A Playlist for Freedom: A Mixtape

Freedom: A Mixtape is a soulful artistic response to recent and historical violence on Black bodies, presented through a collection of original songs, stories, poems, spoken-word pieces, and musical instrumentation from folks living in Ontario’s Niagara Region. A community conversation about our complicated relationship with emancipation and the human right to be free, Freedom: A Mixtape is a compilation album that is part protest and part celebration. It is history and the present moment all at once, a reminder that this moment is part of a larger, ongoing movement. Analog field recordings and soothing talk-radio energy give voice to the residue of intergenerational trauma, the depths of colonialism, resilience amidst oppressive conditions, and a clarion call that joy is a birthright for everyone.

This mixtape is a companion piece to the compilation album that is Freedom: A Mixtape. It’s pure hip-hop – lyrics, rhyme schemes, bravado, and just a dope vibe through and through.

Common – “Be”

I’m a sucker for intros and what better intro than this introspective and smooth journey of self-awareness and self-definition. Common’s opening lines, “I want to be as free as the spirits to those who left,” resonate with so many of the pieces in Freedom: A Mixtape.

Kendrick Lamar – “Alright”

“Alright” has become an anthem of hope and resilience amidst systemic oppression, mirroring Freedom: A Mixtape’s recurring themes of struggle and perseverance. “We gon’ be alright,” echoes throughout the mixtape as a reminder of the possibility of a brighter, freer future.

Jay-Z – “The Story of O.J.”

The opening lyrics to this song are:

Skin is, skin is
Skin black, my skin is black
My, black, my skin is yellow

Light nigga, dark nigga, faux nigga, real nigga
Rich nigga, poor nigga, house nigga, field nigga
Still nigga, still nigga
I like that second one
Light nigga, dark nigga, faux nigga, real nigga
Rich nigga, poor nigga, house nigga, field nigga
Still nigga, still nigga

O.J. like, “I’m not black, I’m O.J.,” okay

From Kattawa Henry to Shoot to Kill, this song connects with Freedom: A Mixtape on a multitude of levels. Racial identity and economic empowerment, the effects of slavery on Black women.

Everything OShauN x Aiza – “Big Bada Boom”

This song is a vibe ting! And during the most intense, stressful, and bleak times, we as Black people are able to find, discover, and excavate a vibe. It’s part of what makes us such complex and beautiful people.

Little Brother – “Beautiful Morning” (From The Minstrel Show)

This song is from Little Brother’s second album, titled The Minstrel Show. I encourage you to listen to this project. The song’s reflection on gratitude and the promise of a new day directly connects to the mixtape’s moments of hope. Its smooth, uplifting beat and reflective lyrics provide a sense of comfort and motivation, akin to the underlying message within Freedom: A Mixtape of finding joy and strength in the journey toward freedom.

Little Simz – “Introvert” (From Sometimes I Might Be Introvert)

Here I am again with another intro. Little Simz has always been one of those mc’s for me, but with this project she took it to another level. “Introvert” delves into the internal battle and the strength drawn from introspection, showcasing the complexity of the personal journey. I think about the narrative throughline of Freedom: A Mixtape a lot when I listen to this song.

Black Thought ft. Rapsody – “Dostoyevsky”

Lyrical mastery = Black Thought and Rapsody. If you like poetry, if you like deep content and storytelling, this song is for you. It’s the kind of song you listen to over and over again to catch new metaphors or understandings. I feel the same way about all the poetry in Freedom: A Mixtape. There are still similes I’m only catching now and I’ve been living with this thing for almost 4 years.

Ransom & Nicholas Craven – “Hereditary”

Vicki-Lynn Smith speaks about being a 5th generation freedom seeker. She comes from a long line of fighters. After speaking with her for this project, I left thinking about the inherited nature of both trauma and resilience. Ransom captures those thoughts impeccably on this song.

Goodie Mob – “Cell Therapy”
“For me, for a while, hope seemed futile. I got caught up in the doom
and gloom that the media portrays. This berserker barrage of Black people being murdered, in the streets, at the park, in their car, at home–where are we safe?!”

Paranoia and the critique of societal surveillance. Intrusion of privacy and the systemic control mechanisms used to keep us “locked in the matrix.” “Cell Therapy” takes us through all of that, but also hearing this song makes me think of that scene in Moonlight. IYKYK.

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Marcel Stewart is a father, award-winning artist, and facilitator. He is Artistic Director of bcurrent Performing Arts and Director of Artistic Outreach for SpiderWebShow Performance. Together with Adrienne Wong and Michael Wheeler, he curates FOLDA, an annual festival of live digital art in Kingston, Ontario. For three years, Marcel was Outreach Director at Suitcase in Point, co-founding the Nest Artist Residency and Electric Innovations. As an artist, Marcel has worked with theatre companies nationwide and internationally. In his work, Marcel investigates telling stories that connect artists and audiences to a cultural and ancestral past while also imagining a future without borders or boundaries. Marcel is passionate about crafting narratives that focus on joy as a form of resistance against the prevailing colonial narratives that have shaped the Black Canadian experience. He uses digital technologies to expand this work’s reach, bringing collaborators in remotely and taking the work out to a wider public. He’s interested in finding non-traditional ways to build community through performances and storytelling that are interactive and welcoming.