Directly inspired by the HONK! Festival’s CD, “Live At The Dilboy,” Forward! Marching Band formed in Madison, WI during January 2011, adopting the progressive motto of Wisconsin as the band’s name in response to the inauguration of the state’s new regressive governor. When the governor launched his surprise assault on collective bargaining in February, Forward! immediately swung into action, bringing music and energy to the soon-to-be immense street protests amid the frigid Wisconsin winter. For the next two months, the band marched and played nearly daily to sustain the Wisconsin Uprising until the resistance effort shifted from street protesting to election recall petitioning.

Forward!'s work continues, playing at political rallies, marches and demos, as well as parades and community events. Forward!’s repertoire features an upbeat and inspiring grab bag of New Orleans second line, funk, latin tunes, worker songs and brass rearrangements of pop/rock songs. The band preserves the legacy of Wisconsin’s uprising while continuing to agitate for fairness and socio-economic justice. Forward!

We believe in using music to energize and sustain the struggle for progressive social change, have fun and build community. Forward! Marching Band is a dynamic group of musicians across a spectrum of ages and skill levels. We play a variety of upbeat and inspiring music drawn from a multitude of sources. We love costumes, silly hats and spectacle! We share the duties of researching and arranging musical selections, directing and shaping rehearsals, costuming, and scheduling the band. Forward! Marching Band brings lively tunes to political protests, marches and rallies, parades, and community events. If you’re an event organizer, a community group, a protest planner or a musician interested in Forward!, please contact us. You can message us on Facebook, or send an e-mail to .

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We are glad to share our experiences as activist musicians, lessons learned organizing our band, mistakes we have made, problems we are still working on solving...

We're also a living example of the power of the HONK! Festival, since the HONK! Live at the Dilboy CD directly inspired the founding of our band in January 2011.

3/24 - March For Our Lives
3/14 - Student Walkout for Gun Control
3/11 - Solidarity Sing Along 7th Anniversary
1/27 - Dream Act Now! Rally

We have strong gender diversity in both leadership and membership. We are notably cross-generational, which brings its own challenges to political work. We range across the neurotypical spectrum, and we have a range of musical abilities ranging from near tone deafness to a symphony player. Our band finances are structured to help us all travel to Honk! regardless of our personal finances.

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