I discovered this song just a day ago, and I already think it merits instant inclusion on the playlist. This is the latest single from Alicia Keys, who has never stopped turning out consistently amazing work over the years, from "Fallin'" to "Girl on Fire" to "Empire State of Mind" and more. She released this song in January, which feels like lifetimes ago, but it seems more relevant than ever: "Underdog" is an anthem for the striving, the overlooked, and the invisible, forcing us to look them in the eye and see their lives and dreams and finally recognize their worth.
Over a stomp-clap beat that feels like the danceable soundtrack to a revolution, Keys celebrates "single mothers waiting on a check to come / young teachers, student doctors / sons on the front line knowing they don't get to run" -- the very people we depend on to hold society together (mostly, it must be said, the working class and people of color): those who are now risking their lives while we shelter in the comfort of our homes, and for whom we must demand far more protection, care, and compensation. In a recent benefit performance, Keys makes this connection clear by tweaking the second verse: the taxi driver's wife, originally a refugee and political dissident, is now (instead, or also) "a first responder who is risking her life / to give us her love and get it right on time."
The day can't come soon enough when all the underdogs among us "rise up, rise up" to demand justice for their sacrifice. And they'll do it with or without those of us whose privileged lives are cradled in the beams and girders they hold up with the strength of aching hands and the breath in burning lungs -- every day, with gloves and masks on, setting hope against fear. BONUS: Keys comments extensively on the lyrics here:
And while her song is the latest "Underdog" to be my favorite, it isn't the first. That honor belongs to Sly and the Family Stone.
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Listen to the Spotify playlist here.
Watch the YouTube playlist here.
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