I broke my five-year concert dry spell in mid-August by attending a Five for Fighting concert at the famed Lincoln Theatre in Washington, D.C.
For younger readers born after 2001, Five for Fighting is the stage name of musician John Ondrasik. Ondrasik, an L.A. Kings hockey fan, naturally derived the name from a hockey play. Some of the who’s who of the D.C. area conservative movement - including Townhall’s own Katie Pavlich and WMAL News host Larry O’Connor - were also in attendance. And everyone present - myself included - was singing along to John’s recognizable hits like “Superman” and “100 Years.”
John also played his recent songs that reflect current events involving the disastrous August 2021 Afghanistan withdrawal, Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, and the October 7th, 2023, Hamas terrorist attack on Israel.
What Townhall readers might not know is that the Grammy-nominated artist was a longtime friend of the late Breitbart founder Andrew Breitbart. While he enjoys politics, his goal isn’t to be political. But as his late friend famously pointed out: politics is downstream from culture.
“It's always been kind of a tightrope for me. I kind of have a certain disdain for celebrities who get on their soapbox and lecture us about their politics as our moral betters,” Ondrasik told me in a post-concert interview in mid-August. “But there's also a history in music of people writing about the times and people writing about world events.”
He added, “Music always has a place in the culture.” Ondrasik is best recognized for songs about freedom, the troops, and the world. His recent songs involving three conflicts might appear political, but they’re not.
“Blood on My Hands” is critical of the Biden administration’s disastrous withdrawal that left 13 young American servicemen and women dead. Ondrasik disagrees with Generals Milley and Austin, calling it “an extraordinary success,” and said the song resonated with military members. His follow-up single “Can One Man Save the World?” spotlighting Ukraine garnered more widespread support. But when “OK” dropped to condemn Hamas’ atrocities, he was alarmed by the silence of his fellow musicians and Hollywood actors.
“Everything's taken politically because we're such a tribal society, but they're moral messages, right?” he explained. “Something's broken in America. We've lost our soul, and that's something if we don't address the consequences, I think, will be dire.”
Ondrasik lamented the apathy of our countrymen and women not knowing the name of American hostages currently being denied abroad–especially those in Israel. This wasn’t the case during the 1979 Iranian Hostage Crisis - when news outlets read and displayed the names of 50 American hostages daily, he noted.
“I think America has lost its soul to a degree,” he said of disregard for American hostages. He worries silent majorities remain silent too long and are at risk of becoming silent minorities. To combat this, Ondrasik plans to launch a Yellow Ribbon Campaign for hostage families.
“I met hostage families in Israel too, when I went and I sat with a father whose son was 24 years old and has been hostage for what, boy, we're coming up on ten months now. And my son was sitting next to me–my 24 year old son– and I kept looking at my son, going, we could be switched. It could be my son that was hostage and, and how could I and my wife deal with that?” he continued. “And the fact that there's not more focus on our hostage families is, again, I think, a sign that something's broken.”
This past Labor Day, Ondrasik participated in Flagstock - a concert for the UNC-Chapel Hill fraternity brothers who bravely protected the American flag during pro-Hamas campus protests last school year. Ondrasik was joined by artists like Big & Rich, Lee Greenwood, and Aaron Lewis.
As for other campus concerts planned for the Fall 2024, the Five for Fighting frontman hopes to visit elite schools and stand with pro-Israel students. And he’s hopeful other artists will join him, too.
“I hope that we do a lot of these, because, as you know, when September comes around, it's all going to ramp up again and hopefully there'll be other artists that join us,” Ondrasik remarked. “And you don't have to love Israel. It's not about Israel. It's about civilization against those who want to destroy it. It's about anti-Americanism. It's about Marxism.”
I asked the prolific songwriter if fans can expect new music soon. Without divulging his immediate plans, he wants his music to “shine the light where it belongs.”
“For me, that's what I feel my role is now: use my platform–use the music–to shine the light on these causes and let people who feel abandoned– like Jewish people, like Afghans– understand that they're not.”
Townhall readers interested in attending a Five for Fighting concert have an opportunity this fall. Go here to see where John and his orchestra are playing near you.