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Is this the theme song for 8/28?

July 01, 2015
Staff

WRITER

A couple of weeks ago, Glenn asked some friends and staff members if anyone had some favorite songs that could be the theme song of 8/28. Someone sent him the song “Do Something”, and Glenn loved it. And then last night, totally unbeknownst to Glenn, the artist for the song, Matthew West, was in the studio for the TV show.

"Today is the day I'm supposed to put the program together. The beginnings of the program for 8/28 in Birmingham, Alabama," Glenn said. "[Do Something] was the song I wanted to have as the theme of 8/28. And here you are. It's just such an amazing coincidence."

Listen to the song below:

Matthew joined Glenn on TV Tuesday night and on the radio show Wednesday morning, and shared the incredible story of how losing his voice and undergoing a radical surgery ended up launching his music career.

Glenn: I want to introduce you to Matthew West. He’s an award-winning singer-songwriter whose latest album, Live Forever, like a few of his previous albums, was inspired by the stories he receives from his fans. How are you?

Matthew: Doing great. Thanks for having me.

Glenn: You started doing this because your vocal cords went out, right?

Matthew: That’s right. Several years ago, about seven years ago, my career was about to take off to the next level, or so I thought, and my voice left me. I was unable to sing or speak. The surgeons in Nashville are some of the best in all the land, working on the greats like Johnny Cash back in the day. They told me I was going to need to have career-threatening vocal cord surgery and warned me that my voice may never sound the same again. Following that surgery, I spent about two months with nothing but time on my hands, completely silent, unable to sing or speak. You do some pretty intense soul-searching during that time. My wife enjoyed that two months of our marriage.

It was during that time that I began to think well, if my voice does come back, how could I use my voice differently? I wrote in a journal, and I really begin to sense that what if God was going to give me my voice back to give a voice to other people? Fast-forward, I feel like that’s become my mission in life, using my voice as a singer and songwriter to tell the stories of other people’s lives and in doing so, hopefully empower people to realize that their life is a one-in-a-million, unique story that can indeed go out and change the world if only they’ll choose to be a storyteller and not just a story keeper.

Glenn: And believe. I was in church, somebody was supposed to teach this last weekend, and he didn’t show up. So, we’re all going to sit there and waste an hour. I’m like I’ll teach, and so I got up. I happened to be reading Romans 8 the day before, the night before, and so I said take out your Scriptures and turn to Romans 8.

I don’t remember how this happened, but somebody had made some comment that a lot of people don’t believe that they’re capable or whatever, and we need God to do it. I came to Romans 18, for I reckon that the sufferings of this present time—now, think of this—I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in all of us. So yeah, that’s going to suck hard, but the glory revealed in you, that means we’re going to do something great. All of us are going to do something great if we just let it happen.

Matthew: Yeah, what I sense in the last six years, I’ve collected over 40,000 stories and counting of people who have answered my invitation simply to tell me their story. What I sense is this overwhelming spirit of defeat in people’s lives where because of circumstances that have been thrust upon them, abuse that they’ve suffered, choices that they’ve made in their life, they begun to just hang their heads, lower their sight line, and believe that their best days are behind them.

I heard your interview that you just had. We’re talking about changing the world. I realize there are so many people that are so defeated they don’t even believe they can change their own life. So, they’re defeated before they even step out into the world. How can they expect to go change the world? I believe that every single one of our stories, as broken as they might be, was designed ultimately to become a redemption story.

Glenn: That’s it.

Matthew: And when we begin to live our redemption story, not out of defeat but in hope, I mean, the world can’t help but change and be impacted by the shockwaves that’ll send. So, that’s the mission. I feel like I’ve been telling the stories of people’s lives and letting other people know hey, if this person can change their life, if they can find strength in God and begin to realize that there’s hope for them, imagine the possibilities for you and you and you and everybody else.

Glenn: That is my story. I mean, I was down at the bottom, live or die, alcoholic, you name it, washed out—lost a family, lost a job, lost a reputation, everything, and then turned it around. Honestly, if I can do it, anybody can do it. Tell me about the song, because I’m going to have you sing here in a minute. Tell me about the story behind the song that you’re out with.

