BLACK LIVES MATTER PLAYLIST

“Rappers saying “All Lives Matter”? Okay, now we’re actually spineless”

-Royce da 5”9’ on Dead President Heads

Whether you’re protesting, marching or just feel like celebrating Black Lives Matter it’s always good to have a soundtrack booming behind you. Many of the world’s black musicians have created powerful anthems and intricate commentaries about black lives, and here are the best of them collected together. Put your fist up and start chanting, it’s time to demand for freedom and look deep into the discussion of race in America, through music:

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Glory:

Artist: Common and John Legend

Album: Selma Soundtrack

Inspired by the movie Selma, starring David Oyelowo and Common himself, this dramatic song captures the energy of Martin Luther King Jr.’s Civil Rights movement. John Legend delivers beautiful melodies chanting for African-American glory as Common raps about his passion for peaceful protest and freedom. The two blend flawlessly to create a chanting masterpiece perfect for protest marching and demanding liberty.

Best Lyric: “Saw the face of Jim Crow under a bald eagle, the biggest weapon is to stay peaceful…”

Kingdom:

Artist: Common and Vince Staples

Album: Nobody’s Smiling

Alongside energetic gospel vocals and mournful strings, Vince Staples and Common paint a harsh picture of the reality for many African-American families. They describe their tough upbringings and the cruel culture around race that comes with it. Their lyrics explore the external and internal struggle of growing up black and the need to gain power in what seems like a powerless world. Vince and Common give many examples of ways they try to help themselves to survive, but that the only way to feel proud again is to rise above all else. In conclusion, to succeed you must take control for yourself and gain the “keys to the kingdom”.

Best Lyric: “Revenge is supposed to be the Lord's but I use my own accordWhen I seen him on the porch, cost my man his life, I can’t afford not to hit him…”

Blak Majik:

Artist: Common and Jhene Aiko

Album: Nobody’s Smiling

As Jesse Williams said in his BET acceptance speech, “…just because we’re magic doesn’t mean we’re not real”, Common evokes the same theme of black magic on this braggadocios song. His confident words are surrounded by a dark, grimy beat displaying two emotions around the same subject. Common’s lyrics are boastful, but juxtaposed with the harsh instrumental that represents the darkness rejecting Common’s “black magic”. Jhene Aiko provides a powerful concluding verse and the chorus that chants “black magic”, cheering on African-Americans to understand they are magical. The song recognizes the bad times with an eerie overtone, but focuses on keeping the black people confident and understanding that despite all the hate, you are magical.

Best Lyric: “I'm black, I'm magical… we are black actors

Makin' something out of nothing; black majik…”

Alright:

Artist: Kendrick Lamar

Album: To Pimp A Butterfly

Kendrick Lamar’s Grammy award winning album To Pimp A Butterfly is one long complex commentary on race, nearly every song would be worthy putting on this list, but “Alright” holds a special place. Packed with lyrics spit quick with a catchy rhythm, Kendrick speaks on complex issues such as police brutality, economic consumption of black culture, and drug abuse. Holding a positive tone throughout the whole song Kendrick delivers important commentary while keeping the feeling light. Funky trumpets and scattered upbeat drums decorate the instrumental with a bumping, exciting vibe. The message can address any person in pain, but can also be directly applied to the black population of America, no matter how bad it gets, no matter how much racism endure, you’re going to be alright.

Best Lyric: “I rap, I black on track so rest assured, my rights, my wrongs; I write 'til I'm right with God…”

Complexion (A Zulu Love):

Artist: Kendrick Lamar and Rapsody

Album: To Pimp A Butterfly

One of the more underrated songs off of Kendrick’s To Pimp A Butterfly, he and female rapper Rapsody discuss how complexion intertwines with race relations. They speak on how American society focuses on the white face and celebrates Caucasian features while judging blacks as “too dark”. Kendrick describes his feelings by rapping from the perspective of a field worker in love with a white woman. His character explores where he thinks the basis of the white face as beautiful came from, while Rapsody more directly addresses her need for America to show black faces as well. They both point out how religion, entertainment and even black communities are tainted by bias towards white complexion.

Best Lyric: “Light don’t mean you smart, bein’ dark don’t make you stupid… The new James Bond gon’ be black as me, black as brown, hazelnut, cinnamon, black tea and it’s all beautiful to me…”

Strange Fruit:

Artist: Billie Holiday

Album: B-Side of “Fine and Mellow” Single

This eerie 1930’s classic performed by Billie Holiday describes disturbing scenes of lynching. Over dark piano notes and a creepy melody, Billie’s raspy voice sounds beautiful, but frightening as she illustrates the murder of her people. She creates a comparison between fruit hanging from trees and the hanging corpses of killed African-Americans.. Billie Holiday received death threats and many other personal attacks for performing the song, but stuck by her voice as a black woman and continued her performances. An extremely controversial song at the time, it still remains a chilling record that reminds us of racism’s horrific past.

