“Land of the Free,” Joey Bada$$
Brooklyn’s Joey Bada$$ is one of the most powerful voices of his generation.
The way that he balances his understanding of street culture and Blackness in relationship with American politics, sets him apart from the rest of his Mil-GenYs — directly aligning him in the tradition of other Brooklyn Golden Era rappers.
He raps with the understanding that his mic is on and people are listening. In his song, “Land of the Free,” off the ALL-AMERIKKKAN BADA$$ album, he speaks as an American son sharing the neglect he feels from his mother country. Intentionally released on Joey’s birthday and the same day as President Trump’s inauguration, Joey is fully aware of the weightiness of the moment. He is aware of the tide that the incoming president will wash over 2017 and the toxic splash it continues to make.
Verse by verse, he dances with the struggles of being Black in the three K’d America, while also trying to do justice the rich legacy he inherited from his enslaved ancestors. He opts not to fall victim to the propaganda of this nation’s promised equity, and push for seat at the table.
“Sometimes I speak and I feel like it ain’t my words … Like I’m just a vessel channeling inside this universe … I feel my ancestors arrested inside of me … It’s like they want me to shoot my chance and change society … But how do I go about it? Tell me where I start? My destiny rerouted when I chose to follow heart … You told to follow suit, but tell me what it do for you? Except weigh you down, now you trapped inside the cubicle they built for us … The first step in the change is to take notice … Realize the real games that they tried to show us … 300 plus years of them cold shoulders … Yet 300 million of us still got no focus”
In conversations about the song, he attributes its almost homiletical message to his ability to tap into a “higher frequency.” He states that he is aware that he is a vessel that these higher frequencies are choosing to use for a higher purpose and that in essence, “Land of the Free” is a manifestation of this. This song is not just a political outcry, but an unapologetic vibe that proves that you can be cool and aware in the same breath.
“Sorry, America, but I will not be your soldier. Obama just wasn’t enough – I need some more closure … Donald Trump is not equipped to take this country over … Let’s face facts ’cause we know what’s the real motives.”