A political track that brings up mass incarceration, the bitter sweet contrast in American history for Afro-Americans, and Joey’s ambition to create change for the future.
The song was originally teased on January 16th for Martin Luther King day. ‘'Land of the Free’‘ was released on January 20th 2017—both Joey’s birthday and the day of Donald Trump’s inauguration—and is a single for Joey’s sophmore album AABA.
The artwork shows Joey in a ‘'Make Amerikkka Suck Again’‘ shirt with what seems to be an illustration of a Nazi eagle symbol, (Reichsadler). This can be interpreted as a criticism of Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign slogan ‘'Make America Great Again’'. Trump has been accused of ‘'dog whistling’' to the Alt-Right movement and other demographics who believe in white nationalism.
The backdrop is an illustration of inside the boats of the slave handle.
We made the beat in the studio, me and my producers, One Nine Hundred and Kirk Knight. We were all just in the studio vibing, like we usually do, and the way we did this album, we would create the sounds first. I would give them the directions of the sound. I would throw some BPM numbers out there and shit like that, and we just got into this vibe right here which eventually became “Land of the Free.” And as soon as my man Nine Hundred started going crazy on the keys, I just felt this immense vibe of just pureism. A classic feel, just the way the instruments were sounding, I was like, “Yo Kirk you got to give me these types of drums. The juicy joints. Don’t sample nothing but just do it like this type of feel.” And then the beat was born. We ended up finishing that beat around 1 or 2 a.m...I don’t like being in the studio late night. I turn off my mind from writing at like 12 a.m. I’m just too tired. So I was like, “Ok, I’ll write to this song another time.” It ended up being probably a month after we made that beat. I finally came back to that beat one morning. I just knew what I had to talk about. The first line came to me, “We can’t change the world unless we change ourselves,” and then it just kept going and going. What really inspired this song, I was binge watching a whole bunch of Doctor Umar Johnson speeches, lectures and whatnot. Not only Umar Johnson, but Malcolm X, Marcus Garvey. There is a line in there that says, “Everything I do today that is worth while, will for sure inspire action in your first child.” Marcus Garvey has a quote where he says, “Everything you do today that is worthwhile, while inspire others to act at some future time.” And I got that from the book. ‘Cause I was reading into him a lot during this album. The part inspired by Umar is, “Leave us dead in the streets to be their organ donors.“ That’s something I learned from an Umar lecture.
Sometimes I speak, and I feel like it ain’t my words because that’s how the word were coming to me. I was just receiving them from a higher place, and I’m just channeling right now. I’m just a vessel and the forces is just coming through me. Through this pen. That’s what’s writing this song."
Land of the Free
Joey Bada$$ Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You know sometimes I think they don't truly understand me you know
'Cause they don't
Can't change the world 'less we change ourselves
Die from the sicknesses if we don't seek the health
All eyes be my witness when I speak what's felt
Full house on my hands, the cards I was dealt
I'm just a black spade spawn out the nebula
And everything I do or say today that's worthwhile
Will for sure inspire action in your first child
I'll begin my verse now
Sometimes I speak and I feel like it ain't my words
Like I'm just a vessel channeling inside this universe
I feel my ancestors arrested inside of me
It's like they want me to shoot my chance and change society
But how do I go about it? Tell me where I start?
My destiny rerouted when I chose to follow heart
You told to follow suit, but tell me what it do for you?
Except weigh you down, now you trapped inside the cubicle they built for us
The first step in the change is to take notice
Realize the real games that they tried to show us
300 plus years of them cold shoulders
Yet 300 million of us still got no focus
Sorry America, but I will not be your soldier
Obama just wasn't enough, I just need some more closure
And Donald Trump is not equipped to take this country over
Let's face facts 'cause we know what's the real motives
In the land of the free, is for the free loaders
Leave us dead in the street then be your organ donors
They disorganized my people, made us all loners
Still got the last names of our slave owners
In the land of the free, it's for the free loaders
Leave us dead in the street then be your organ donors
They disorganized my people, made us all loners
We can't change the world 'less we change ourselves
Die from the sicknesses if we don't seek the health
All eyes be my witness when I speak what's felt
Full house on my hands, the cards I was dealt
Three K's, Two A's in AmeriKKKa
I'm just a black spade spawn out the nebula
And everything I do or say today that's worthwhile
Will for sure inspire action
Trickery in the system, put my niggas in prison
All our history hidden, ain't no liberty given
We all fit the description of what the documents written
We been lacking the vision and barely making a living
We too worried to fit in while they been benefitin'
Every time you submittin', we all guilty admit it
The Lord won't get you acquitted, but you still ask for forgiveness
Put opiates in syringes then inject his religion
How many times do I gotta tell you I'm a man on a mission
Many times I gotta tell you I don't need no permission
Or human with supervision, ain't no livin' condition
I'm reaching out to my children, just hoping that they will listen
Start a new coalition against corrupt politicians
It's not enough pots to piss in, too many murder convictions
Another family evicted, another black man a victim
That's as real as it's getting, you should take recognition
In the land of the free, is for the free loaders
Leave us dead in the street then be your organ donors
They disorganized my people, made us all loners
Still got the last names of our slave owners
In the land of the free, is for the free loaders
Leave us dead in the street then be your organ donors
They disorganized my people, made us all loners
We can't change the world 'less we change ourselves
Die from the sicknesses if we don't seek the health
All eyes be my witness when I speak what's felt
Full house on my hands, the cards I was dealt
Three K's, Two A's in AmeriKKKa
I'm just a black spade spawn out the nebula
And everything I do or say today that's worthwhile
Will for sure inspire action in your first child
Joey Bada$$’s song Land of the Free speaks of the corrupt and failing American system that continues to treat its citizens unfairly. The song opens with the line, “Can't change the world 'less we change ourselves,” which sets the tone for the rest of the song. Joey recognizes that in order for true change to come about, people need to start looking at themselves and their actions more closely. The system is failing the people, but the people also need to take responsibility.
