Earlier this month, Blood Orange fell victim to an alleged attack from security at Lollapalooza. Now, the songwriter also known as Devonté Hynes has spoken out on this abuse of power and how it connects to the conflicts in Ferguson, MO.
Hynes has been wearing a brace on his right knee. He told the crowd at Okayplayer's SummerStage concert in New York on Saturday (August 16), "I'd like to introduce you to my alleged torn patella, my kneecap. From my alleged attack at Lollapalooza. I don't mean to take it there, but it's starting to fucking hurt, because I just want to dance."
He also told the crowd, "I can hate fucking abuse of power. And I hate this fucking police state that we're all starting to live in. And I don't mean New York and I don't mean America. I mean the fucking world right now."
In a behind the scenes interview with Okayplayer, he further said, "The photos [from Ferguson] don't even seem real. And this [injured knee] doesn't even seem real. And Eric Garner doesn't seem real real. None of it. You don't want it to be real, and it is. And I don't know what's happening or what's going to happen. With me, it feels like I've been getting poked all my life. It feels like that. Maybe sometimes there's a punch, but it seems like it's just this irritating jab that keeps getting pushed. I think everyone is very tired of it."
He continued, "It feels like in our cultures, you associate time with learning and progression. You assume that in any field in regards to anything, that over a period of time there's a progression and you learn. I think in our culture it's a real shock when you actually realize that doesn't add up in everything. Just because the Civil Rights Act was like 50 years ago, doesn't mean that we're 50 times past it. It's shocking."
Watch the video below to hear Hynes speak on the matter.
Hynes is by no means the first musician to speak out on police brutality in Ferguson. Just yesterday (August 19) we read an op-ed from rapper Killer Mike.
Hynes has been wearing a brace on his right knee. He told the crowd at Okayplayer's SummerStage concert in New York on Saturday (August 16), "I'd like to introduce you to my alleged torn patella, my kneecap. From my alleged attack at Lollapalooza. I don't mean to take it there, but it's starting to fucking hurt, because I just want to dance."
He also told the crowd, "I can hate fucking abuse of power. And I hate this fucking police state that we're all starting to live in. And I don't mean New York and I don't mean America. I mean the fucking world right now."
In a behind the scenes interview with Okayplayer, he further said, "The photos [from Ferguson] don't even seem real. And this [injured knee] doesn't even seem real. And Eric Garner doesn't seem real real. None of it. You don't want it to be real, and it is. And I don't know what's happening or what's going to happen. With me, it feels like I've been getting poked all my life. It feels like that. Maybe sometimes there's a punch, but it seems like it's just this irritating jab that keeps getting pushed. I think everyone is very tired of it."
He continued, "It feels like in our cultures, you associate time with learning and progression. You assume that in any field in regards to anything, that over a period of time there's a progression and you learn. I think in our culture it's a real shock when you actually realize that doesn't add up in everything. Just because the Civil Rights Act was like 50 years ago, doesn't mean that we're 50 times past it. It's shocking."
Watch the video below to hear Hynes speak on the matter.
Hynes is by no means the first musician to speak out on police brutality in Ferguson. Just yesterday (August 19) we read an op-ed from rapper Killer Mike.
