`` Nelson Mandela '' ( known in some versions as `` Free Nelson Mandela '' ) is a song written by British musician Jerry Dammers and performed by band The Special A.K.A. -- with lead vocal by Stan Campbell -- released on the single `` Nelson Mandela '' / `` Break Down The Door '' in 1984 as a protest against the imprisonment of Nelson Mandela by the apartheid South African government .
`` Nelson Mandela '' ( known in some versions as `` Free Nelson Mandela '' ) is a song written by British musician Jerry Dammers and performed by band The Special A.K.A. - with lead vocal by Stan Campbell . It was released on the single `` Nelson Mandela / Break Down The Door '' in 1984 .