Best Lyric: “Blood on the leaves and blood at the root, black bodies swinging in the southern breeze, strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees…”

Young Black Male:

Artist: 2Pac

Album: 2Pacalypse Now

If you can get past the sexist language used in the middle of the song, this 2Pac gem is a fast-paced anthem for young black men. Short and sweet, this vintage Pac record flies by with lyrics being spit at high speeds. His words are packed with braggadocios lyrics, all directed at the oppressive system he is trapped him. Unrelenting, the West Coast legend displays his lyrical prowess while “selling the tales of young black males”, a task that was considered vulgar in the early 90’s and is still not culturally accepted. Whether you agree with his brash language or not, 2Pac was pioneering a trail for black empowerment through rap music before many others.

Best Lyric: “I bust what I bust and cuss when I must, they gave me a charge for sales for selling the tales... of young black males…”

Formation:

Artist: Beyoncé

Artist: Lemonade

Beyoncé stirred up white America when she interrupted their favorite pastime to sing this confident black pride anthem. Debuting as a vibrant live show at the Super Bowl, she created a lot of controversy with racially charged lyrics and Black Panther symbolism. As usual, conservatives everywhere panicked as Beyoncé suddenly embraced herself as a black woman and joined the movement for Black Lives Matter. This unsettling, but powerful Just Blaze produced beat gives the perfect background for Beyoncé’s confident lyrics. She calls for her peers to get in formation and stand against any opposition, celebrating black female power the whole way.

Best Lyric: “You mix that negro with that Creole make a Texas bama, I like my baby heir with baby hair and afros, I like my negro nose with Jackson Five nostrils…”

Freedom:

Artist: Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar

Album: Lemonade

This collaboration brought together two of today’s greatest African-American musicians to chant for freedom in unison. Beyoncé sings with daring desperation as Kendrick raps quickly with urgency creating a fast-paced and intense display. Their lyrics invoke imagery from slavery and Civil Rights marches painting a history of black oppression while delivering a message of empowerment. Large drums beat in the background as triumphant trumpets sound off creating the sense of victory. The song describes the hard times of the past, but then gives a shattering cry of progress and provides hope for the future.

Best Lyric: “I break chains all by myself, won't let my freedom rot in hell, Hey! I'ma keep running cause a winner don't quit on themselves…”

Black THougHts:

Artist: ScHoolboy Q

Album: Blank Face LP

Close friend and partner of Kendrick Lamar, Schoolboy Q takes a page from K Dot’s book. He raps about the current state of African-American culture and the internal damage occurring in black communities. Q first describes his experience as a black male in American society and then proposes solutions and alternatives to the gang violence he witnesses. Addressing Bloods and Crips, he asks for all African-Americans to unite and fight back against the wider system putting them down. He comments on the overbearing justice system that restricts black freedom. At the end he even flips the infamous phrase “All Lives Matter” instead using it to refer to the lives of Bloods and Crips, and not as an attack on Black Lives Matter.

Best Lyric: “Let's put our brains away from gangs, Crips and Bloods the old and new slaves, shit we even changed our names…”

Early:

Artist: Run The Jewels

Album: Run The Jewels 2

Run The Jewels is known for their political songs and activism, including their recent endorsement of Bernie Sanders, but this song provides a more visceral experience then the others. In the first verse, Killer Mike describes a scene where he is being arrested and beat around by police for a crime he did not commit. He starts off with an aggressive tone, but soon paints a picture of emotional toil as he begs the police to not arrest him in front of his wife and kids. Killer Mike manages to describe the experience of many blacks in America who are brutalized by cops in their front lawns where their children must look on in agony. Despite being released in 2012, the verse seems even more relevant now with the recent shooting of Philando Castile, where he was killed in front of his wife and 4 year old daughter.

Best Lyric: “Please don’t lock me up in front of my kids and in front of my wife, man, I ain’t got a gun or a knife, you do this and you ruin my life…”

16 Shots:

Artist: Vic Mensa

Album: There’s A lot Going On

While performing lyrical acrobatics and creating a certified banger, Vic Mensa manages to craft one of the year’s greatest black pride anthem. He speaks on police brutality, the bias against blacks in court, body cameras and uses the number of times Laquan McDonald was shot by police as his chanting chorus. 16 shots allows Vic to go off, speaking on various topics and pronouncing his hatred for the corrupt justice system of America and demand for justice. The song ends with an ominous sound bite of Laquan McDonald’s lawyer describing his client’s brutal and unwarranted murder. Every time another black man is shot and killed and every time a killer cop is let off with no punishment this song will become more powerful.

