Manic Street Preachers are a Welsh rock band, consisting of James Dean Bradfield, Nicky Wire and Sean Moore. Co-lyricist and guitarist Richey James Edwards, or Richey James as he preferred to be known, disappeared in 1995; his whereabouts are unknown.

The band gained mainstream popularity in the UK in the mid-1990s and are known for their intelligent and often political lyrics and have a dedicated following. Although during the early part of their career they were regarded as a punk rock band, their music is now often generally regarded as alternative rock, due to changes in their sound.

Politically, the Manics appear as a socialist group, a stance inflected by their working class upbringing in Blackwood, Caerphilly, South Wales; they grew up during the miners' strike of the 1980, as evidenced by their often highly politicised lyrics and actions. They once dedicated an award to Arthur Scargill, leader of the National Union of Mineworkers and later the Socialist Labour Party.