With her new song “Black Like Me,” Mickey Guyton is using the power of music to share her story as a black woman in America.
The first verse has Mickey telling the story of her first broken heart as a child on the playground when she was told she was “different,” and reveals that even in adulthood, that perception of her hasn’t changed.
The second verse puts her father Michael in the spotlight, praising the hard work he put into building a quality life for himself and his family, while recognizing that he had to work twice as hard to achieve such success.
“It’s a hard life on easy street/Just white painted picket fences far as you can see/If you think we live in the land of the free/You should try to be black like me,” Mickey sings in the chorus.
But in spite of the pain she details with the lyrics, Mickey ends the song with a powerful statement: “I’m proud to be black like me.”
“Black Like Me,” written in 2019, was released on Monday, one day before the music industry instituted #BlackoutTuesday to support the fight against racial injustice in America.
On Instagram, Mickey reveals, “Our world is on fire right now. There is so much division and hate. I wrote this song over a year ago because I was so tired of seeing so much hate and oppression. And yet here we are in the exact same place!”
She continues, “We must change that. I hope this song can give you a small glimpse into what my brothers and sisters have endured for 400+ years.”
“Black Like Me” follows Mickey’s other impactful song, “What Are You Gonna Tell Her?,” which was released in March.
By Cillea Houghton
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