Message from the South side is a song that I wrote to talk about how African Americans are being treated as a whole. The inspiration behind this song were the protests that were going on due to the George floyd injustice and the police brutality. Both of my parents are Nigerian so my skin color is still considered black. This means that I face the same discrimination as an average African American Woman. I wrote this song to talk about the challenges we face as African American people and to express some of the things we want to say but feel we can't. The purpose is to help people see what is really going on in our country. This song is a message and I hope everyone hears and understands it.
I truly believe that music is the most pure form of expression that exists in the world. Imbedding things that are important to me in my music is something I always enjoy doing. In the generation I grew up in, I always felt pressure from society to be a certain way. It was hard for me to discover who I really was because I was always ashamed of my true character. This song describes my struggle with self acceptance and articulates a message of originality and self confidence. I hope this inspires others struggling with self acceptance to discover their true colors because after all, we are Perfect As We Are.
"The Last Thing I See" signifies how I would react if I were at the mercy of police brutality. It is a song that gives those who have never been victim to police brutality, a chance to now the fear and confusion that is last felt before a person of color takes his or her final breath.
I had a lot of song ideas about the current issues in our world today and I couldn't decide what topic to choose. What I decided to do is take every issue I approach and witness on a daily basis and write about them all in one song. The more we withstand these issues the longer they will continue so the point of my song is to justify that in itself. Please make a change today as it is vital to our future.
This song touches bases on just a few of the many adversities POC (specifically Black people) face on a daily basis. I talk about racial profiling by the police, police brutality, microagressions, and mass incarceration.
One Winged Angel is a 3 piece band from Durham, ages 13, 14, and 15. The song is about global warming and how humans are destroying the earth(It was written pre-COVID.).
I wrote this song about my life and my experience with addiction in the family system and the growing opioid epidemic. My biological father is an addict, and my mother, brothers and I had to learn to cope with the erratic and ever-changing behaviors it brought about. Though I was originally scared to release it, I received immediate reassurance and found that so many people related to it and found their voice through it. If all I accomplish in my music is giving people a voice by speaking words they are afraid of admitting and giving them something they can relate to, that’s more enough for me. It’s okay not to be okay; it’s okay to be sad, just don’t unpack there. Don’t unpack in a place that leaves you suffering mentally.
The importance of mental health is underrated. In these uncertain times of 2020, stress could come from all types of outlets and staying level headed through it all is key. This song discusses that and gives tips on things you can do to improve your mental health. Mental health is a journey and that journey should be appreciated, this song documents the journey and puts it in perspective.
About the day that I was open and came out to my family, and kind of a fantasy of how I would like my family and how I would like that day to be on the day I get married. "so let the curtains come crashing open tell everyone your finally mine" being honest and open and ok with myself
My song is called “Loyalty”. I always struggled with finding loyal friends. Every time I thought I found a good friend they always proved me wrong. I believe that having good and loyal friends are a huge part of our mental health. I wrote this song to express my feelings about the topic and to tell a story.
"Burned at the Stake" is about the unfair criminal justice system. It was inspired by my English teacher who taught us about social justice issues. I believe it is unfair for people to be treated as second-class citizens after one mistake.
As men, we have understood first hand what toxic masculinity does to someone. It confines the actions of men and the possibilities of women. We want to eliminate the expectations of how men are, and aren’t supposed to act, dress, speak, and even live. The three of us have all changed the way we have acted to fit in at one point in our lives. As we have gotten older, we realize that locking ourselves inside a norm wasn’t the way to act. In our song, we speak about our own experiences and everything we have dealt with, and specifically not allowing the stereotype of being masculine stand in the way of supporting and caring for your brothers and friends. While you listen, I hope you listen to our anecdotes and resonate to what we have to say. Song by Emry Herring, Jesus Garcia and Jhaiell Kilgore.