Best Lyric: “I can't imagine if it was my own mama, got her first born son stole from her, he never had a chance and we all know it’s cause he black, shot 'em 16 times, how fucked up is that?”

Shades of Blue:

Artist: Vic Mensa

Album: There’s A lot Going On

With a more sorrowful tone than 16 shots, Vic Mensa mourns the victims of the Flint water crisis and police brutality. He soon expands his commentary to encompass racial inequality and the racism and misogyny in our entertainment industries. Spitting the bitter truth he mocks popular memes and points out how the media distracts us from real problems, dropping any coverage on substantive issues once they are no longer popular. His voice sounds disappointed and upset as he discusses a range of problems in America, tying it all around the theme of inequality and the color blue. The blue color that disappeared from Flint’s water, the blue tears of mourning blacks after losing loved ones and the blues which Vic sings to display these problems. Packed with important political commentary and self-conscious critiquing Vic creates another masterful song.

Best Lyric: “They got Damn Daniel distracting you on Instagram back again with the all-white media coverage… and everybody broke so we in the same boat, but would they let that bitch sink if we was white?”

Untitled 03:

Artist: Kendrick Lamar

Album: Untitled Unmastered

Originally performed on the Colbert Report, Kendrick creates one of the most complicated songs written this year. He sews a narrative around many different races speaking to him, each describing what they give to Kendrick, or the black community. Using a seemingly outdated vernacular this song initially seems foreign and peculiar, but once you listen closely the lyrics are very complex and describe sophisticated race relations. Asians, Native Americans and African-Americans all offer their insight and offer a piece of their culture to Kendrick, but the white man asks to take something of his. The white man wants to capitalize off of Kendrick’s music and profit from his art, nothing else. Displaying centuries of racial history, Kendrick subtly points out the differences in perspectives and illustrates how the white man justifies their theft of black culture.

Best Lyric: “A piece of mine's, that's what the white man wanted when I rhyme, telling me that he selling me just for $10.99…”

New Slaves:

Artist: Kanye West

Album: Yeezus

Kanye provides scathing criticism of blacks and whites on a beat full of distorted horns and ominous synthesizers. Focusing on his theme of “iron chains to gold chains” Kanye spits about his own struggle as a black celebrity, and attacks nearly everyone involved in the discussion of race. He delivers a pessimistic, but confident message calling blacks “new slaves” and pointing out how much racism is still prevalent in our country. He also calls out his own community for being corrupted by money and materialism, ranting for the rest of the song. Kanye evokes slave-time imagery of lynching and chains while challenging the white dominated system to fight him.

Best Lyric: “My momma was raised in the era when clean water was only served to the fairer skin, doin' clothes you would have thought I had help, but they wasn't satisfied unless I picked the cotton myself…”

Police Get Away Wit Murder:

Artist: YG

Album: Still Brazy

Throwing subtly to the side, YG blatantly expresses his rage towards America’s police system. With a fast-paced beat and aggressive drums, YG raps nearly for 3 minutes about his frustration. He name drops Laquan McDonald, Tyler Woods and other black men who have been killed by police with no punishment given to anyone. YG’s voice cracks with emotion a couple times in the song demonstrating how much these killings had effected him, he is willing to admit that he’s not only angry, but he’s sad. His vulnerability and anger melds together to create a powerful demonstration of emotion and an attack against the police. Along with YG’s threats and attacks he delivers a very real message and an important understanding for our country, that police do get away with murder.

Best Lyric: “Black males in a hoodie that’s a target to them, they say he oversized and choked him out that was harmless to them…”

Blacks & Browns:

Artist: YG and Sad Boy

Album: Still Brazy

YG and Sad Boy rap angrily from the perspectives of blacks and Latinos in America. They speak on their fear for their people, talking about how they can’t go outside without being shot at by police. Both of them point out flaws in America’s racist system, how education has painted minorities as weak and deserving of what they got, how entertainment works to distract the media from real problems of race. Sad Boy points out how his people (Mexicans) were originally in America, but were removed and are not hated in their own previous home. The song ends with a sound clipping of a man saying “Don’t shoot” and then being shot down by police, of course referencing the death of Michael Brown. This intense outro gives an excellent example of what problems the two rappers speak on. This simple, but essential song summarizes many problems about race in our country and speaks on black and Latino discrimination.

