By Cynthia Gross
On February 25, S3LIM and Spvce Kid released their latest collaborative single, “FREE,” which explores the damaging effects of inequity and injustice on communities of color and underrepresented groups. With its melodic flow, the track confronts pervasive societal issues in a direct way that does not relinquish its power by attempting to make people feel comfortable.
“I know killers that shoulda turnt kings / Just grew up round the worse things,” up-and-coming rapper Spvce Kid sings in the opening lines of “FREE.” Throughout the rest of the song, listeners encounter a motley crew of other dark, hypocritical characters, including a thief-turned-priest who “learned to practice what he preach,” where he now “thinks smarter” and “robs communion every week,” as well as a judge who gives away numbers like the lottery.
“The track discusses police brutality, racism, fighting demons, and other things growing up in the hood in Queens and Harlem,” explains Spvce Kid, a New York native. “FREE” brings together diverse talents from across the globe, including Mark James III (aka S3LIM), a Sydney, Australia native now based in Los Angeles.
Lyrically, “FREE” leaves no stone unturned, as it denounces the senseless killing of Black men like Trayvon Martin and pays homage to social justice advocates, including Rosa Parks, who paved a path for the freedoms people of color have access to today. “I feel like Trayvon in my hoodie,” Spvce Kid sings, while noting the powers that be treat people who look like him as if they aren’t fully human and are instead violent creatures and stereotypical “drug dealers” that need to be destroyed.
In spite of the weighty subject matter, the instrumentation of “FREE,” compliments of S3LIM, is decidedly mellow. Driven by electric piano and emotive guitar embellishments, the music feels delicate almost as if it’s made of glass, symbolizing the fragile nature of the topics at hand. In fact, the juxtaposition of the music and hard-hitting lines like “give a fuck about who didn’t ask” just “go and kill his ass” make the song all the more powerful.
“Still despite all that’s going on, I find no qualm dreaming about life and how it could be,” Spvce Kid sings near the end of the track, reminding us of the importance of making the necessary sacrifices today in the lineage of our ancestors that will create a better world for those who follow.
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Cynthia Gross is a freelance writer and award-winning spiritual pop artist based in Maryland. With more than a decade of experience as an executive ghostwriter, she understands the power of each individual’s voice to create positive, meaningful change.
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