Matthew: It was interesting you mentioned the Book of Romans that you did the impromptu teaching out of, but another verse in Romans is reminding us that God can work all things for the good, even the most broken parts of our lives. What I love is when the story comes to me from someone who’s not afraid to say hey, you know what, I’ve got some messes in my life, it’s not all put together, but I found the one who’s helped me put it together.

A guy named Josh, I called a manager at a pizza restaurant in Worthington, Minnesota, a few weeks ago to speak to Josh. The reason I called is because Josh inspired the song I’m going to sing for your viewers in just a moment. He wrote to me. He said, you know, I grew up in a rough home life. I never met my mother, bad neighborhood. I got involved in drugs at a young age. He wound up dealing drugs. He wound up getting arrested, and at the age of 16, wound up being sentenced to 10 years. So here’s a 16-year-old kid, all of a sudden 10 years in prison.

Glenn: Life’s over.

Matthew: While he was in prison, he wrote to me. He said he began to find his faith, and he made a commitment that if he ever got out of there, he wasn’t ever going to go back, but he was going to change his life. Of course, all the voices of the doubters telling them you’re just going to go back to your old ways, he said no, you wait and see. So, what he wrote to me was amazing. He told me that his beginning came in the form of a pizza. He said I got out of prison, but nobody would give me a job. Why? I’ve got tattoos on my knuckles. I look rough. I spent ten years in prison. Who wants to take a chance on an ex-convict?

He got involved with a church, and a Christian couple in that church ran a pizza restaurant called Pizza Ranch. They said we’ll take a chance on you, give you a part-time job. He said Matthew, I took that opportunity, and I ran with it. With God’s help, I made the change, and everybody saw it in me. I just want to tell you, now I’m the general manager of that pizza restaurant. I want you to tell my story, Matthew, because I want everybody to know that if an ex-con like me can change, then we can all change with God’s help—powerful, man. That’s what Day One is all about, the power to change, turn in a new direction.

Glenn: I said on radio today, we were talking, and I said we have to stop being church people. Church is not a building we go to, church is wherever we are. And testimony isn’t something we share, testimony is what we live.

Matthew: I heard you say that. I thought that was so profound and talking about the church being more like a hospital. My dad is a preacher, and I’ll tell you what I got really good at, I got really good at looking the part and believing that it was about me making everybody around me go man, he’s got it all together. What I’m drawn to now is when somebody steps up with all the authenticity that I wish I had, and they say you know what, I’m far from perfect, but let me tell you about change and let me tell you about the hope that I found.

Glenn: Amen.

Matthew: That’s what is going to speak to the world. And then the world finds that and says I want that. That resonates within you. When I heard you share your story at a conference that we were both speaking at, it resonated within me because I want that authenticity. I don’t want to be the one who’s got all the answers. That’s what the world thinks about the church and Christians—oh, they’re the ones telling all the answers. No, it’s just about telling our story and saying hey, we found the answer that’s helped us change.

Are Gen Z's socialist sympathies a threat to America's future?

NurPhoto / Contributor | Getty Images

In a republic forged on the anvil of liberty and self-reliance, where generations have fought to preserve free markets against the siren song of tyranny, Gen Z's alarming embrace of socialism amid housing crises and economic despair has sparked urgent alarm. But in a recent poll, Glenn asked the tough questions: Where do Gen Z's socialist sympathies come from—and what does it mean for America's future? Glenn asked, and you answered—hundreds weighed in on this volatile mix of youthful frustration and ideological peril.

The results paint a stark picture of distrust in the system. A whopping 79% of you affirm that Gen Z's socialist sympathies stem from real economic gripes, like sky-high housing costs and a rigged game tilted toward the elite and corporations—defying the argument that it's just youthful naivety. Even more telling, 97% believe this trend arises from a glaring educational void on socialism's bloody historical track record, where failed regimes have crushed freedoms under the boot of big government. And 97% see these poll findings as a harbinger of deepening generational rifts, potentially fueling political chaos and authoritarian overreach if left unchecked.

Your verdict underscores a moral imperative: America's soul hangs on reclaiming timeless values like self-reliance and liberty. This feedback amplifies your concerns, sending a clear message to the powers that be.

Want to make your voice heard? Check out more polls HERE.

Without civic action, America faces collapse

JEFF KOWALSKY / Contributor | Getty Images

Every vote, jury duty, and act of engagement is civics in action, not theory. The republic survives only when citizens embrace responsibility.

I slept through high school civics class. I memorized the three branches of government, promptly forgot them, and never thought of that word again. Civics seemed abstract, disconnected from real life. And yet, it is critical to maintaining our republic.

Civics is not a class. It is a responsibility. A set of habits, disciplines, and values that make a country possible. Without it, no country survives.

We assume America will survive automatically, but every generation must learn to carry the weight of freedom.

Civics happens every time you speak freely, worship openly, question your government, serve on a jury, or cast a ballot. It’s not a theory or just another entry in a textbook. It’s action — the acts we perform every day to be a positive force in society.

Many of us recoil at “civic responsibility.” “I pay my taxes. I follow the law. I do my civic duty.” That’s not civics. That’s a scam, in my opinion.

Taking up the torch

The founders knew a republic could never run on autopilot. And yet, that’s exactly what we do now. We assume it will work, then complain when it doesn’t. Meanwhile, the people steering the country are driving it straight into a mountain — and they know it.

Our founders gave us tools: separation of powers, checks and balances, federalism, elections. But they also warned us: It won’t work unless we are educated, engaged, and moral.

Are we educated, engaged, and moral? Most Americans cannot even define a republic, never mind “keep one,” as Benjamin Franklin urged us to do after the Constitutional Convention.

We fought and died for the republic. Gaining it was the easy part. Keeping it is hard. And keeping it is done through civics.

Start small and local

In our homes, civics means teaching our children the Constitution, our history, and that liberty is not license — it is the space to do what is right. In our communities, civics means volunteering, showing up, knowing your sheriff, attending school board meetings, and understanding the laws you live under. When necessary, it means challenging them.

How involved are you in your local community? Most people would admit: not really.

Civics is learned in practice. And it starts small. Be honest in your business dealings. Speak respectfully in disagreement. Vote in every election, not just the presidential ones. Model citizenship for your children. Liberty is passed down by teaching and example.

Samuel Corum / Stringer | Getty Images

We assume America will survive automatically, but every generation must learn to carry the weight of freedom.

Start with yourself. Study the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and state laws. Study, act, serve, question, and teach. Only then can we hope to save the republic. The next election will not fix us. The nation will rise or fall based on how each of us lives civics every day.

Civics isn’t a class. It’s the way we protect freedom, empower our communities, and pass down liberty to the next generation.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

'Rage against the dying of the light': Charlie Kirk lived that mandate

PHILL MAGAKOE / Contributor | Getty Images

Kirk’s tragic death challenges us to rise above fear and anger, to rebuild bridges where others build walls, and to fight for the America he believed in.

I’ve only felt this weight once before. It was 2001, just as my radio show was about to begin. The World Trade Center fell, and I was called to speak immediately. I spent the day and night by my bedside, praying for words that could meet the moment.

Yesterday, I found myself in the same position. September 11, 2025. The assassination of Charlie Kirk. A friend. A warrior for truth.

Out of this tragedy, the tyrant dies, but the martyr’s influence begins.

Moments like this make words feel inadequate. Yet sometimes, words from another time speak directly to our own. In 1947, Dylan Thomas, watching his father slip toward death, penned lines that now resonate far beyond his own grief:

Do not go gentle into that good night. / Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Thomas was pleading for his father to resist the impending darkness of death. But those words have become a mandate for all of us: Do not surrender. Do not bow to shadows. Even when the battle feels unwinnable.

Charlie Kirk lived that mandate. He knew the cost of speaking unpopular truths. He knew the fury of those who sought to silence him. And yet he pressed on. In his life, he embodied a defiance rooted not in anger, but in principle.

