Fall: the season of dead things brought to life, when spirits rise, vampires stalk our TV screens, songs are sung about – and possibly for – witches. This year, spooky season didn't end with All Hallow's Eve, thanks to the recent release of Wicked: For Good. One can almost hear the echoes of "No One Mourns the Wicked" chasing us into the holidays, ringing louder than Christmas carols. It has me wondering: what is it about occultist songs that has enchanted pop culture for decades?
We can begin to understand the witch’s role in song and society through analyzing four pieces of music, spanning time, genre, and generations: “Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead” (1939) from Victor Fleming’s The Wizard of Oz, “Season of the Witch” by Donovan, “Which Witch” by Florence + The Machine, and Kaytranada ft. Childish Gambino’s “Witchy.” What began as an echo chamber of paranoia and persecution during the 15th-to-18th-century witch trials transformed into an open dialogue of who can be a witch, what it means to be a witch in a sociopolitical context, and what belief systems and traditions are decimated by the witch’s presence.
In “Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead!” from The Wizard of Oz, a call to action is made by the Munchkins to “Sing it high, sing it low/Let them know the Wicked Witch is dead!” As this is a film adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s book, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900), it’s clear this celebratory moment at the end of the film is about more than the death of a witch. When Baum wrote the book in the 1890s, the American West was undergoing rapid political and social changes following the Civil War, including the rise of the transcontinental railroad, gold mining, and cattle ranching. Many film historians believe the Wicked Witch of the West is a symbol for the corruption and greed that wrecked the lives of farmers and immigrants in the American West during this era; therefore, the song “Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead!” can be interpreted as an imaginative ode to defeating the very forces that brought the song’s subtext to life.
Donovan’s “Season of the Witch” strikes a different chord with his audience. Released on his 1966 album Sunshine Superman, this song’s warnings of the approaching season are two-fold: the witch is now associated with an archetypal, beyond-body power, and society is now approaching an era of civil unrest. “You’ve got to pick up every stitch, yeah/Beatniks are out to make it rich/Oh no, must be the season of the witch.” Donovan’s reference to the beatnik counterculture movement directly ties his song to the divisions splitting the country in two during this time. Anti-war versus nationalism, anti-materialism versus consumerism, peace versus violence: there was no escaping the chaos of such polarities; no hiding from the witch hunt around every corner. The witch was no longer one body to blame. She was an entire country; her power felt like a change in season.
Come the 21st century, and we get the witch as a woman, finally able to speak for herself. “And it’s my whole heart/Deemed and delivered a crime/I’m on trial, waiting ‘til the beat comes out” sings Florence Welch on “Which Witch” (2015). Released two years before the prominence of the #MeToo movement in the United States, “Which Witch” indicates a shift in perspective on witches. Historically, it was common for women who spoke out against sexual assault to be fired, blacklisted, or, like the witch, publicly shamed and humiliated. “Which Witch” not only exhibits women reclaiming their power but also helps to rewrite the narrative of what it means to be a witch in a witch hunter’s world.
And now all should beware, because witches can be….sexy? Kaytranada and Childish Gambino claim as much on their collaborative track “Witchy” (2024). Given contemporary culture’s struggle between sexual liberation and conservatism, Kaytranada’s lyrics are not only fitting for the time, but expected. “It’s voodoo/You make me feel like I’ve been floatin’/This ain’t a spell, you got me open, girl/You’re bein’ witchy and I love it, girl.” Portraying the witch as a seductress without evil intent is a drastic change from music written about her eight decades ago. Man does not want her dead – man wants her. Our society doesn’t want to burn the witch. They want to kiss her.
Through analyzing the lyrics and broader context of songs written about witches, we can understand society’s fears (of capitalism or women’s sexual autonomy) and desires (for peace and individual freedom). Songs about this archetype will continue to evolve as our perceptions of witches change (again).
And who knows, maybe the "season of the witch" will become a year-round thing. What will you be singing if it does?
Alexandra Rae is a feminist writer, editor, and revisionist from Ohio. She is a submissions reader for Narratively and editorial assistant for Brink Books. Find her on Instagram @theresonationofalexandra.
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