This song contains a number of important connections to the Black Lives Matter movement through both the lyrics and the images that are presented in the visual album. Prior to this song, Beyoncé includes the song “Forward,” which acts as a kind of lead in to this song. During this part of the movie, mothers of black men who were recently killed by police hold up pictures of their sons. “Freedom”s messages solidify Beyoncé’s commitment to continue fighting for her rights. This can be heard most most clearly in the chorus of the song, where Beyoncé states “I’ll Break chains all by myself, won’t let my freedom ride in hell” and “I’ma riot, I’ma riot through your borders, call me bulletproof.” Beyoncé makes a statement with visuals and lyrics that demonstrate her commitment to ensuring the freedom and civil rights of black Americans. Kendrick Lamar’s portion of the song is definitely more direct in stating a narrative. He talks about the media’s negative portrayal of African American people in the news and mistreatment by law enforcement through bias and violence. Through the collaboration of these two artists a picture is painted that embodies protest for equal rights, justice, and peace.

“The Art of Peace” chapter reminded me of this song when it mentioned that “’Freedom is a constant struggle,’ not achieved once and for all. At the deepest level, the sense of freedom came from overcoming the fear of death.” I think that this song echos similar sentiments through its visual images and lyrical statements. - Austin Ridout

J. Cole’s “Be Free” was written as a response to the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. In the song, the rapper describes a situation where a police officer pulls his weapon out on two friends who arein the car. The chorus is repeated “All we wan' do is take the chains off and/All we wan' do is be free” as Cole describes the escalating violence from the police officer as the two men run and his friend is killed. This is a direct parallel of what happened in the murder of Michael Brown, who was an unarmed black man killed by police officers. The POV that Cole raps is Dorian Johnson, who was with Michael when he was murdered. By creating a song that allows listeners to feel they are experiencing the story, Cole is embodying a protest of police brutality against black men. We can hear the influence from the Civil Rights movement as well, when we hear the lyrics in the chorus about taking the chains off and being free. Cole is protesting police brutality towards black Americans, an issue that was at the forefront of the Civil Rights movement as well. 

Source:

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/j-cole-mourns-michael-brown-in-somber-new-song-be-free-169276/

Source: https://www.musictimes.com/articles/8853/20140816/elle-varner-releases-heartfelt-track-one-love-in-the-wake-of-tensions-following-michael-brown-shooting-listen.htm

With the lyrics “I SEE IT I WANT IT, I STUNT YELLOW HORNET,I DREAM IT I WORK HARD I GRIND TILL I OWN IT, I TWIRL ON MY HATERS, ALBINO ALLIGATORS is saying her color doesn’t matter and she can take what she wants.  There are some hidden messages in the song like “albino alligators” possibly meaning white people are against her. It is interesting how she references Bill Gates and says you might be a black Bill Gates in the making. This song is a fight for equality for women and for Black Americans. 

She politically used Formation in her 2016 halftime performance with Bruno Mars to be on the same level as a male performer. I am a big fan of Beyonce and loved how she made this album with such a story and deep meaning.

A lyric that really struck a chord with me was “ Now can you imagine if you couldn't imagining The level of violence in parts of the world that perpetually happens Like if you were just shopping or stuck in a drive thru And all of a sudden you look up and boom somebody bombs you” because you hear about injustices happening in the news but it is a whole other thing to put yourself in someone else’s shoes. 

The nod to violence and a cry out for the world to change is very prominent to both the Civil Rights Movement as well as the Black Lives Matter times. This song is in protest and to make change and no one can say that change won’t happen. What a great song for promoting change and love! 

“Be Free” was written and released in 2014 in response to the death of Michael Brown. Cole shares his pain and frustration through a combination of unmetered speaking, rapping, and singing – no matter the type of vocal delivery, the tone of his voice sounds as if he is on the brink of tears. The lyrics alternate between a plea for freedom and equality, and a narration of the shooting of Brown. The chorus repeats a desire to “break the chains off and… be free,” both an obvious allusion to slavery and depressing commentary on the current state of the world.

 

Elle Varner, “One Love” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBiq4HHVC-Q

“One Love” was also released in 2014, also in response to the shooting of Michael Brown. Despite all of the pain from seeing unnecessary suffering, the chorus begins with “But who’s to say that we can’t change and give one love, one love to everyone.” The easier response would be to fight fire with fire, but the song advocates for making human connections and learning to love each other instead of assuming (and acting on) the worst. 

 

Connection and Comparison

Both songs were written about the same event, but express remorse in different ways. They speak out/protest against injustice without promoting or hinting at violence of any kind. Rather, they plead for love and equality among people of all races – a very similar message to the Civil Rights Movement. Where the BLM music differs is that it is more directly and explicitly depicting issues faced by the black community. It is also much more easily accessible in the age of YouTube and Spotify. This makes the music more accessible to everyone and helps people who have not experienced racial discrimination to empathize with those who have. 

