Tom Morello is an integral part of Rage Against The Machine band. The guitarist has recently collaborated for one of the greatest causes ever: Black Lives Matter. Tom Morello joined hands with Dan Reynolds of Imagine Dragons, Shea Diamond and The Bloody Beetroots. The main theme of the song Stand Up serves as a protest against the racial injustice observed in the U.S. But when you listen to it closely, it does not just highlight the racial injustices. In fact, it’s also about the LGBTQ+ community and people who bully others.
Stand Up by Dan Reynolds, Tom Morello, The Bloody Beetroots and Shea Diamond
This collaborative song is a new anthem for the BLM movement. 100% proceeds of the artists from Stand Up will be donated to NAACP, Southern Poverty Law Center, the Marsha P. Jphnson Institute, and Know Your Rights Camp.
In addition to these donations, KIDinaKORNER/Interscope will also donate an amount equal to the artists’ record royalty derived from the streams for a 3-year-period. That’s pretty huge.
The vocals in the song are of Shea Diamond and Dan Reynolds. Dan is the lead vocalist and the man behind Imagine Dragons. He is a strong believer of equality whether it comes to races or sexuality. Dan Reynolds, though born in a Mormon family, has been using his platform to speak against the inequalities and he is never afraid of speaking his heart in full support of LGBTQ+ community.
Many people might not know about Shea Diamond. Shea is an African-American singer, songwriter and transgender rights activist. Shea has faced many injustices in her life, major one was people misgendering her and forcing her to act masculine. The selection of Dan Reynolds and Shea Diamonds as the voices for Stand Up, has a deeper meaning and hopefully this brief background will help you connect better with the song.
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Racism and Police Brutality
Focusing on the Black Lives Matter movement, Stand Up speaks about the discrimination, racism and police brutality. Even though we are living in the 21st century, there is still a lot to be done to forge equality amongst the races, and freedom for the minorities all over the world. At the base level, we all are humans. People holding the power over us tend to pressurize, humiliate and mistreat the working class as well as the LGBTQ+ community members.
As the song endorses, everyone needs to stand up against the racial injustices, stand up against the police brutality, stand up against the bullies. The issue is not just prevalent in the US only. Majority of the countries have the same issue when it comes to how “well” they treat the minorities in their region.
Tom Morello talked about the song concept in a statement:
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STAND UP – Tom Morello x @IAmSheaDiamond x @DanReynolds of @ImagineDragons x @TheBloodyBeetrootsOfficial OUT NOW I grew up in the tiny lily white, archly conservative town of Libertyville, Illinois. When I was a kid, someone hung a noose in my family’s garage, there was occasional N-word calling, etc, etc. On June 6 of this year, there was a Black Lives Matter rally and march in that same town that drew over 1,000 people. It seems that the times they are a’changin’. I was so inspired that night, I reached out to Dan from Imagine Dragons. The Bloody Beetroots and I had conjured a slamming track and within 24 hours Dan had sent back a completed vocal. We got Shea Diamond, a Black transgender woman with a long history of activism, on the track and the coalition was complete. All artist proceeds from STAND UP will be donated to the NAACP, Know Your Rights Camp, Southern Poverty Law Center, and the Marsha P. Johnson Institute – all of whom are doing great work combating racism, injustice, and police brutality. LISTEN NOW – LINK IN BIO.
Killing it softly….not
In the song Stand Up, Dan Reynolds sings about the white privilege and how it affects the police brutality.
When I call the police will they just kill me?
Will they just kill you?
When I call the police will they just protect me cause I’m white skinned too?
Whereas, Shea Diamond sings about the discrimination she faces because of her gender.
Everybody stares like I’m just my gender
But I’m a living soul with my own agendo
Tell me how you are the priest and the prosecution
Tell me how you have a God who loves executions
She also highlights how people would feel if someone tried to walk in her shoes:
If you walked a mile in my shoes
You’d probably take ’em off wouldn’t you?
If you had to live in my truth
You’d probably tell a lie wouldn’t you?
Check out the song here and enjoy the goosebumps.
