In the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder, rapper Lil Baby wrote and released the single “The Bigger Picture”. I have been a big fan of the rapper for a year and I follow him on all social media platforms. When I saw him post the cover art for a new single on Instagram I already knew I was going to listen, it was only a matter of time.The art for the song’s cover is a picture of lil baby at a George Floyd protest while on a bicycle and wearing a black lives matter shirt. In the lyrics, Lil Baby shares his thoughts on the 2020 Black Lives Matter movement and protests in the United States. The protests are asking for equality against police brutality and racism. The song and music video received positive feedback and also raised money for Breonna Taylor and Black Lives Matter.
Lil Baby describes how he feels, “I find it crazy the police will shoot you and know that you’re dead but still tell you to freeze,” he describes how irrational the police officers act. He sees how police officers treat civilians and he isn’t happy. Lil Baby’s verses, “Crazy, I had to tell all of my loved ones to carry a gun when they going outside/ Stare in the mirror whenever you drive. Overprotective, go crazy for mine.”, stood out to me the most. , he characterizes his actions and alarms as overbearing while they are simply defensive. The mental state of pain and paranoia can be felt. Lil Baby mentions that he is able to risk his life in order to save the lives of the people he cares for. What allows him to be a good story teller is his desire to articulate such authentic and relevant thoughts. Baby’s voice is a combination of anger, anxiety, fear and the desire to take action.
What caused me to take action was because Lil Baby grew up very poor with no father, was a drug dealer and was in prison at 19. This experience gives him credibility and is likely why he does not like the criminal justice system. Someone who went through the system for two years would be a great advocate for the movement. Depending on the public’s reaction, the movement may continue or get smaller with Lil Baby’s song, foruntily it did. ”The Bigger Picture”, was powerful and lil baby does a good job of describing all of his emotions. He stays very positive for something so serious and large, he raps, “Head start here.” It can’t change overnight/ But we gotta start somewhere/ Might as well gon’ ‘head start here,” telling his listeners the reality of the situation. For the most part, I do not like it when rappers or any celebrity. While it isn’t fair to say that celebrities would not make a good activist, I feel that they should “stay in their lane” and focus on their music if they are a musician, their acting if they are an actor etc…. I was surprised by how much of an impact the song had on me. It’s important for influential people to be activists and help gain support for social movements. This is also a lot more common than I first thought. Reality star Kim Kardashian West advocated for prison reform and used her large audience to get more people aware. After reading the lyrics and learning more about the movement, I see how this can help increase support for a social movement. A song with a message like this can help increase the amount of people thinking, speaking, and participating.
