The current political and social climate in the U.S. seems to be a powder keg waiting to go off, especially with the increased reporting and public knowledge of instances of police brutality. The recent case in Dallas in which an officer shot and killed an unarmed man in his own apartment only adds more fuel to this fire. Artists are starting to make music that speaks out. Daniel Crawford is one such artist, and he's using his music to do the talking with his upcoming album Revolution and its lead single "Sirens."
Daniel, who just dropped his surprise funk EP Shake Your Body, speaks to the heart of Black America with the jazzy, neo-soul-like groove of "Sirens." He makes the keys speak in a way that talks both to the mind and soul while enlisting musical friend Jimetta Rose to lay down a haunting vocal to make us all think. "Sirens for some can mean / Help is on the way / Or it can mean / Put your hands up," she sings. It points out that while police sirens should mean help and safety, for blacks in America it can mean something far more sinister. However, though some choose to ignore the problem and to attempt to erase their pain, Jimetta has an important question at hand: "We've committed no crime / Or is it a crime to exist?" The song's lyric video brings the words of the track into focus with images of protest and civil unrest — as well as images of unarmed black men, women, girls and boys gunned down at the hands of the boys in blue.
With Daniel Crawford's penchant for speaking out about issues of injustice, we're sure that Revolution will have much more social commentary where that came from. The set, which will also feature appearances from DJ Jazzy Jeff, Osunlade, Omari Hardwick and a few others, is set to drop on October 16th.
