Much dialogue has been opened up in the wake of last weekend's shooting death of Ferguson, MO teen Michael Brown at the hands of a police officer, bringing to light issues of race, police brutality, imbalanced media representation, the right to protest and more. J. Cole has now weighed in on this week's events with a powerful, passionate song titled "Be Free."
Dedicated to Brown, the song finds Cole crooning atop the warming though weeping tones of an electric piano, pleading for peace and unity, a fairness society has not afforded. Raw and vulnerable, Cole's nearly-in-tears performance takes aim at gun violence, the stand-your-ground law, and delivers the message "All we want to do is take the chains off / All we want to do is be free." The track also features haunting clips news reports from last week's shooting.
"Rest in Peace to Michael Brown and to every young black man murdered in America, whether by the hands of white or black," Cole said in a statement. "I pray that one day the world will be filled with peace and rid of injustice. Only then will we all Be Free."
Dedicated to Brown, the song finds Cole crooning atop the warming though weeping tones of an electric piano, pleading for peace and unity, a fairness society has not afforded. Raw and vulnerable, Cole's nearly-in-tears performance takes aim at gun violence, the stand-your-ground law, and delivers the message "All we want to do is take the chains off / All we want to do is be free." The track also features haunting clips news reports from last week's shooting.
"Rest in Peace to Michael Brown and to every young black man murdered in America, whether by the hands of white or black," Cole said in a statement. "I pray that one day the world will be filled with peace and rid of injustice. Only then will we all Be Free."