Born on this day in 1912 in Okemah, Oklahoma, Woodrow Wilson “Woody” Guthrie (1912–1967) sang the voice of the people. The Dust Bowl troubadour gave dignity to working folks and power to their stories. He wandered the country with guitar in hand, writing more than 6,000 songs and chronicling America’s pain and promise.

“Life has got a habit of not standing hitched. You got to ride it like you find it,” he once said. With freight trains, street corners, and soup lines as his stages, Woody gave us timeless folk anthems like So Long, It's Been Good to Know You, Bound for Glory, and the unforgettable This Land Is Your Land.

His lyrics were simple, poetic, and radical. A champion of social justice and American unity, he inspired the civil rights movement—and voices like Pete Seeger, Bob Dylan, and Bruce Springsteen.

When asked where inspiration came from, Woody replied, “Everywhere you look... at the movies, along the streets, riding buses or trains… or in bed at night.”

He lived the music, and his music lives on in us.