Killer Mike Drops Powerful New Song/Video “RUN” feat. Young Thug

It’s the 4th of July and social media is overrun with the exact sort of content I expect in 2022. After the disastrous, although not even remotely surprising, decision to overturn the right to abortion by a panel of worthless, disgustingly wealthy, and rotting demons; women across the nation posted — and, more often, reposted — statements claiming that “independence day” was “canceled” this year, due to the fact that not everyone has independence. This was responded to by alternate posts, if not those very posts being altered, with the purpose of highlighting that so many of us deal with various levels of oppression and inequality already, while questioning why these assumingly overwhelmingly “white women” are rejecting the notion of this national holiday that they happily celebrate every other year, only now that it pertains to an issue that affects them directly. I’m not sure how much actual dialog will be generated from any of it, but it’s hard to remember any time in my life that there was such a widespread, open disdain of this country, its practices, and policies by the citizens or such vocal rejection of celebrating the idea of “independence day” because it feels like some sort of sham to so many. The weirdest part is that it’s almost difficult to determine whether or not this growing disillusion with a nation whose budget ranks its police force as the third-largest military in the world, is a positive or negative revelation. Watching people wake up in a rage isn’t a “good” thing, exactly, but it is nice to have company. That said, it’s a little late to be “shocked.” My suggestion is that, if your rage is new, you’d be better off pretending it’s just part of the ebb and flow of long-running exhaustion with this sort of shit like the rest of us have been experiencing.

I basically just ignore this “holiday” other than the odd video of small firework-generated suburban infernos. On occasion, in the past, I’ve made minor efforts to see fireworks, if my son was interested and we could avoid all the patriotic shit that goes with it, but this year it’s even less appealing and more difficult than ever to detach the explosions from the bloodbaths and destructive arsenals they are intended to represent. By the time I woke up this morning, there had already been a mass shooting at a parade in Highland Park, Illinois that resulted in several dead and dozens injured. Meanwhile, new bodycam footage and statements were released today in relation to the Jayland Walker death, which occurred last week in Akron, Ohio. Walker was shot by police at least 60 times. I expect to hear explosions going off into the early morning, many of which will be indistinguishable from gunfire. But all of this is me rambling in a July 4th post that I never intended to make. This is the sort of shit I write, when I’m not sure what to say or if it’s worth the energy. The only reason that I’m posting anything at all is that someone who’s much better at addressing these subjects created something worth sharing.

Michael “Killer Mike” Render is a voice that I’ve appreciated hearing over the last several years from his political speeches as a surrogate for Senator Bernie Sanders, to his long-overdo heightened success in the rap game as one-half of the duo Run The Jewels with rapper/producer, Jaime “EL-P” Meline. As a gun owner whose own father is a retired police officer that fights for progressive legislation and police accountability, MIke often brings a unique, nuanced take to the subjects that he speaks out about. Most importantly, he’s a fearless artist/lyricist/activist that always leverages the platform and notoriety that he’s achieved to elevate the voices and causes that he believes in. Today, he releases an affecting new video for a track titled “RUN,” which is at once refreshing, yet entirely in the Killer Mike wheelhouse. Not to minimize what RTJ has accomplished over the last decade, but fans of EL and/or Mike often miss the sound of the previous solo work they made independent of each other. For “RUN,” we get that opportunity to hear Mike over a different sort of production provided by Chicago legend, No I.D. Dave Chappelle supplies the introduction to the track, while Bun B of UGK makes a camera in the video. One figure that is noticeably missing from this video is Young Thug, who is featured on the song, but was recently brought up on some incredibly severe legal charges that have a good chance of putting him away for a long time.

“Run” was delivered to our inbox this morning with a subject line that simply read “A Special Message From Mike.” You can read that message below, followed by the official music video.

“It’s been 10 years since I made R.A.P. Music with Jaime, A LOT has happened since. While waiting for the World to end the last 2 years I made a song called “RUN”, it is produced by another mentor and brother of mine – No I.D. and features Young Thug, who I’d been wanting to work with forever.

I wanted to make a song that looked forward for my people instead of backward, one that celebrated us instead of dwelled on our pain. When I wrote ‘The race to Freedom was never won’ I was speaking specifically to the Black experience, but in the last few weeks it’s becoming increasingly apparent that this rings truer now more than ever for EVERYONE.

I lived with the song for months, and remembered a pep talk Dave Chappelle gave me so I asked him if he’d do something in the spirit of that for this song. What he sent back was something else… I wasn’t prepared for him to take one of the most romanticized events in World history and use it as an elegant metaphor for the Black experience in America.

Which brings us to the video- the intro reminded me that the first American to die for the United States in the Revolutionary war was Crispus Attucks, in other words Black history is American history, no qualifier. Keep this in mind while watching this video and I hope you enjoy it.”