Chains by Usher featuring Nas and Bibi Bourelly (2015)

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Chains Cover

Chains is a R8B/hip hop song released on October 16, 2015 by an American artist Usher featuring fellow rapper Nas and German singer-songwriter Bibi Bourelly. It is an interactive video experience using facial recognition which forces viewers to watch the victims. [1]

Usher

Key Lyrics

I'mma get mine, you should get yours too

Shooting, shooting, shooting, man them boys always shoot

(American dream, American man too)

Shooting, shooting, shooting, watch them boys always shoot

(And I-I-I-I been so tired of being insecure

So tired of)

I've had enough running

Running, and running and running and running

(Running)

Running, and running and running and running and

(Running enough) [2]

Black Empowerment

The song addresses police brutality and racial injustice in the Chain’s video with the opening text : "While racial injustice keeps killing, society keeps looking away." The video portrays the black lives who were taken away because of police brutality along with their names, ages, and stories.

The piercing images showed of men, women, boys, and girls. From Travyon Martin to Sean Bell, presenting what Nas sums up in one brief bar "We've got a problem that needs to be solved."

There are no words to do the video justice, and it goes the same for the tragedies in this story. However, the song holds a powerful echo that honors and pleads for awareness, attention, as well as involvement from all communities, not only either family or people of color. [3]

References

  1. Usher (musician). Wikipedia. Retrieved January 21, 2021
  2. Chains Usher Featuring Nas & Bibi Bourelly. Genius. Retrieved January 21, 2021
  3. Martin, Paley. Nas & Usher's 'Chains' Video Demands Society Stop Ignoring Police Brutality. Billboard. October 16, 2015. Retrieved January 21, 2021