Oakland, CA — Get all of your music news updates with Remix Your Life’s latest “5 Things You Missed in Music Business News.” Things are constantly changing in the music industry and it’s important to stay on top of trends and news updates, especially as an independent artist. We’ve got you covered with a weekly recap of the top stories you need to know.
T.I. RESPONDS TO BODYCAM VIDEO OF GEORGIA POLICE OFFICER
T.I. has been very active in standing up to racial injustice especially in these recent times. The ATL rapper responded to a video of a Clayton County police officer approaching a group of young unarmed black men with his gun out demanding that they put their hands up and be still. The police officer was responding to a 911 call where a clerk at a liquor store reported that there was a group of black teens trying to rob his store and they were armed, which they weren't. Thankfully no one was hurt, but T.I. was outraged by the fact that the officer approached the young men with a gun instead of going up to them peacefully. He says, “[There are] little white boys that got real rifles to go hunting every day, every week with their grandparents and parents; they ain't being held at gunpoint”.
PHARRELL AND GOV. OF VIRGINIA MAKE JUNETEENTH A PAID HOLIDAY
Amidst the huge call for social change in 2020, legendary producer and artist Pharrell Williams is calling for a change in his home state of Virginia. Pharrell has been meeting with the governor of Virginia, Ralph Northam, and talking about Juneteenth. Governor Northam held a press conference in the former Confederate capital Richmond, Virginia which Pharrell attended. In the press conference, Governor Northam announced that from now on in the state of Virginia, Juneteenth will be a paid holiday. This is a huge win because it really forces people to acknowledge the history of black people in this country. Go Pharrell!
BEYONCÉ WRITES OPEN LETTER TO KENTUCKY FOR BREONNA TAYLOR
Beyoncé wrote an open letter to the Attorney General of Kentucky demanding justice for the murder of Breonna Taylor. In this letter, she writes, “Your office has both the power and the responsibility to bring justice to Breonna Taylor, and demonstrate the value of a Black woman’s life. I urge you to use that power”. Beyoncé is staying very involved in the fight against racial injustice. She is using her power and huge platform to make real change in America.
RIHANNA, MEEK MILL, ARIANA GRANDE, AND MORE SIGN OPEN LETTER
Artists like Rihanna, Billie Eilish, Meek Mill, Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande, and more all sign open letter to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy in support of the Justice in Policing Act of 2020. The letter states, "We celebrate the long-overdue rejection of qualified immunity, emphasizing that law enforcement officers themselves are not above the law –that bad cops must be held accountable and victims must have recourse”. Many artists also signed another letter that demands New York to repeal statute 50-A. This statute gives the state the right to conceal disciplinary and personnel records of officers from the public. We are inspired by the action we see our music idols taking.
TORY LANEZ GIVES 100 BLACK FATHERS A FATHER'S DAY CELEBRATION
Tory Lanez partners with DoorDash, Amazon, #cut50, and Dream Corps to give an expense-paid father's day celebration to 100 black fathers that have been recently released from jail. This celebration consisted of contactless dinner delivery from DoorDash and a bundle of various gifts. The fathers that were selected were recently released from prison and are trying to rebuild their lives. This is already extremely hard given everything stacked against them, but now ex-convicts have to try to adapt to the pandemic going on as well. We solute Tory for giving back in this way.