Rapper J. Cole has become the latest celebrity to voice his opinion on the recent shooting of unarmed 18-year-old African American teenager, Michael Brown.
He released a song via SoundCloud Friday entitled "Be Free" in honor of Brown, who was shot and killed by police officer Darren Wilson, in Ferguson, Missouri last Saturday. In the song, J. Cole pleads for peace and equality in the wake of Brown's death.
In a statement on the song's page, the rapper wrote, "Rest in Peace to Michael Brown and to every young black man murdered in America, whether by the hands of white or black. I pray that one day the world will be filled with peace and rid of injustice. Only then will we all Be Free - Cole."
"All we want to do is take the chains off. All we want to do is be free," a somber J. Cole sings on the track over mournful keyboards.
Listeners have played the song over 390,000 times since it was posted at 10 a.m. on Friday. "Be Free" has become "the most-talked about track on Twitter in the U.S.," and landed the top spot on Billboard's Trending 140 chart.
However, some fans were offended by the rapper's choice in cover art, which featured a picture of Brown's body lying dead in the street, hours after he was killed. J. Cole later changed the artwork due to a request from Brown's mother.
Brown's shooting has sparked major media attention over policies regarding police authority. It has also pushed community leaders and residents to protest around the country. Rallies have swept through Detroit, Nashville, New York, Chicago and more, on behalf of the young man.
J. Cole's track also includes the audio from an interview Dorian Johnson, the 22-year-old male who witnessed the shooting of Brown.
In a strongly-worded post on his website, Dreamvillain, the Rapper wrote:
"There was a time in my life when I gave a f**k. Every chance I got I was screaming about it. I was younger. It's so easy to try to save the world when you're in college. You got nothing but time and no responsibility. But soon life hits you. No more dorms, no more meal plan, no more refund check. N**ga need a job. N**ga got rent. Got car note. Cable bill. Girlfriend moves in and becomes wife. Baby on the way. Career advances. Instagram is poppin. Lebron leaves Miami. LIFE HITS. We become distracted. We become numb. I became numb. But not anymore. That coulda been me, easily. It could have been my best friend. I'm tired of being desensitized to the murder of black men. I don't give a f**k if it's by police or peers. This s**t is not normal."