Black Lives Matter music and the music of the Civil Rights Movement are incredibly similar in terms of their purpose. They are fighting for the rights of all Black Americans; to have equal rights and feel safe in their own community. While the musical genres and styles throughout the years may sound different, the themes in the music remains the same. Death, violence, hate, punishment, no justice, and desire for peace are just a few topics that remain unchanged in protest music revolving around Black lives.

Source: https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2014/08/j-cole-michael-brown-tribute-be-free

“Home of the brave and free

Free just to murder me

Land of the beautiful

Cursed by the hate we throw

Is this the new national anthem?”

These lyrics are incredibly powerful. They relate to racism, police brutality, injustice, and the amount of work our society and politics needs to do in order to make everyone actually free and safe. While the lyrics in the song are heartbreaking, they are incredibly accurate to what is still occurring in history today. T.I. raps about how he was raised to stay away from police and how his community was wrongfully arrested and murdered. Later on, he even mentions, “Tell me why you can get more for being C.O. than you can for being a teacher?”. This reiterates the frustration behind the powers the police have.

The melody of the song is very catchy, which only helps the likeability of the song. “New National Anthem”’s style easily fits in with songs on the radio today. I am actually surprised I hadn’t heard it before and that it hasn’t been showcased more, given the world we’re living in today. I hate to say it, but this song feels timeless, moving forward. Black Americans are still facing an unjust world. Something must change.

While this song is clearly connected to the Black Lives Matter movement, it still relates to music from the Civil Rights Movement. The passion, frustration, anger, and want for change is there in the lyrics. The difference is that in music today, the lyrics are much more blunt (at times vulgar) and very straightforward. People are less worried about covering up their feelings in music nowadays. Freedom of speech is more available in society today. While it may not make immediate change, songs like “New National Anthem” are what keep the public connected to the reality we are still facing in the world.

 

Source: https://time.com/3154250/ferguson-t-i-skylar-grey-new-national-anthem/

 

 

The verses are very hardcore. T.I. has taken his past trauma, Black neighborhood trauma, and Black America trauma and laid it out for consumers to hear. Like this week’s lesson, the Black Lives Matter Movement started way before the death of Trayvon Martin; it started way before the truth of Emmett Till; it started before the released recording of the beating of Rodney King. T.I. captures that very well in his verses. He talks about the effects of the K’s and the Vet’s (KKK and veterans) on America. This is who America belongs to, not African Americans. T.I. and many others are still oppressed. He discusses the effects of a Black family. Starting from birth, T.I. talks about the idea of a young black man trying to find his place in the world. He is doing well for himself and his family until his encounter with the police, whom he was told to stay away from. As a form of protection, he carried a 38mm gun on him at all times. If charges were made, a black man would receive a harsher sentence than a white man who committed the same crime. I think this is an important aspect for artists to do when it comes to performing about controversial topics. Being able to relate to the topic gives artists an opportunity to share their stories of their personal oppression. The second verse addresses Black America trauma, specifically Trayvon Martin, Malcom X, and Dr. King. These three men were killed by white men, who had some form of power. Trayvon Martin’s killer has a father who is a judge and was tried by a jury of his peers. On the other hand, had it been an African American man, the storyline would have been different: life without parole, no hesitation. He ends the verse by calling for a “come together, Jesus meeting” for all, regardless of the gang affiliation, to take down the true criminal, the justice system in America.

Lastly, T.I. outro was very triggering. He set out to start a riot and would have if this song were played on the radio. Clifford Harris challenged the justice and economic systems directly! He challenged criminal charges of rape and cocaine; he questions the ability to have mass shooting of innocent people; he questions the important of keeping people out of jail and educated instead of locked away and under watch in a prison. T.I. set out, from the title of the song, Skyler’s timbre, to the lyrics to challenge political views and raise awareness for the injustices in the system and to the African American people. 

Many of the Black Lives Matter Movement protests were centered around police brutality. The entire thought behind the movement is that black lives matter and their voices deserved to be heard. This song hits at the heart of the protest: the senseless killings of black lives out of judgement, confusion, and injustices.

This song discuses many of the issues plaguing American from the violence in Chicago to the killing of black people by civilians and police officers. The premise behind this song is the thinking that gun shots and violence are the “New National Anthem.” This song also alludes to things that happened in history as well. One of the of the lines that strike me as powerful is “Home of the brave and free, free just to murder me…” This strikes a tone to people who have seen and endured this type of violence. T.I. is a wordsmith and paints and amazing picture with each and every lyric that he says in the song. This song did not get radio play as stated in the opening line. However, it is still a powerful song and tells the story of America at this time.