Music: Derek Minor – Free

Unable to sleep on a Tuesday night after watching a graphic video of Baton Rouge, Louisiana police officers killing Alton Sterling, Derek Minor wrote and recorded a song as part of his grieving process over the tragedy titled “Free”.


LYRICS:

They gone tell me be quiet, they gone say I’m stirring up the pot
They gone say I’m too emotional, they gone say I need to calm down
Usually I hold it in, I don’t wanna mess the paper up
I don’t wanna be too aggressive, that could make you uncomfortable
But do you know what that feel like, handcuffed scared for you life
Pray to God he ain’t had a bad day, this could be your very last night
This so exhausting, Lord knows we tired
They say wait for the facts like I can’t believe my eyes
Wake me up from this nightmare. Tell me that this ain’t true
Do black men have rights, Do black men bear the image of God too
Cause if we do, then tell me, why we always get shot down
Why we can’t get a trial date, Why is death the only answer now
I know that it’s good cops, word to officer Fitzgerald at my church
But tell me why the bad cops never get to see the justice system work
But I know the Lord still just, and I know he still love us
But I’m starting feel in America
The justice system means just us

And I don’t have no explanation, I’m just hurt
And I know that it’s complicated, but it still hurts
If we supposed to be free, why it feel like chains hanging on me x8

Listen homie keep your head up, yea I know you prolly fed up
It feel like they ain’t hearing us, feel like they only fearing us
All I know is that we hear today, there’s a God and he feel our pain
All I know is every time we pray, he’ll be there to wipe our tears away
We are more than criminals, we are more than imbeciles
Our fathers ain’t all dead beats, we ain’t all thugging in the streets
The Land of opportunity is only for the ones with opportunity
We just trying to catch up, years after slavery
All that I’m saying, is it’s complicated and I don’t get all of it
But all that I know is this pain in my heart, oh yea I feel all of it
I know the Lord still just, and I know he still love us
But I’m starting feel in America
The justice system means just us

And I don’t have no explanation, I’m just hurt
And I know that it’s complicated, but it still hurts
If we supposed to be free, why it feel like chains hanging on me x8

David Daniels
David Daniels
David Daniels is a columnist at Rapzilla.com and the managing editor of LegacyDisciple.org. He has been published at Desiring God, The Gospel Coalition, Christianity Today, CCM Magazine, Bleacher Report, The Washington Times and HipHopDX.
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