Gambino introduces us to his America
Gambino pulls off the most explosive return to music this decade: Here’s why everyone is talking about “This is America”
Following a two-year long hiatus, rapper/artist Childish Gambino shot straight back into the charts and our twitter feed with culturally charged “This is America.”
Raking up an impressive 74 million YouTube views in 5 days, Gambino tackles a range of issues from censorship, gun violence and racism in what has become the world’s latest hot topic of conversation. “This is America” sees a plethora of symbolism and hidden metaphors take on the current culture of the United States, questioning the value of life as a whole.
Released on Saturday night, just moment before the artist’s performance on Saturday Night Live, Gambino can be seen donning trousers very similar to that of the confederate army, shooting a gospel choir and guitarist Calvin the Second.
Wrapping each gun in red cloth whilst disregarding the bodies, Gambino shows how guns are currently valued more than human life in some aspects of American culture. Rather strange dance moves, similar to those of a Jim Crow caricature act as a symbol for the modern media world using the entertainment industry as a distraction from the monstrosities of the real world.
Speaking on ‘The View’ presenter Meghan McCain stated that she believed; “Donald Glover is doing what I think Kanye wishes he could,” a reference to the recent twitter meltdown from West in what seemed to be an attempt to build a political relationship in the rap world however was not widely well received. It seems Twitter also followed suit on this opinion with many tweeting praise for Glover’s execution of political ideology through art.
Gambino explores elements of youth culture from the over dependency on social media and technology to the impressionability of our youth from public figures. The video acts as a precursor to an album that is sure to make waves across the world in opening vital conversations but also as a bridge between the creative arts and political ideology.
Speaking on ‘The View’ presenter Meghan McCain stated that she believed; “Donald Glover is doing what I think Kanye wishes he could,” a reference to the recent twitter meltdown from West in what seemed to be an attempt to build a political relationship in the rap world however was not widely well received. It seems Twitter also followed suit on this opinion with many artists and fans tweeting praise for Glover’s execution of politically charged issues through art.
Music producer Basium agrees that ‘This is America’ may act as a form of musical revolution in the cultural world telling us that; “People underestimate the power of music. It is such an accessible entity to portray strong ideas and opinions. We need a society that is more critical and aware and I believe that music is the way to educate people on these issues.”
More widely known as Donald Glover, the writer, actor and producer has amassed a resume that acts as a tapestry of the creative arts. Dabbling in the worlds of comedy in this beginning of his career with 30 Rock and Community, Glover turned his head to creating content that tackles the cultural issues faced by black people across modern day America.
Receiving extensive critical acclaim for his television show‘Atlanta’, Glover showed strokes of creative genius by writing, directing and starring in the dark comedic series. Following the journey of up and coming rappers in Atlanta, the show delved into deep politically charged issues in a palatable way for the typical viewer.
With the series decorated across the world in accolades, it came as no shock that Glover became one of the biggest names in Hollywood, regularly asked to lend a hand in writing or producing content and being cast in some of the world’s biggest films.
With a widely diverse timetable, Childish Gambino fell off the radar of most listeners in 2017, with the exception of smash hit ‘Redbone’managing longevity. Much to the dismay of his fans, Glover announced at the 2017 Governor’s Ball that he would be retiring from the Gambino pseudonym to explore his other projects.
It’s unclear if this will be Gambino’s last album however with teasers of collaborations with SZA and a strong momentum already established from its first single, there’s high anticipation that this may well be regarded as iconic classic in the music library of our generation.
Childish Gambino’s music can be downloaded on iTunes and streamed on Spotify. Tickets to his London show on July 3rdare on sale now.
