Pain & Perseverance.
I always love any chance I get to write a thought piece. I'm just glad I get to link that with my first love, music. Kafele came to me a few months back asking was I attending the
Million Man March. I wasn't sure but he proposed we used our talents to curate a mix for the people. So with this platform and his skills behind the wheels of steel I couldn't refuse. With this mix we'll revisit old jams to contemporary songs that represent our struggle and what it means to be black and in America. So we empty into our nation's capital for the 20th anniversary of the Million Man March enjoy these tunes. Our cries over time have been reprised in protest and also in music. Join us in a trip from Jay-Z and Lupe Fiasco to The Roots and Mos Def. This was an amazing way to combine the two, and as always, Justice or Else! Below is the mix and a track listing containing a synopsis of its relevance to the mix written by Kafele Thomas.
Room 306 -
Mickey Factz
"You know we are kings and queens/mistaken for the enemy/You know we will overcome/We won't stop 'til the race is won"
The story of Pain & Perseverance begins with the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Many people point to this event as the beginning of the dissolution of the Civil Rights Movement. After the assassination of many prominent African American leaders, the movement dissipated due to a lack of centralized leaders.
Minority Report – Jay-Z ft. Ne-Yo
“Then it wasn’t on the nightly news no
more/Suddenly, it doesn’t matter to you no more"
Hurricane
Katrina was a tragedy for America as a whole, but especially devastating for
the black citizens of New Orleans. Due to decades of redlining and
discriminatory housing practices, blacks in New Orleans were forced to live in
the lowest lying neighborhoods such as the 9th Ward. When Katrina hit, those
neighborhoods were the hardest hit and unfortunately the least cared for. Media
coverage was specifically naming African American citizens as “looters” and
“refugees”, when they were simply people trying to survive after their
countrymen abandoned them. This built up to Kanye West’s penultimate moment and
one of the most important events in TV history “George Bush doesn’t care about
Black people.” Even though we can all agree “Kingdom Come” was a dud, I think
this is low-key one of Jay’s best tracks. You can hear his pain and disgust.
Hov has never been a rapper who shows his emotion through his rhymes so the
rawness of the track really pops out at you.
Don’t Feel Right – The Roots
“When the fridgerator’s nekkid and the
cupboard’s is bare/People gotta strip nekkid and stick’ em up in the air”
Black Thought
has always been an MC who always is in tune with current events and uses his
music as a social tool. Don’t Feel Right describes one of the biggest issues
affecting the black community – the lack of opportunity. Institutional racism
keeps African-Americans segregated in communities with low property value, a
small amount of jobs, poor schools, and crumbling infrastructure. The old
saying “If I can’t work to make it, I’ll rob to take it” is one of the
unfortunate laws of life in the inner city, which is the story of the next
track…
A Tale of Two Citiez – J. Cole
“I look around like ‘Do you wanna be
another nigga who ain’t ever have things? Guess not/ Last night, we pulled up
on a nigga at the light like../ ‘Nice watch.. Run it."
Cole’s story
shows how “If I can’t work to make it, I’ll rob to take it” sucks all people
forced into these communities to play the game, whether willing participants or
not. Cole tells the story of being broke in the hood and realizing that dire
situations bring out the worst in people. Cole’s boy got jacked for his watch
in the first verse, but by the end of the song Cole and his boys are the ones
pulling the stick up moves, due to a lack of opportunities to get out of the hood
the legal way. The rules of street life are messy and bloody, which in turns
creates the biggest media farce of our time “Black on Black Crime”
Blacker the Berry – Kendrick Lamar
“You sabotaged my community making a
killing/ You made me a killer/ The emancipation of a real nigga”
K. Dot’s
track is raw anger. He lashes out at America for putting the African-American
community in the lose-lose game that it’s in and also his fellow brothers for
perpetuating violence. In the track Kendrick refers to himself as a hypocrite
for being mad at white America at large when black men and women kill each
other every day. “Black on black crime” is a nonsense term that permeates
through society as an excuse for why black people haven’t received our
inalienable rights provided to us by the Constitution. Throughout history,
violent crime often occurs in poor communities and crimes are committed by
those who live in close proximity. Since most black people have been
institutionalized into ghettos via the government and banks via predatory
loans, most violent crime in the inner city is committed by those of the same
racial background. “Black on Black crime” is the same as “White on White
crime”, or “Asian on Asian crime”, but unfortunately, only one ethnic group
gets that tag from the media.
Freedom Ain’t Free – Lupe Fiasco
“Say that we should protest just to
get arrested/ That goes against all my hustlin’ ethics/ A bunch of jail niggas
say that’s highly ineffective/ Depart from Martin/ Connect on Malcolm X tip.”
Lupe’s track that samples the classic Pete Rock jam T.R.O.Y shows how the “American Dream” sold to us is fool’s gold. Not only does it
leave behind many Americans behind, but America is built on resources from poor
countries full of black and brown people via globalization. The realization
that to fund the pockets of the 1%, billions of people are being shut out of
prosperity to keep the machine running is disheartening. This track came out
right after the Occupy Wall Street Movement and showed the violent response by
the police to protesters and the trampling of our rights to assemble. The cold
hard evidence that the powers that be aren’t interested in improve the lives of
many is the root of this track’s feeling of futility and hopelessness.
