Dave Matthews Brings a Trio of Protest Songs to Colbert: Watch

Dave Matthews stopped by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert to perform not one, but three songs: “Don’t Drink the Water,” “Peace on Earth,” and “Making It Great.” Matthews began the evening with a brief interview with Colbert, where he discussed his reverence for David Byrne, Jane Goodall, and Pete Seeger. Of Byrne’s latest concert tour, Matthews described being blown away and emotional. “He’s the truest of artists,” Matthews said about Byrne, “He’s all good things wrapped into one.” He then talked about his friendship with the late Goodall, and what it was like getting to know Seeger before his death in 2014. Get Dave Matthews Band Tickets Here After the interview, Matthews performed “Don’t Drink the Water;” when asked about the song’s meaning by Colbert, Matthews said simply, “the polite term is ‘a genocide.’ But I mean it well… I’m the villain in the song. Nowadays, it feels like a lot of us are villains, or at least a part of a villainous world… I don’t mean to be the villain, but that’s what the song is about.” Alone with his guitar on stage, Matthews performed a heartfelt, stirring rendition of “Don’t Drink the Water,” emphasizing the song’s colonial themes and undercurrent of violence. Advertisement Related Video He continued with “Peace on Earth,” similarly rendered in a stirring, barebones fashion. The song, which is currently unreleased, finds Matthews singing “I know you want peace on earth/ But we’ve got to kill the monster first” in each chorus. Like the prior song, it’s driven by narrative, exploring how we all have the capacity to become monsters in everyday life. He concluded the performance with a rendition of another unreleased, politically-charged protest song, “Making It Great.” Watch all three performances, along with Matthews’ interview with Colbert, below. After speaking out against ICE’s murder of Renée Nicole Good back in January — saying he doesn’t want “my taxes to pay for ICE, to masked thugs to roam our streets and terrorize our communities and rip families apart” — Matthews and his band announced they’d be donating to the Minnesota ACLU and would be embarking on a 2026 summer tour. The group will hit amphitheaters across the US from May to September; see Dave Matthews Band’s tour dates below, and get tickets here. Dave Matthews Band 2026 Tour Dates: 05/08 — The Woodlands, TX @ The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion 05/09 — Dallas, TX @ Dos Equis Pavilion 05/11 — Austin, TX @ Moody Center 05/15 — Alpharetta, GA @ Ameris Bank Amphitheatre 05/16 — Charlotte, NC @ Truliant Amphitheater 05/25 — Orange Beach, AL @ The Wharf Amphitheater 05/26 — Tampa, FL @ MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre 05/29 — West Palm Beach, FL @ iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre 05/30 — West Palm Beach, FL @ iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre Advertisement 06/05 — Raleigh, NC @ Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek 06/06 — Virginia Beach, VA @ Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater 06/10 — Forest Hills, NY @ Forest Hills Stadium 06/12 — Mansfield, MA @ Xfinity Center 06/13 — Bristow, VA @ Jiffy Lube Live 06/23 — Shakopee, MN @ Mystic Lake Amphitheater 06/24 — Kansas City, MO @ Morton Amphitheater 06/26 — Noblesville, IN @ Ruoff Music Center 06/27 — Noblesville, IN @ Ruoff Music Center 07/07 — Grand Rapids, MI @ Acrisure Amphitheater 07/08 — Grand Rapids, MI @ Acrisure Amphitheater 07/10 — Camden, NJ @ Freedom Mortgage Pavilion 07/11 — Camden, NJ @ Freedom Mortgage Pavilion 07/14 — Gilford, NH @ BankNH Pavilion 07/15 — Gilford, NH @ BankNH Pavilion 07/17 — Saratoga Springs, NY @ Saratoga Performing Arts Center 07/18 — Saratoga Springs, NY @ Saratoga Performing Arts Center 07/21 — Wantagh, NY @ Northwell at Jones Beach Theater 07/22 — Darien Center, NY @ Darien Lake Amphitheater 07/24 — Burgettstown, PA @ The Pavilion at Star Lake 07/25 — Hartford, CT @ The Meadows Music Theatre 08/28 — Greenwood Village, CO @ Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre 08/29 — Greenwood Village, CO @ Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre 09/04 — George, WA @ The Gorge Amphitheatre 09/05 — George, WA @ The Gorge Amphitheatre 09/06 — George, WA @ The Gorge Amphitheatre Load More