Chi-town natives Common and BJ The Chicago Kid took to the stage on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon last night for a soul-stirring performance of his explosive and politically relevant lead single and title track “Black America Again” to his album scheduled to be released November 4th on ARTium/Def Jam Recordings.
The song’s socially conscious message resonates with scorching yet uplifting power, akin to Common’s groundbreaking 2014 single from the Selma movie soundtrack, “Glory” (with John Legend) for which they received Oscar, Grammy®, Golden Globe, and numerous other awards.
BLACK AMERICA AGAIN, the 11th studio album from Common, is the long-awaited follow-up to Nobody’s Smiling (2014), his debut on No ID’s ARTium/Def Jam Recordings venture, which entered the Rap and R&B charts at #1. The album marked a creative reunion between Common and long-time friend and collaborator No I.D., who came of age in the ’90s as producer of Common’s first three albums.
BLACK AMERICA AGAIN also features the anthem “Letter To The Free” featuring Bilal, the end-title track to Ava Duvernay’s powerful new documentary ‘13th.’ Centered on race in the United States criminal justice system, the film is titled after the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution which theoretically outlawed slavery. Acclaimed director of Selma, DuVernay argues that slavery is being perpetuated, however, through mass incarceration.
“Letter To The Free” has already been nominated for a 2016 Critics’ Choice Documentary Award for “Best Song in a Documentary.”
