Globalization has developed into one of the most interdisciplinary topics in the fields of culture, politics, and economics since the late 20th century. This article is interested in its terminology and reflections in the arts in the case of the lyrics of contemporary U.S. American and British English popular music. Even though the term ‘globalization’ was coined in the late 20th century and is associated with the idea of a universal economic, social, and cultural process in the world, conceptual elements of ‘globalization’ can be found in human history before the term was coined. The arts conceptualized the ‘world’ as an idea long before the emergence of the concept of ‘globalization’. The elements of ‘globalization’ and its history of associated ideas are found ironized and critically revised in the contemporary arts. At this point, social and cultural criticism arises and describes the contrast between ethical values and reality. Even an individualized form of poetry like the lyric poems of 20th and 21st century U.S. American popular music reflects critically as a contribution to contemporary political discourse on the concept of ‘globalization’.