CRITICS RAVE ABOUT COMMON’S “BLACK AMERICA AGAIN” OUT TODAY!
(Above Video Contains Graphic Content)
(Nov. 4, 2016 – New York, NY) Multiple Grammy®, Golden Globe, and Academy Award-winning Chicago rapper, actor, social activist, and philanthropist Common releases his 11th studio album today, BLACK AMERICA AGAIN, on ARTium/Def Jam Recordings.
Critics are raving about BLACK AMERICA AGAIN reviews today, calling it “Momentous,” “Dazzling,” Crucial,” “Required Listening,” and “A Vital Contribution To The Nation Conversation.”
Coinciding with the new album release today, VEVO has premiered a powerful long-form video for the project, produced by Ava DuVernay and directed by Bradford Young, acclaimed director and cinematographer respectively of the award-winning film Selma. Watch it above!
In turn, Common’s anthem “Letter To The Free” featuring Bilal (another track on BLACK AMERICA AGAIN), serves as the end-title track of DuVernay’s powerful new documentary ‘13th.’ Centered on race in the United States criminal justice system, ‘13th’ is named for the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which theoretically outlawed slavery. DuVernay makes the point that slavery, in spite of the Constitutional amendment, is being perpetuated through mass incarceration. “Letter To The Free” has already been nominated for a 2016 Critics’ Choice Documentary Award for Best Song in a Documentary.
Related Media:
Common Featuring Bilal
“Letter t The Free”
ARTium/Def Jam Recordings
“Glory”
From Selma Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Pathe Productions/Harpo Films/Paramount Pictures/Artium/Def Jam Recordings
Common f/ BJ the Chicago Kid Live With The Roots
“Black America Again”
From: The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
NBC
“A return to form…momentous…Common’s dissonant, politically-charged new album Black America Again finds him angry and off-balance — which feels like it’s exactly where he should be.”
“Black America Again is a timely statement exploring the ills of police brutality, mass incarceration, and institutionalized racism, delivered with laser-sharp focus by one of hip-hop’s foremost poets…it’s the MC’s empathetic and clear-eyed rhymes that truly make this a vital contribution to the national conversation. “We write our own story, black America again,” Common raps on the title track. Once more, he’s a crucial voice in that narrative.”
“The timing of Common’s latest album couldn’t be more pertinent…underscored by a dazzling array of jazz-infused beats and soul samples…Common’s heartfelt delivery and poetic lyrics are consistent throughout, making Black America Again a vital hip-hop record that’s required listening this election month.”
