I've got so much love for this track from Leon Bridges and Terrace Martin, released a couple of weeks ago. Originally written and recorded for a future album, the pair felt compelled by recent events to release the song at once, as it is written from the perspective of a black man taking his last breath and feeling his spirit leave his body.
The video for the track (below) was directed by Leon's longtime photographer and collaborator Rambo, and was filmed in the neighbourhood he grew up in in Texas. It's a family affair, featuring his father and friends from childhood - Leon explains "I wanted to shine a light on the black community in Fort Worth, and specifically my childhood community from the Southside of Fort Worth. I had my friends and family with me; this is a celebration of our Blackness."
Leon says "growing up in Texas I have personally experienced racism, my friends have experienced racism. From adolescence we are taught how to conduct ourselves when we encounter police to avoid the issues of police brutality. The death of George Floyd was the straw that broke the camel's back for me. It was the first time I wept for a man I never met. I am George Floyd, my brothers are George Floyd, and my sisters are George Floyd. I cannot and will not be silent any longer."
Terrace adds that "it is always an honor to share a platform with my dear brother Leon Bridges. This is meditation music; it is not music for the ears but rather music for the heart. I truly believe that eyes have been deceiving us for so long but the heart always tells the truth. The heart needs to be repaired. Black folk have been deceived so many years, the only thing that can turn it around is a heart full of love."
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