), Lady Alma (Aug. 10), and Christian McBride (Aug. 24), culminating with Gilfillian premiering his song at the XPoNential Music Festival in mid-September.
In October, WXPN will premiere songs by Grace Gardener, Sug Daniels, Black Buttafly, The Bul Bey, JR Everhart, and Moustapha Noumbisi, along with the grand prize winning song from this year’s Song Challenge.
The project will conclude on Record Store Day in April 2027 with a Philly Anthems album featuring all the songs, marking WXPN’s annual vinyl release.
Philly Anthems has been supported by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage.