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H.E.R. has shared a powerful new song ‘I Can’t Breathe’ in response to the death of George Floyd in Minnesota last month. You can watch the performance below.
Introducing the song during an episode of the HeartRadio Living Room Concert Series, H.E.R. said the song was inspired by recent events in the US.
Floyd, 46, died in Minneapolis on May 25 following an altercation with police officers. Floyd, who was African American, was killed when a white police officer appeared to kneel on his neck as he lay on the ground during an arrest. Mass protests across the US and all over the world have followed in the wake of Floyd’s death.
H.E.R. said: “Just by the title, you know that it means something very, very kind of painful and very revealing.
“These lyrics were kind of easy to write because it came from a conversation with what’s happening right now, what’s been happening, and the change that we need to see. I think music is powerful when it comes to change and when it comes to healing, and that’s why I wrote this song, to make a mark in history. And I hope this song does that.”
After playing the song, H.E.R. covered Green Day‘s ‘Boulevard of Broken Dreams’ from ‘American Idiot.’ You can see the performance below:
Earlier this week, The Killers shared a live performance of a new version of ‘Land Of The Free’, which included lyrics about Floyd.
This revised version of the band’s 2019 stand-alone single comes as many artists have taken to writing protest songs in the wake of Floyd’s death.
Meek Mill released an emotive protest song, ‘Otherside of America’, on which he explores inequality and racism in America and opens with comments US President Donald Trump made about the Black community in 2016.
Other artists releasing protest songs in recent weeks include Elvis Costello and Trey Songz whilst others, including Bruce Springsteen and Jay-Z, have shared protest playlists.
A large number of names from across the worlds of music and entertainment have publicly called for justice for George Floyd following his death, including Killer Mike,Beyonce, Ice Cube, Janelle Monae, Billie Eilish, Jay-Z, Adele and Travis Scott.
Officer Derek Chauvin has been sacked and charged with second-degree murder and manslaughter. Three of his colleagues, Thomas Lane, Tou Thao and J Alexander Keung are now all facing charges of aiding and abetting second-degree murder, and aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter.
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