Rage Against The Machine and Franz Ferdinand are the latest to join Spotify‘s Billions Club, with their respective tracks ‘Killing In The Name’ and ‘Take Me Out’ racking up a colossal number of streams.
- READ MORE: Franz Ferdinand – ‘The Human Fear’ review: art-rock icons prove they can still take you out
Rage frontman Tom Morello acknowledged the milestone on Saturday (January 11), thanking “all those who listened to” the politically-charged single, including “those who love it, those who hate it, and those that have enjoyed it without understanding it.”
“Righteous proof that rebel music and irony are alive and well,” he added.
‘Killing In The Name’ comes from the band’s 1992 self-titled debut album, and was written in the wake of the Los Angeles riots that year. The track mused on racist police in the city who Morello previously described as “boot licking lackeys and thugs of the racist capitalist ruling class”.
In the years since its release, the track has been adopted by protestors around the world. In 2020, amid demonstrations across the US in the wake of the murder of George Floyd, Morello praised protesters in Portland for chanting the aforementioned ‘Killing In The Name’ line to police officers. “Well that’s what it’s for!” he said on Twitter.
“KILLING IN THE NAME” just hit 1 billion streams on Spotify! Thanks to all those who listened to it: those who love it, those who hate it, and those that have enjoyed it without understanding it. Righteous proof that rebel music and irony are alive and well.
— Tom Morello (@tmorello) January 11, 2025
Franz Ferdinand, meanwhile, shared the news via Instagram on Thursday (January 9), writing: “We’ve just heard that ‘Take Me Out’ has reached one billion streams on @spotify. Thanks to all you crazy streamers. Anyway, enough about that. ‘The Human Fear’ is what we’re doing now and it’s out tomorrow [January 10].”
‘Take Me Out’ was the second single from the band’s 2004 self-titled debut studio album. Upon its release, the track reached Number Three in the UK singles chart and was placed at Number 16 on NME‘s list of the 50 Greatest Indie Anthems Ever in 2007.
Franz Ferdinand’s aforementioned sixth album, released on Friday, scored four stars from NME, with Andrew Trendell writing: “It’s a love letter to the idea of this band. Still shamelessly livin’ it up, with an eyebrow cocked and high kicks galore, ‘The Human Fear’ is – as promised – Franz-y as fuck. You do you, hun; you do it so well.”
Speaking to NME ahead of its release, frontman Alex Kapranos discussed enjoying being in the band, saying: “If you are going to make music, then there’s no point in shying away from your identity or being embarrassed by who you are. You need to embrace it with all the audacity you can possibly have.”
He added: “I’d say that’s probably my attitude. That’s how I feel about my favourite bands when they’re at their absolute best, their most extremely ‘them’. That’s how I feel at the moment. I feel really good about being in Franz Ferdinand and really good about putting music into the world. I love being in this band.”
On Thursday (January 9), meanwhile, the band kicked off a string of shows in the UK, which will be followed by a UK and European tour in February. You can buy tickets here and see a full list of dates below.
Franz Ferdinand’s 2025 UK and Europe tour dates are:
JANUARY
9 – Kingston, UK – Pryzm
10 – Bexhill, UK – De La Warr
11 – Liverpool, UK – Dome Grand Central
12 – Edinburgh, UK – Liquid Room (early and late evening shows)
18 – Manchester, UK – Aviva Studios
FEBURARY
14 – Lisbon, Portugal – Aula Magna
15 – A Coruña, Spain – Sala Pelicano
17 – Madrid, Spain – La Riviera
18 – Barcelona, Spain – Razzmatazz
20 – Milan, Italy – Fabrique
21 – Zurich, Switzerland – X-Tra
22 – Munich, Germany – Muffathalle
24 – Berlin, Germany – Huxleys Neue Welt
25 – Warsaw, Poland – Progresja
27 – Paris, France – La Cigale
28 – Cologne, Germany – Die Kantine
MARCH
01 – Antwerp, Belgium – De Roma
03 – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Paradiso
05 – London, UK – O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire
06 – London, UK – O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire
07 – Glasgow, UK – Barrowland
As for Rage Against The Machine, the band played the final show of their ‘Public Service Announcement’ tour at New York’s Madison Square Garden in August 2022. Planned 2023 dates were eventually cancelled due to a leg injury Zach de la Rocha sustained on tour.
Since then, the state of the band has been unclear, with, bassist Tim Commerford admitting last year that he was uncertain about the future after drummer Brad Wilk suggested they had split up. “I don’t know,” the bassist said. “I don’t get involved in that.”
Commerford embarked on a UK and European tour with 7D7D recently. He has previously described the side-project as “a trio that’s changed the way I feel and enjoy music”.
Rage Against The Machine were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2023, and Morello accepted the band’s induction alone, saying: “The lesson I learn from Rage fans is that music can change the world.”
“Daily, I hear from fans who have been affected by our music and in turn have affected the world in significant ways,” he continued. Organisers, activists, public defenders, teachers, the presidents of Chile and Finland have all spent time in our mosh pit.”
“When protest music is done right, you can hear a new world emerging in the songs, skewering the oppressors of the day and hinting that there might be more to life than what was handed to us. Can music change the world? The whole aim is to change the world or at a bare minimum, to stir up a shit load of trouble.”