Music For Right Now

Over the past few weeks and in the wake of George Floyd’s death at the hands of the Minneapolis police, black artists have released a multitude of music that is a must-listen. On this edition of All Songs Considered, we hear from five of them.

Gary Clark Jr. is joined by Black Thought and The Roots to rework “This Land,” a song he put out last year that speaks to the racism he sees as a 6’5″ black man. Chloë Nixon, just 16 years old, finds it hard to feel safe around law enforcement because of her skin color. Fantastic Negrito puts himself in the position of a violent perpetrator on “How Long?”, while Leon Bridges writes from the perspective of a black man taking his last breath in the grip of an oppressor. And in her song “Black Like Me,” singer Mickey Guyton shares what it’s like to feel unheard and unseen as an African-American woman in country music.

1. Gary Clark Jr. And The Roots, “This Land (Remix)” (feat. Black Thought)

2. Chloë Nixon, “I Can’t Breathe”

3. Fantastic Negrito, “How Long?”

4. Leon Bridges, “Sweeter” (feat. Terrace Martin)

5. Mickey Guyton, “Black Like Me”

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