Best Lyric: “We killing ourselves, they killing us too, they distract us with entertainment while they get they loot, they never gave us what they owed us, put liquor stores on every corner…”

99 Problems:

Artist: Jay Z

Album: The Black Album

Once again, if you can get past the song’s misogynistic overtone, Jay Z’s extremely popular single describes the discrimination black males experience in our country. He goes into detail describing his experience with police patronizing him, the court system mistreating his friends and brutality. The Rick Rubin banging drums and groaning guitar allows Jay’s tense vocals to sound strong. He weaves sarcasm and sincerity into an aggressive critique of America’s justice system, giving a lot of laughable lyrics simply because they’re too real. A blend of confidence and ironic comedy, this song is great for mocking the racist society of America.

Best Lyric: “I heard, "Son, do you know why I'm stopping you for?" ‘Cause I'm young and I'm black and my hat's real low? … Half a mil' for bail ‘cause I'm African…”

Black President:

Artist: Nas

Album: Nas

Might not want to listen to this one if you’re trying to be blindly confident and progressive, this track is more complicated and celebrates as much as it criticizes. Nas kicks off this song with an ironic 2Pac sample as Pac claims “We ain’t ready to have a black president”, but Esco then continues to rhyme about Barack Obama’s election. He celebrates Obama taking office and applauds his country for finally moving forward, but also holds back complete congratulations. He questions how the black community really supports Obama and how much the new black president will really do to help those in need. The song is an honest reflection on a range of opinions about Obama being elected. Nas acknowledges the struggle Obama had to experience and uses the backlash against Barack as an example of America’s still prevalent racism. One of the greatest rappers speaks on one of the greatest presidents in this complex display of arguments for and against Obama’s election and America in general.

Best Lyric: “You know these colored folks and Negros hate to see, one of their own succeeding, America: surprise us and let a black man guide us…”

Letter To The King:

Artist: The Game and Nas

Album: LAX

Nas returns on this list, this time collaborating on The Game’s album, LAX. The two formidable MC’s write open letters to Martin Luther King Jr., thanking him for his actions and recollecting on many other racial issues. They name-drop Coretta Scott, Rosa Park, and MLK Jr. in a touching tribute to the 1960’s Civil Rights movement. Linking their own personal stories with the tales of these three black idols, the pair paints a powerful picture of black progress, while understanding what more has to be done. A mellow, jazzy beat sets a dark, inspiring backdrop for the two as their discussion about race turns more and more complicated. Game speaks on usage of the N-word and demands answers from many high profile figures such as Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, Jesse Jackson, and Bill Gates.

Best Lyrics: “If Dr. King marched today would Bill Gates march? I know Obama would but would Hilary take part?”

Caged Bird:

Artist: J. Cole and Omen

Album: Revenge Of The Dreamers II

J. Cole and Dreamville label mate Omen speak on racism through the analogy of caged birds. They feel as if they are caged, with their wings cut, forced to fight amongst each other as white supremacy remains unscathed. The two point out how many of their peers think they have escaped the cage simply by being aggressive and controversial, but they argue that that’s not enough. Throughout their verses they reveal that introspection and self-love is the only way to truly escape this cage. The beat is as funky and intriguing as the lyrics as they denounce hip hop’s common themes of drugs and sexism, pointing out how those themes reinforce racism against African-Americans. The song proves an interesting assessment of black culture and nation-wide racism, packed with self-awareness and conscious ideas.

Best Lyric: “I'm wondering why would God send me here, knowing that they hate us, knowing that they make us feel like we evil so we kill our people… Freedom's just an illusion, that's my conclusion…”

Animals:

Artist: Dr. Dre and Anderson .Paak

Album: Compton The Soundtrack

With an all-star team on the track, produced by DJ Premier and performed by Dr. Dre and Anderson .Paak this song bursts through with loud instruments and aggressive lyrics. Paak delivers symbolic lyrics, describing his surroundings and the events leading up to and following the murder of innocent black men. The lyrics speak on how the media and white America paints black as “animals”, making them seem only obsessed with drugs, violence and sex. Dr. Dre then explores his childhood tracing back when he first began experiencing racism and noticing that this country is still extremely discriminatory. The second verse serves as an interesting prologue to Dr. Dre’s well known N.W.A. years where he spoke adamantly against America’s racist system. The song takes time to sit down and talk about substance, but also allows it’s banging beat to create hype. A perfect combination of complexity and loose fun feelings this track allows you to be angry and political and energetic and relaxed all at the same time.

Best Lyric: “Damn, why the fuck are they after me? Maybe cause I'm a bastard, or maybe cause of the way my hair grow naturally…”

#BLM #blacklivesmatter #blacklivesmatter