Sounds of Liberation: Freedom forward playlist

Justice She Wrote's Sounds of Liberation series pays homage to the musical expressions that keep us alive and dreaming. This musical offering is a compilation of songs to move us forward. An affirmation of our weary feelings and belief that we are more than this moment.  The choice to take care of ourselves and show up for our community is vital!  We keep marching forward towards freedom.  This is a meditative playlist and it is encouraged that you truly listen to the words of each song and preferably in the order that they are arranged. This playlist is on various platforms and linked at the end of this blog post.

Featured Artists & Songs

Solange’s songs Weary and Mad from her album, A Seat at the Table. I was in college when A Seat at the Table debuted and as Black girl attending a PWI this album was and continues to be a testimony for many Black women. This album was released just a few months prior to the 2016 Presidential Election and I remember so many of my friends and I listening to the whole album and really taking it all in, but in particular Weary and Mad resonated with us as we faced hatred on our campuses and sought out community to stay sane. 

I thoroughly enjoy aja monet’s poetry and have featured her work several times on Justice She Wrote. Her debut album, when the poems do what they do, has been on rotation for me for nearly a year and a half. The poems are filled with instructions on being, loving, and organizing for a better tomorrow. Monet’s poems: for sonia, for the kids, and the devil you know, lift up the struggles of this world and how we have and continue to raise our voices and “it begins with you loving you enough to love me as i am you.” Additionally, I have included love supreme and deeply rooted which are both featured on eryn allen kane’s EP a tree planted by water, which kane calls an ode to Black women. I would include the entire album on this playlist if I could, but I encourage everyone reading this to listen to this EP and let the words and music speak to you. 

Kirby’s Take Care and Black Leaves-This playlist is composed of primarily southern Black artists, so it would be incomplete without a feature from Mississippi’s own, KIRBY. Take Care is a beautiful reminder to take care of ourselves amidst all of our other responsibilities. I also added Black Leaves  because I am a proud daughter of a Mississippi man and this song reminds me of him and the history he would tell about growing up as a Black boy in Mississippi and the history the state holds.  

MAVIS from Jon Batiste’s We Are Album was also necessary for this playlist. This track is spoken by the legendary Mavis Staples. Mavis Staples’ voice is treasured across generations for its soulful sound, and she is the surviving member of  the revered band, The Staple Singers. Nina Simone’s I Wish I Knew How It Feels To Be Free and Revolution, Pts. 1&2 are just a few of the freedom songs that I love from Nina Simone. These two songs honestly speak for themselves. I am reminded of an interview where Nina Simone is asked what freedom means to her and she states, “Freedom to me, means no fear.” As I write about Nina Simone’s interview, I am also reminded of an interview with Sonia Sanchez, where she shares a conversation  she had with Zora Neale Hurston on fear, love, and freedom. 

I also wanted to make sure that Sweet Honey in the Rock was in this playlist because they have consistently contributed to the soundtrack of freedom fighters. "I'm Gon Stand" is a reminder that we will not tolerate injustice, racism, or sexism.

Aretha Franklin’s Someday We’ll All Be Free originally performed by Donny Hathaway is reflective, but also optimistic. We must have hope that we can work towards a better world.  more by Mereba in her album, The Jungle Is the Only Way Out also speaks for itself.  A reminder that we must continue to “write more, freedom fight more, and seek insight more” on this freedom journey.

Finally, to end this playlist, I chose Sing Out/March On by Joshuah Campbell. I remember watching this song performed by Joshuah and graduates at Harvard’s commencement, where they were honoring the late John Lewis and I think it narrates his life and fight for equality so perfectly, but it also serves a charge to us to continue to march on.

Thanks for listening! I hope it speaks to you.

In freedom, 

MJ 

Apple Music

YouTube Playlist