Picking up his torch

Washington, Jefferson, Adams — our history was started by men who raged against an empire, knowing the gallows might await. Lincoln raged against slavery. Martin Luther King Jr. raged against segregation. Every generation faces a call to resist surrender.

It is our turn. Charlie’s violent death feels like a knockout punch. Yet if his life meant anything, it means this: Silence in the face of darkness is not an option.

He did not go gently. He spoke. He challenged. He stood. And now, the mantle falls to us. To me. To you. To every American.

We cannot drift into the shadows. We cannot sit quietly while freedom fades. This is our moment to rage — not with hatred, not with vengeance, but with courage. Rage against lies, against apathy, against the despair that tells us to do nothing. Because there is always something you can do.

Even small acts — defiance, faith, kindness — are light in the darkness. Reaching out to those who mourn. Speaking truth in a world drowning in deceit. These are the flames that hold back the night. Charlie carried that torch. He laid it down yesterday. It is ours to pick up.

The light may dim, but it always does before dawn. Commit today: I will not sleep as freedom fades. I will not retreat as darkness encroaches. I will not be silent as evil forces claim dominion. I have no king but Christ. And I know whom I serve, as did Charlie.

Two turning points, decades apart

On Wednesday, the world changed again. Two tragedies, separated by decades, bound by the same question: Who are we? Is this worth saving? What kind of people will we choose to be?

Imagine a world where more of us choose to be peacemakers. Not passive, not silent, but builders of bridges where others erect walls. Respect and listening transform even the bitterest of foes. Charlie Kirk embodied this principle.

He did not strike the weak; he challenged the powerful. He reached across divides of politics, culture, and faith. He changed hearts. He sparked healing. And healing is what our nation needs.

At the center of all this is one truth: Every person is a child of God, deserving of dignity. Change will not happen in Washington or on social media. It begins at home, where loneliness and isolation threaten our souls. Family is the antidote. Imperfect, yes — but still the strongest source of stability and meaning.

Mark Wilson / Staff | Getty Images

Forgiveness, fidelity, faithfulness, and honor are not dusty words. They are the foundation of civilization. Strong families produce strong citizens. And today, Charlie’s family mourns. They must become our family too. We must stand as guardians of his legacy, shining examples of the courage he lived by.

A time for courage

I knew Charlie. I know how he would want us to respond: Multiply his courage. Out of this tragedy, the tyrant dies, but the martyr’s influence begins. Out of darkness, great and glorious things will sprout — but we must be worthy of them.

Charlie Kirk lived defiantly. He stood in truth. He changed the world. And now, his torch is in our hands. Rage, not in violence, but in unwavering pursuit of truth and goodness. Rage against the dying of the light.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

Glenn Beck resurrects the 9-12 Project to support Charlie Kirk's family

Glenn Beck is once again calling on his loyal listeners and viewers to come together and channel the same unity and purpose that defined the historic 9-12 Project. That movement, born in the wake of national challenges, brought millions together to revive core values of faith, hope, and charity.

Glenn created the original 9-12 Project in early 2009 to bring Americans back to where they were in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. In those moments, we weren't Democrats and Republicans, conservative or liberal, Red States or Blue States, we were united as one, as America. The original 9-12 Project aimed to root America back in the founding principles of this country that united us during those darkest of days.

This new initiative draws directly from that legacy, focusing on supporting the family of Charlie Kirk in these dark days following his tragic murder.

The revival of the 9-12 Project aims to secure the long-term well-being of Charlie Kirk's wife and children. All donations will go straight to meeting their immediate and future needs. If the family deems the funds surplus to their requirements, Charlie's wife has the option to redirect them toward the vital work of Turning Point USA.

This campaign is more than just financial support—it's a profound gesture of appreciation for Kirk's tireless dedication to the cause of liberty. It embodies the unbreakable bond of our community, proving that when we stand united, we can make a real difference.
Glenn Beck invites you to join this effort. Show your solidarity by donating today and honoring Charlie Kirk and his family in this meaningful way.

You can learn more about the 9-12 Project and donate HERE