The Pessimist – Wale ft. J. Cole
“Got a pocket full of lint again, but
it make no difference to me/ Fallin’ out with my friends again, but it makes no
difference to me/ Goddamn, I’m hopeless/ Oh man, I’m hopeless”
The
Pessimist is the build-up of all these issues. The feeling of hopelessness and
despair is soul-crushing. Wale points to how so many different things are
holding him back and not knowing how to find the silver lining. Life as a black
man in America often feels like everyone is aiming at you and trying to kill
you and your success. Your own community might throw shade at you for being one
of the few to make it out of the hood, while you are facing institutional
racism and a lack of acceptance by mainstream America unless you agree to fully
assimilate into their culture. Cole’s line in the hook “still I pray” speaks to
the church as a sanctuary for blacks throughout our history. The ability to
pray for a better day shows our perseverance through all this pain we endure.
Don’t – Juicy J
“They talk about peace/but how that’s
gon’ be/ when police leaving young niggas dead in the street”
Juicy J’s
track Don’t is short, but powerful, especially coming from a supposed
Commercial artist like him. The track speaks to the overflow of anger at police
brutality and how as Martin Luther King Jr. stated “Riot is the language of the
unheard”. In Baltimore, Ferguson, New York, Charleston, Los Angeles, and
countless other cities and towns throughout America, black people are often
looked at as menaces and terrors for how we dress, act, and talk. We’re always
followed in stores, stopped unnecessarily by the police, stared at when we’re
somewhere we’re “not supposed to be”. Our mothers warn us about interactions
with the police every day when we leave the house as children not knowing
whether we’ll make it back in safely. America’s innate fear of the black body
causes tension and hostility that builds up and boils over during these
senseless killings.
Animals – Dr. Dre ft. Anderson.Paak
“Please don’t come around these parts/
And tell us we’re a bunch of animals/ The only time they wanna turn the cameras
on/ Is when we’re fucking shit up”
During the
protests this summer, media coverage and social media was filled with people
from outside the African-American community judging us for our anger. A lot of
these people forget that America was founded off of violent protest (Boston Tea
Party, anyone?). The issues that go on in the inner city aren’t spoken about
and addressed by the mainstream media, but when the riots occurred that was
where all of the media focus was. This only serves to perpetuate the stereotype
of violent scary nature and that an angry black populous is something for White
America to be very afraid of. Most of the media and talking heads, don’t care
about the systemic issues plaguing our community, but are only interested in the
reaction for TV ratings. It speaks to America’s obsession with addressing the symptoms
of the disease of racism, rather than focus on a cure to eradicate it.
Mr. Nigga – Mos Def
“They say they want you successful/
but then they make it stressful/ You start keeping pace/ and they start
changing up the tempo”
Mos Def in
his classic, witty way describes how even when a black man manages to use his
abilities to be one of the few to escape the perils of the ‘hood, he is faced
with a world who doesn’t accept him. If one doesn’t conform to mainstream
America, he is combated with multiple micro-aggressions every single day. From
media persecution, not being able to sit in first class, eat at fancy
restaurants, or drive luxury vehicles without being stared at like you don’t
belong, even with the “American Dream” achieved, we aren’t accepted.
Foreclosures – Rick Ross
“The white man call us stupid niggers/
We spend it all, nothing for our children”
“Foreclosures”
by Rozay is the other side of the tale “Mr. Nigga” told. In the black
community, we have a culture of materialism. Because we’ve never been able to
achieve proper wealth, we spend our money flossing. We take pride in jewelry,
cars, and, clothes more than stocks, bonds, and real estate. Financial education
is severely lacking in our community, so that when we finally do hit our payday
and get money, there’s a good chance that it will disappear just as quickly due
to poor decisions. We’ve all seen the statistics on athletes and musicians
blowing their fortunes. This stops us from building generational wealth that
can further advance our communities.
Murder to Excellence – Jay-Z &
Kanye West
“Only a few blacks, higher I go/
What’s up to Will/ Shoutout to O/ That ain’t enough/ We gon’ need a million
more”
Jay and Ye
dropped a gem speaking of learning to love ourselves and achieve our greatness.
Very few blacks have been able to hit the heights of Jay and Ye and Hov laments
that the more success he achieves, the fewer of his people he sees at that
stature. It really speaks to the exceptionalism that one has to reach to attain
that level of success from one of our communities. Unfortunately, the cards are
stacked against many of us. Many black children are told as kids that we need
to work twice as hard to get half as much, due to the circumstance of the world
we live in. Belief in one’s self and trusting your ability to succeed and
persevere to rise to excellence should be commended.
Alright – Kendrick Lamar
“And we hate po-po/ Wanna kill us dead
in the street fo’ sho’, nigga/ I’m at the preacher’s door/ My knees getting
weak and my gun might blow, but we gon’ be alright”
K. Dot’s
track speaks to the ability to look at the darkness of life, stare it in the
face, and walk boldly ahead. Through all the adversity and pain, we’ve still
managed to accomplish so much. There is a lot to take pride in from our
community. Our culture has persevered through out countless assaults and is a
living, breathing testament to our ability to withstand and remain firm. I left
in Kendrick’s poem because although it’s a personal story, I feel it relates to
all of us in our search for understanding and a place to belong in this world.
Hood Now (Outro) – Lupe Fiasco
“What do you do when it’s so unequal/
Wear Michael Jordan’s with your tuxedo’s/ It’s hood now/ It’s hood now/ Yeah,
yeah it’s hood now”
Lupe’s track is fitting to close with. We’ve
left an undeniable mark on not only pop culture, but America as a whole. Our
ability to make lemonade out of the sourest lemons ever created is to be
celebrated. Although fought a long, exhausting fight.. a fight where we’ve been
knocked down repeatedly, we’ve never been knocked out. We’ve taken haymakers,
got back up, and kept on swinging. Chipping away at the roadblock of racism in
our way with jabs and hooks. Every generation before us has weakened it and
left our mark on this world and it’s our duty to continue the fight.
