Living For The City by Stevie Wonder (1973)
Living for the City is a single from Innervisions album by Stevie Wonder, which peaked at number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 1 on the R&b chart. The soul song positioned in number 105 for Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
The song is about a young black man who experienced discrimantion in looking for a job. Born in a poor family in Mississippi, made him seek to escape to New York hoping of finding new life. But then he promptly framed for a crime, convicted, arrested, and sentenced to ten years in prison. [1]
Key Lyrics
boy is born in hard time Mississippi
Surrounded by four walls that ain't so pretty
His parents give him love and affection
To keep him strong moving in the right direction
Living just enough, just enough for the city
His father works some days for fourteen hours
And you can bet he barely makes a dollar
His mother goes to scrub the floors for many
And you'd best believe she hardly gets a penny
Living just enough, just enough for the city (yeah)
His sister's black but she is sho 'nuff pretty
Her skirt is short but Lord her legs are sturdy
To walk to school she's got to get up early
Her clothes are old but never are they dirty
Living just enough, just enough for the city (um-hum) [2]
Black Empowerment
Living for the City portrays a black man living in Mississippi during the Civil Rights era. Facing hardships, encourage him to leave his hometown and seek hope in the promised land, New York City. However, he faced and got caught up in a different system of inequality, leaving him imprisoned, homeless, jobless, and sick. [3]
References
- ↑ Livign for the City. wikipedia.org. Retrieved January 24, 2021
- ↑ Living for the City Stevie Wonder. genius.com. Retrieved January 24, 2021
- ↑ Living for the City Stevie Wonder. genius.com. Retrieved January 24, 2021