Freedom: a Black History Month Playlist

As Black History Month comes to a close, I wanted to take another moment to sit and think about the importance of this special period of time through the appreciation of music as a form of expression. For this reason, I made a playlist to highlight the Black experience across time and through different eyes, all sharing the same ongoing story of an important march towards freedom and equality. You can find the playlist on Spotify at this link.

Lift Every Voice and Sing - James Weldon Johnson and J. Rosamond Johnson (1905), performed by The Boys Choir of Harlem (2001)
Lift every voice and sing,
’Til earth and heaven ring,
Ring with the harmonies of Liberty

This hymn is a prayer of thanksgiving as well as one of faithfulness and freedom, with imagery relating to the book of Exodus. It speaks of slavery and the freedom of the “promised land.” The NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) began promoting this hymn as the “Black National Anthem,” and it has grown in popularity since the George Floyd protests in 2020. In fact, in 2021, Congressional Representative Jim Clyburn sponsored a bill which sought to make this song the national hymn of the United States.

Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child - performed by Paul Robeson (1926)
Sometimes I feel like a motherless child,
A long way from home, a long way from home

This song is a traditional spiritual song dating back to the era of slavery in the United States. It was very popular during the Civil Rights movement, and to this day has many variations and recordings. The song touches on feelings of hopelessness, alienation, and the absence of familial ties. Paul Robeson was in fact the son of a runaway slave and faced racial prejudice during his time as a star athlete at Rutgers University, so this song held a lot of meaning for him personally.

Go Down Moses - performed by Louis Armstrong (1958)
The Lord said 'Go down, Moses
Way down in Egypt land
Tell all Pharaohs to
Let My People Go’

This song, similarly to “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” was an important spiritual, and touched on the themes of seeking freedom as God’s children, as the Israelites did upon escaping Egypt. It describes an important idea that God upholds those who are persecuted and hurt, and spreads a very positive and optimistic message. Armstrong used this song as a protest song, defying the idea that the Black community should leave politics and social commentaries out of their music.

Strange Fruit - Billie Holiday (1939)
Southern trees bear strange fruit
Blood on the leaves and blood at the root
Black bodies swinging in the Southern breeze
Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees

This song was inspired by the poem of the same name, written by Abel Meerpol, a Jewish-American teacher and songwriter, after having seen the photograph of the lynching of Thomas Shipp and Abram Smith in 1930. The poem expressed disgust and horror concerning the inhumane lynchings that were targeting the Black population. He added music to the verses, and the song became a major hit, spreading awareness and becoming an important protest tool in New York.

Mississippi Goddam - Nina Simone (1964)
Hound dogs on my trail
School children sitting in jail
Black cat cross my path
I think every day’s gonna be my last

Nina Simone was an American singer-songwriter and civil rights activist. She not only raised concerns and supported the Civil Rights movement, but went beyond that, challenging eurocentric standards among POC. This song was Nina Simone’s “first civil rights song” according to her, composed in under an hour by herself, and later released in her album “Nina Simone in Concert” (1964). It is one of her most famous protest songs and self-written compositions, and in 2019, it was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recordings Registry.

Say It Loud – I’m Black and Proud - James Brown (1968)
I worked on jobs with my feet and my hands
But all the work I did was for the other man
Now we demand a chance to do things for ourselves
We're tired of beating our head against the wall
And working for someone else
Say it loud: I'm black and I'm proud!

This is a funk song released as a two-part single, and it rapidly became the unofficial anthem of the Black Power movement. In the song, Brown addresses the need for Black empowerment and addresses the need for the denouncement of racism in the United States. It urges people to stand up for themselves and be proud of their heritage instead of ashamed.

To Be Young, Gifted, and Black - Nina Simone (1969)
In the whole world you know
There's a million boys and girls
Who are young, gifted and black
And that's a fact

This song was also considered one of the anthems of the Civil Rights movement. It was written in memory of Simone’s late friend, Lorraine Hansberry, the author of the play “A Raisin in the Sun.” Its lyrics serve to showcase the amazing capabilities of young Black people and how the world needs their talents. It is inviting all to take action and to not underestimate their gifts.

The Revolution Will Not Be Televised - Gil Scott-Heron (1971)
There will be no pictures of you and Willie Mays
Pushing that shopping cart down the block on the dead run
Or trying to slide that color TV into a stolen ambulance
NBC will not be able predict the winner at 8:32
Or report from 29 districts
The revolution will not be televised

The song title was very popular in the 1960s during the Black Power movement, before the song had even come to fruition. This piece alludes to many important events in Black history and even daily occurrences that the Black community went through, trying to rally the people together and urging them not to sit back, but to take action. After its release in 1971, it was used to showcase a strong message of righteous anger and political assertiveness, and was honored as one of the top 20 political songs in history.

What’s Going On - Marvin Gaye (1971)
Father, father
We don't need to escalate
You see, war is not the answer
For only love can conquer hate
You know we've got to find a way
To bring some lovin' here today

The song was composed by Renaldo Benson with the help of Al Cleveland and Marvin Gaye, after he witnessed a police brutality incident during an anti-war protest. The song calls for a stop to violence, urging people to turn to peace and love one another instead. It shows the world as a confusing place, where chaos and bloodshed have unjustly taken the place of human compassion.

Glory - Common and John Legend (2014)
We sing, our music is the cuts that we bleed through
Somewhere in the dream we had an epiphany
Now we right the wrongs in history
No one can win the war individually
It takes the wisdom of the elders and young people's energy
Welcome to the story we call victory
The comin' of the Lord, my eyes have seen the glory

This song was released as the theme song of the 2014 film “Selma.” The film was about the 1965 Selma to Montgomery voting rights marches, starring David Oyewolo and Oprah Winfrey. The song itself speaks volumes about the need for freedom and equality, bringing in religion, social justice, and hope for the future all together in one song.

This is America - Childish Gambino (2018)
This is America
Don't catch you slippin' now
Look at how I'm livin' now
Police be trippin' now
Yeah, this is America
Guns in my area
I got the strap
I gotta carry 'em

This song contains many allusions to the problematic aspects of the American Dream, such as “acculturation, the toxic embrace of capitalism and consumerism, both at the expense of spirituality, where one's history and community are gunned down in pursuit of a toxic American dream.” There is much symbolism in the music video and many references to events such as the Charleston Church shooting in 2015. The song seeks to sensibilize the people to America’s reality as an unjust country where inequality and racism are still very much present.

Freedom (feat. Kendrick Lamar) - Beyoncé (2016)
Freedom, cut me loose
Singin', freedom
Freedom
Where are you?
'Cause I need freedom, too
I break chains all by myself
Won't let my freedom rot in hell
Hey! I'ma keep running
'Cause a winner don't quit on themselves

The song places a lot of importance on being the architect of your own happiness, and after its release, it was called on many instances an anthem for African American empowerment. Both Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar touch on sensitive issues relating to racism dating as far back as the slavery era. They both call for perseverance and spread the message that whatever the Black community will go through, they will always overcome.

I hope that as Black History Month comes to an end, we will all collectively make it our mission to still be active in our actions to seek equality for all, as freedom and awareness are not constrained only to one month in the year, but are an ongoing process in which all are responsible. Happy BHM!