Some videos are simply too powerful to ever be ignored. Some music is too critical to the times to not be shared. Which is why it is my honor to share Blackalicious' first set of visuals to come from Imani, Vol. 1, their disrupter of social injustices everywhere -- their video for On Fire Tonight ft. Myron.
The visuals for this song are powerful. These are visuals I love simply for how they affect me and will affect others with the conversations they will spark, whether you agree with the content or not. This video takes the issue of police brutality and puts it directly in your face. Blackalicious replays footage of unjust killings by police of unarmed black men and women in the face of those that want to deny or consciously choose to look the other way when these things happen, and in the support of the people that are on the streets chanting "hands up don't shoot". It's on display for everyone on all sides of the spectrum to see, and that's what I love about it. Blackalicious keeps the conversation alive with an extra flame under it to make sure this won't be looked over. And this especially affected me. I won't front, it was hard reliving the scenes of senseless killings. Each scene gripped my heart tighter and tighter, making sure I never forget the viciousness. But the way they counteracted my feelings of distress was pure art.
The visuals shift to the focus of these gorgeous black queens poetically moving to Gift of Gab's truthful bars, and Myron's passionate inner light exposing vocals throughout this video. These glowing black women just radiate power to me. Chief Xcel's beat reinforces that power with confidence. The music working with the visuals do a dope job at showing the fire in everyone's eyes, and reflecting the universe in the skin of these beautiful women. Seeing these women move in such an aesthetically pleasing way as nude silhouettes conveyed the vulnerability of On Fire Tonight. They showed black women being the center of the universe. And I agree. Black women are the strongest, most beautiful roots of humanity and the visuals display this wonderfully. They show that we still exist in a positive light, despite our bleak reality of police brutality. I saw this video as a message of resilience, a message of hope. And it's something people most definitely need to see. They left me more motivated, more pro black than I already was, and hollering what a glorious time it is to be black. Because black excellence (which has always been glorious) is truly blossoming in a different way lately. And it is an excellence that I'm proud to be a part of.
Watch the On Fire Tonight visuals below.
Lead Photo Cred: capradio.org
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