Abstract
This article explores the use of nostalgia in contemporary populist discourses, analysing how it is transformed into a powerful tool for legitimising identity politics and rejecting otherness. Articulating Bauman's theories of liquid modernity and the notion of ‘retrotopia’ with Boym's concepts of restorative nostalgia, the text examines the link between nostalgic idealism and practices of cultural, social and racial differentiation in right-wing discourses. Hate speech, often shaped by an instrumentalisation of collective memory, presents an idealised past to reinforce strategies of polarisation and identity security. Drawing on the studies of various researchers and citing the political examples of Marine Le Pen, Donald Trump and Éric Zemmour, the article shows how nostalgia, although directed towards an imaginary past, paradoxically shapes the future by fuelling reactionary movements. The research sheds light on the rhetorical mechanisms of the ‘politics of nostalgia’ and its role in legitimising conservative ideals and spreading hatred. Extending this reflection, the study examines international examples to reveal how musical creations manage to convert emotions of hatred and nostalgia into counter-discourses of social critique and artistic resistance. Through works that combine irony with a challenge to conservative values, these artists spread messages that resonate as calls for diversity, inclusivity and social justice.