Joey uses powerful lyrics to get the message across that in the land of the free, not everyone is free. He speaks of the trickery in the system, the injustice done to his people and the lack of vision in society. He addresses the dehumanizing treatment of Black Americans with lines such as “Still got the last names of our slave owners.” He sees a lack of hope and motivation in his community and calls for a new coalition to rise against corrupt politicians.
Maybe the most powerful message in the song lies in the recurring refrain, “We can’t change the world ‘less we change ourselves.” Joey urges his listeners to take responsibility to make a difference in the world by first looking inside themselves. Only then can they truly inspire action and change.
Line by Line Meaning
Can't change the world 'less we change ourselves
In order to change the world, we have to change ourselves first.
Die from the sicknesses if we don't seek the health
If we don't seek health, we'll die from illnesses.
All eyes be my witness when I speak what's felt
When I speak my truth, everyone is watching and listening.
Full house on my hands, the cards I was dealt
I have a lot on my plate and I'm dealing with the hand I've been given.
Three K's, Two A's in AmeriKKKa
I see the racist nature of America with the KKK and the Aryan Brotherhood.
I'm just a black spade spawn out the nebula
I come from the cosmos and I am a black person.
And everything I do or say today that's worthwhile
Everything I say or do today that has value will inspire change for the future.
Will for sure inspire action in your first child
My actions and words today will inspire your first child to create change in the future.
Sometimes I speak and I feel like it ain't my words
Sometimes I feel like my words are coming from something greater than myself.
Like I'm just a vessel channeling inside this universe
I feel like I am a vessel for something beyond myself that is trying to make a change.
I feel my ancestors arrested inside of me
I carry the struggles and pain of my ancestors within me.
It's like they want me to shoot my chance and change society
I feel like my ancestors want me to take my opportunity to create change in society.
But how do I go about it? Tell me where I start?
I am unsure of how to create change and need guidance.
My destiny rerouted when I chose to follow heart
My path in life changed when I decided to follow my heart.
You told to follow suit, but tell me what it do for you?
You told me to follow the status quo, but how has that benefited you?
The first step in the change is to take notice
The first step to creating change is to be aware of the issues.
Realize the real games that they tried to show us
Understand the games that those in power are playing and trying to show us.
300 plus years of them cold shoulders
300 years of oppression and mistreatment from those in power.
Yet 300 million of us still got no focus
Even though there are 300 million of us, we still lack direction and purpose.
Sorry America, but I will not be your soldier
I will not blindly follow America's agenda.
Obama just wasn't enough, I just need some more closure
Obama's presidency wasn't enough to create the change I wanted and I need more closure.
And Donald Trump is not equipped to take this country over
Donald Trump is not fit to lead this country.
Let's face facts 'cause we know what's the real motives
Let's be honest about the true motives of those in power.
Trickery in the system, put my niggas in prison
The system is rigged and has unfairly put many black people in prison.
All our history hidden, ain't no liberty given
Our history has been buried and we aren't given true freedom.
We all fit the description of what the documents written
We are all labeled by the documents written by those in power.
We been lacking the vision and barely making a living
We lack direction and are struggling to make ends meet.
We too worried to fit in while they been benefitin'
We are too concerned with fitting in while those in power are benefiting.
Every time you submittin', we all guilty admit it
Every time we comply, we are admitting to our guilt in the system.
The Lord won't get you acquitted, but you still ask for forgiveness
God won't save you, but you still ask for forgiveness for the wrongs you've done.
Put opiates in syringes then inject his religion
They use religion as a way to control and manipulate people.
How many times do I gotta tell you I'm a man on a mission
I am on a mission to create change and have been saying this for a long time.
Many times I gotta tell you I don't need no permission
I don't need anyone's permission to create change.
Or human with supervision, ain't no livin' condition
We don't need anyone to supervise us and the conditions we live in are unsustainable.
I'm reaching out to my children, just hoping that they will listen
I am speaking out to the younger generations, hoping they will listen and create change.
Start a new coalition against corrupt politicians
We need to form a new group to stand up against corrupt politicians.
It's not enough pots to piss in, too many murder convictions
We are struggling and there are too many people being wrongfully convicted and killed.
Another family evicted, another black man a victim
Families are being forced out of their homes and black men are still victims of injustice.
That's as real as it's getting, you should take recognition
This is the reality that we are facing and we need to recognize it.
In the land of the free, is for the free loaders
The freedom in this country is only for those who are already privileged.
Leave us dead in the street then be your organ donors
They let us die and then use our organs for their gain.
They disorganized my people, made us all loners
They have caused chaos and made us all feel isolated.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: JO-VAUGHN VIRGINIE, ADAM PALLIN, KIRLAN LABARRIE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@vampirerocks619
1999 fans where yall at?
@Callmepauly
FredyFredd JOEY BADASS FANS WHERE YOU AT
@adcommit
✊🏾 still bump that shit heavy
@dxndxddy5584
FredyFredd 1999 fan wassup
@ManiFrost
Just here
@k6nga
FredyFredd !!🙌🏼🙌🏼
@trueshikaii6775
''They disorganized my people made us all loners''
damn straight facts
@username0984
“Leave us dead on the street to be our organ donors”
That line hit hard bro…
@Kyle-Gosal
Who his people tho
@georgedennis9319
Damn, That line hurts!