Jermaine Cole Be Free Analysis

“I pray that one day the world will be filled with peace and rid of justice. Only then will we all be free.” This powerful statement came from a man named Jermaine Cole, better known by his stage name J. Cole, along with a very powerful protest song titled “Be Free” after the murder of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. This song can be classified as a protest song because it makes a specific point at an audience and states that it needs to be changed. By looking at the intentions and meaning of the song “Be Free,” the background of Jermaine Cole’s life, and the background of police brutality, one will see that Cole can have a very powerful voice in the controversial subject of police shootings and use of excess force. This is important because these are family members and loved-ones losing their lives to this force and shootings by police. The first verse of “Be Free” is the initial reveal of the emotion that is about to be released through the entire song. Cole opens the song with “I’m in denial, and it don’t take no X-ray to see right through my smile.” This line is like …show more content…
It has lyrics that make a strong point, it is directed towards a specific audience, it has evidence towards the point, and it also does all of these things while remaining entertaining. It has a dark sound with a slightly out-of-tune piano breaking through the fog, making you feel submerged in the depth. That is until Cole breaks forward with strong and painful vocals that are chill-worthy, leaving you awake and needing more. This is the type of song you play on a dark night after you’ve received bad news, just so you can really think about the feelings inside of you. As a whole, Cole was very successful in providing a thought provoking and bone-chilling presentation of a song that would bring light to a protest that the society of America