THIS IS [WOKE] AMERICA: A GAMBINO REVIEW
Every once in a blue moon, I am amazed by the art that black bodies put out for the world to share. Childish Gambino joins the ranks of Jordan Peele’s Get Out, Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther, Lena Waithe’s The Chi, and Beyonce’s Lemonade as magnificent pieces of art with his latest music video: This is America.
Welcome to America
Directed by his frequent creative collaborator, Hiro Murai, the video starts off cool, calm, and collected with soulful-like singing expected from Gambino. After his previous Awaken, My Love release, his fans expect this. Fans even expect the tightly choreographed dancing from mimicking minstrel moves to the latest trendy hip-hop moves. Once the rapping begins, we see chaos and violence running rampant. Is this America?
While there is so much going on in the background, the viewer’s attention is focused on overzealous facial expressions and a shirtless Gambino. Even with the killing and shootings going on, you still find yourself watching this video over and over. The viewer experiences these heinous acts which lessens the shock value. Does this remind you of the news?
Unarmed Black Men Are Always Dangerous
Gambino’s depiction of America shows merciless terrorists that give more attention and care to weapons more than they do to the slain bodies dragged and chased throughout. The main image that haunts me after watching this video is when the warehouse location begins to resemble a prison. We see the school children on their phones capturing video footage below. Gambino directly criticizes law enforcement’s reaction to black men on cell phones when he raps:
“This a celly (ha)
That’s a tool.”
This video articulates what the black collective feels – the most dangerous thing in America is the unarmed black man.
According to Frank Guan’s What it Means to When Childish Gambino Says: This is America, “Donald Glover doesn’t trap, but he’s trapped; he runs his own television show, and is always on the run. Only one country could be this bizarre, and no matter what he does, he can only point in its direction.”
In Glover’s America, where are all the white people? The closing of this visual masterpiece shows what seems to be a panic-stricken Glover running for his life. But just like the countless tales of black people in America, will he make it out alive?
To be continued…
