The Message And Meaning Behind 'This Is America'

Caption

Childish Gambino shoots a choir of black singers in the "This is America" music video, echoing the Charleston church shooting of 2015

 GPB's Leah Fleming discusses 'This Is America' with entertainment reporter Jewel Wicker

Atlanta’s Donald Glover has found a new level of success.

He’s an actor, the creator of a hit show named after his hometown of Atlanta, and a rapper under the name Childish Gambino.

But his most powerful statement might be “This Is America”, a new song and video released over the weekend.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYOjWnS4cMY&ab_channel=ChildishGambinoV…

It starts off innocently enough, with cheerful lyrics and Glover dancing around a black guitar player.

But a few moments later, Glover pulls out a gun, shooting the man execution-style in the back of the head.

This is the first of a number of visually striking images, including Glover gunning down a choir of jubilant black singers and dancing in the midst of a riot involving police.

The song and the symbols within the video have been talked about non-stop over the past few days.

Freelance entertainment reporter Jewel Wicker gives us her take on the video and what role musicians should play when it comes to social issues.