Amid mass protests globally following the death of George Floyd who was killed by police, Childish Gambino’s confronting track ‘This Is America’ surges in streams.
Protests and rioting continue to rage on in the fight of justice for 46-year-old George Floyd who was killed by police on Monday, May 25th. Floyd’s death has been ruled murder by asphyxiation after a Minneapolis police officer placed his knee in the crook of Floyd’s neck causing him to be unable to breathe.
This event sparked public outcry around the world for justice to be delivered in the name of Black Lives Matter, prompting many musicians to speak out, and relevant music to surge in streams.
While Gary Clark Jr. shares his thoughts on what it’s like to be racially profiled, and Nick Cannon releases an emotional spoken word piece about George Floyd, the world has taken to the realm of music to understand these trying times with both N.W.A.’s ‘Fuck Tha Police’ quadrupling in streams, and Childish Gambino’s ‘This Is America’ similarly spiking with streaming services.
The confronting song and video released back in 2018 surrounds the idea of what life is like in America as an African American, from racial injustice, violence, and how racism is still alive in this modern era.
According to Forbes, ‘This Is America’ saw a major spike on Spotify amid the protests calling for justice for George Floyd. Tuesday, June 2nd saw the single soar from No. 97 to No. 2 via Spotify’s U.S. charts, gaining 1.117 million streams in the process.
Speaking on the single when it released in 2018, Childish Gambino noted that the song serves as a reminder that these events keep happening, and that every single time it happens, we all ask the question, “again?”.
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“There’s nothing worst than like a third sequel, like a third movie and we’re like, ‘again?'”
Check out ‘This Is America’ by Childish Gambino:
