On August 9 in Ferguson, Missouri, 18-year-old Michael Brown was shot to death by a police officer. The incident resulted in protestors who criticized the police’s use of excessive force to kill an unarmed teenager who was only days away from starting college. The protests were met with a militarized police response that has included armored trucks, rifles and tear gas. As more evidence emerges in the case, and tension stiffens between law enforcement and peaceful demonstrators, Hip Hop artists like Killer Mike have spoken out in the media. As the situation continues past its second week, the following rappers have released songs dedicated to Ferguson.
J. Cole – “Be Free”
“Can you tell me why every time I step outside/ I see my niggas down/ Ooh, I’m letting you know/ That it ain’t no gun they can make that could kill my soul oh no”
G-Unit – “Ahhh Shit”
“Ever since Mike Brown went down/ My whole city like ‘fuck a cop’/ Run the red light, fuck the stop/ Bust his head when you pump the glock”
T.I. f. Skylar Grey – “New National Anthem”
“Home of the brave and free (It’s America)/ Free just to murder me (land of the handgun)/ Land of the beautiful (home of the shotgun)/ Cursed by the hate we throw (You’re dead if you ain’t got one)/ Is this the new national anthem (It was like this before I got here baby, I ain’t do it)/ Is this the new national anthem (I ain’t start it, I’m just a part of it)”
Lauryn Hill – “Black Rage (Sketch)”
“Black Rage is founded on denial of self!/ Black human packages tied in subsistence/ having to justify very existence/ Try if you must but you can’t have my soul/ Black Rage Is made by ungodly control!”
Dizzy Wright f. Nikkiya – “I Need Answers”
“Do we always feel like a target/ If I know it’s because of my skin what do you call it?/ I need answers man/ Do they kill us when they feel uncomfortable/ This shit is dysfunctional/ lost one of my homies about a month ago”
Elle Varner – “One Love”
“Now can you imagine if you couldn’t imaging/ The level of violence in parts of the world that perpetually happens/ Like if you were just shopping or stuck in a drive thru/ And all of a sudden you look up and boom somebody bombs you”
MC Keem – “Frontline (They Don’t Really Care)”
“This is the scenario/ go check the news audio/ callin us some animals before the riots started bro/ then answer the equation this is one of the most racists places you can ever stay in the nation”
Joyner Lucas – “Dear America (Don’t Shoot)”
“So much drama I got the fucking goosebumps/ word down to Ferguson they’re murdering the youth, y’all”
CityStylez – “St. Louis R.I.P. Michael Brown Tribute”
“Nobody promised tomorrow/ we’re killing each other, nobody cares/ they screaming black and white instead of doing it right/ Look at these kids who gon be there?”
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