A series of pride parades took place across capital cities last weekend, including massive celebrations in New York and London; and in the spirit of that American hip hop artist Vic Mensa has unveiled a new politically charged release.
Mensa has teamed up with a heap of LGBT advocates including Halsey, Lil B, Malik Yusef and openly gay rapper Le1f to write Free Love; a track that addresses LGBT issues and the importance of pride.
Ahead of the release, Mensa took to Twitter with a statement, explaining why he was motivated to write the song and how a family member coming out affecting his life. “I saw a photo on CNN of 49 birds flying over a vigil they were holding for the 49 souls lost at Pulse nightclub,” he said. “I found beauty in that image.”
“We have to be removed from our comfort zone to be able to grow,” Mensa continued. “I realise now that as a creature of love, the battles of all people fighting to love are also mine. And I will stand with them. Will you?”
Lyrics on the track such as “You can fuck who you want to fuck, you can love who you want to love,” and “If you pride put your lighters up, they can’t fight this flame we burning,” leave little doubt as how Mensa and his collaborators feel about the issues still surrounding LGBT rights.
Read the full statement and listen to Free Love, below
https://twitter.com/VicMensa/status/747199001494093825?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
