Ledisi is arguably having the best Black History Month ever. Since the beginning of February, her single “Love You Too” has been climbing the charts, she wowed a worldwide audience with her “Lift Every Voice And Sing” performance at Super Bowl LIX, tickets are selling fast for her upcoming tour with Marsha Ambrosius, she announced her next album The Crown and she slayed an inspirational medley at the 56th NAACP Image Awards. Black History Month isn’t done and neither is Ledisi who continues her hot streak with the official release of her latest single “BLKWMN.”
The song’s title is short for “BLACK WOMAN” without the vowels, and Ledisi and her co-writer/producer Jacques Pierre dedicate this piece to Black women’s beauty, brilliance and resilience. From Ledisi’s impassioned, bluesy vocals to the poetic lyrics to the piano-led instrumentation, the song is very Nina Simone-coded, so it made perfect sense for her to drop it on what would have been Nina’s 92nd birthday.
“Black hue / Born from a golden hour / Black love / The tie that grew the flower / Mood changes, the world shapes the child that grew into a woman / Sunlight strong / Sacrifices she made / Moving in silence / Barely a thank you for all she gave / She smiles, powering through her pain,” Ledisi serenades this sacrosanct sisterhood on the first verse. When she sings, “Black woman / Yes, I love you,” it’s evident that she’s singing from her heart and the depths of her soul.
“BLKWMN” debuted early this month with the release of a visualizer directed by Tyler Perry and Kvle Johnson. The video consists of black-and-white images of Black women icons, entertainers, athletes, activists, authors and politicians of yesteryear and today, such as Coretta Scott King, Maya Angelou, Grace Jones, Serena Williams and Michelle Obama.
“Thank you to all the Black Women that have inspired me. Because of you I AM! #BLKWMN I LOVE YOU!!” Ledisi proclaimed on her socials to accompany the single’s release. This song is both a timely celebration of Black women and a dazzling display of Ledisi’s prodigious talents.
As we segue from Black History Month into Women’s History Month, join Ledisi in showing love to the Black woman on “BLKWMN.” Listen to the song and watch its lyric video and official video below.
