Joan Baez, left, and Janis Ian have released their 1994 live duet, “One in a Million,” as a free download.
Sixty years after Janis Ian and Joan Baez led social justice movements, singing protest and socially relevant songs, the world still suffers from some of the same troubling issues, and we still need their powerful voices. It is a shame that full retirement isn’t possible for these magnificent women.
Though they accomplished their goals in different ways, they represent women who were not content to hide behind men and did not let industry and societal pressures silence them.
When I interviewed Baez in 2024, we discussed the 1960s storm of activism, including the Civil Rights, anti-war and feminist movements, propelled by the unifying glue of music. “I don’t know how the stars aligned to make that glue happen,” said Baez, adding that current movements need anthems and that “writing an anthem is just about the hardest thing to write.”
This May, Ian released an anthem, “One in a Million,” that honors people who fight for justice during these difficult days in America. The song, co-written by Ian and Jess Leary, is just the balm that I need. I hope it provides you with peace, too.
Recorded as a duet with Baez at a 1994 San Francisco benefit concert titled Fight the Right, the song offers a strong response to the increasing threats to democratic values and the rights of LGBTQ people and immigrants.
STEPHEN SOMERSTEIN (COURTESY OR MAGNOLIA PICTURES)
Joan Baez at the Alabama State Capitol in 1965.
After learning that Baez would perform at the event, Ian invited her to join her onstage to sing “One in a Million.” Their elegant voices blend beautifully; you can hear this moment in the video below.
They sang their rallying cry twice that night, with the audience joining in for the chorus. Baez’s assistant Nancy Lutzow discovered a recording of it and the duo agreed to release it as a free download (visit store.janisianstore.com).
Ian has written of the song: “A few years ago I sat down with Jess Leary, one of my favorite co-writers, and we decided to write an anthem. It felt like the world was getting stranger every day. People were scared, feeling hopeless. Writing ‘One in a Million’ made us feel hopeful. It reminded us that no matter how hard things got, we were not alone.”
The video, created by Steve Wilkison, includes dramatic images from historic and current Civil Rights marches, and shows protestors carrying placards with messages that support various causes, including the Black Lives Matter movement. Some say “my nonbinary children are my hero,” “Love Has No Gender” and “no DOGE.”
Ian and Baez sing:
We are one in a million strong
In my darkest night, I hold on to that light
We are one in a million strong….
We are free, we are free as an eagle
We are free as an eagle flies
When they’ve taken my wings
Still my spirit will sing
We are free as an eagle flies…
So hold on
Hold on to what you are.
‘Cause every stone’s a diamond
In the lifetime of a star.
PETER CUNNINGHAM
Janis Ian in 1969.
Ian encourages us to retain our resolve, as she has for much of her life. “One in a Million” encourages us to resist, exchanging bravery for fear; it serves as an antidote to feeling isolated during this moment in history. And that ability is part of Ian’s magic.
Ian has been writing evocative, well-crafted songs that give voice to those who have felt marginalized, beginning in 1965 when, at about 14 years old, she wrote “Society’s Child” about interracial relationships and racial injustice. Racists reacted to the song with death threats, heckling and hate mail. In her early 20s, she connected with teenagers who endured invisibility and isolation through her 1975 hit “At Seventeen.”
“One in a Million” is thematically connected to the songs of Ian’s 2022’s The Light at the End of the Line album, a masterpiece with songs of defiance, resistance and perseverance.
Ian’s years of activism, professional integrity and personal struggle were explored in the recent documentary, “Janis Ian: Breaking Silence.” Directed by Varda Bar-Kar, this eloquent film also documents Ian’s challenges with misogyny, homophobia and other issues.
When I read Ian’s gripping 2008 autobiography “Society’s Child: My Autobiography,” I felt moved, but also comforted by her familiar experiences. Now with “One in a Million,” I feel a similar comfort in knowing that we are not alone when the headlines feel like an assault. We are part of a dynamic community of concerned and empathetic people.
Here are excerpts from a recent interview with her.
KEITH STOKES
JANIS IAN
Q. What motivated you to write “One in a Million” and how did that song come together?
A. Jess Leary has been one of my favorite co-writers for years. We’re a good match; she’s heavy on rhythm and commercial choruses, I’m heavy on content and chords, if that makes any sense. Together we’ve written songs like “This Train Still Runs” and “Jolene.” Somehow, we always end up with something we like! As far as I recall … we’d set aside two to three days to write together, and were talking about the lack of anthems that bring people together. Seemed like there were plenty of them in the ’60s, but not so many now. We wanted a song that would be fairly simple to play and sing, with a chorus that would be easy to remember, so the song has three chords and is pretty repetitive.
Q. You have brought us together over the years through your music and, similarly, this new song creates a community of people with shared experiences at this moment in history. Do you see it that way?
A. Well, I didn’t anticipate singing it with Joan, and I certainly didn’t anticipate that a recording of that one-and-only event would turn up years and years later! I think it’s pretty wonderful that Joan, myself and Jess all agreed to allow free downloads and sheet music, and not worry about making money from it.
Q. I would imagine that it was an exhilarating feeling to sing your anthem at the Fight the Right event with Joan Baez. Have you stayed in touch over the years?
A. Absolutely. It was Joan I called when I’d run out of people to tell me what was wrong with my voice. She phones or texts pretty regularly to see how I’m doing, and she came to my final San Francisco performance a few years ago. I consider her a friend.
MARINA CHAVEZ
JOAN BAEZ
Q. When I interviewed Baez last year, she said she’d never try to write an anthem and that she wishes there were some to connect us. You wrote one. How did she react when you shared your song with her?
A. All the reaction I needed was that she wanted to sing it!
Q. How have your movie screenings been going? Are you satisfied with the film’s reception? I loved it.
A. I’ve been amazed at the audience reactions — and to be truthful, a little confused at the number of people who get teary. Varda Bar-Kar did an amazing job of intertwining the times I came up in, with the times of my life. She’s marvelous. For me, no longer able to perform as a vocalist, it’s been a wonderful chance to connect with audiences and venues again. As you may imagine, I was pretty devastated when I had to cancel all my touring, and learn to live without hope of ever touring again. This has given me back some of that hope.
Also, there’ve been a number of screenings where the venue worked with local singers to do a small tribute concert — not as big as the huge one we did in Dublin last year, but still big enough to be respectable! — as part of the screening. That’s been wonderful.
Q. You’ve always got something new developing. What are you focusing on these days?
A. Learning to use my bionic knee! Seriously, recovering from major surgery is hard enough when you’re young, but in my 70s it’s even more difficult.
Outside of that, there’s the continuing work with my archives at (the Kentucky college) Berea, as well as Q&As at the screenings. After this year, I don’t know what I’ll be doing …
Sometimes it feels like the universe is determined to wipe out anything from my “old life” as a touring performer. I lost my piano, stage clothes, makeup, outboard gear, furniture, even suitcases, to the floods last year. I lost my ability to hold my notes and sing the year before. I’m trying to stay open, then, because clearly that path is supposed to be closed.
PETER CUNNINGHAM
JANIS IAN
Q. Truth telling through music can be dangerous business, but so necessary now with the assault on LGBTQ communities, the immigrants, democracy etc. Your songs have always involved risk. Do you agree? Do you feel fearful at times?
A. Of course. Anyone in their right mind feels that way nowadays. To be honest, I’m very tired of standing up. I have more days behind me than I have before me, and I would dearly like to spend them in peace — reading, walking, listening. I resent that between business obligations and the state of this country, I can’t do that.
Q. I know your family went through a lot during the McCarthy Era and I wondered if this political climate triggers some of those memories.
A. It’s pretty much all in the film, Cindy. I was taught to do right by others. That’s about it!
For more on Janis Ian, visit janisian.com.
For more on Joan Baez, visit facebook.com/officialjoanbaez.
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