After performing it at ESSENCE Festival, fans are calling for Jill Scott to upload her national anthem remix on digital music platforms.
While attending the annual event held in New Orleans, Scott opened up for headliner Missy Elliott. During her set, the Grammy Award winner delighted the audience with a rewrite she penned at 19 of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” The remix is reportedly an intro to her “Watching Me” single during live sets. At the fest, she sang:
“Oh, say can you see, by the blood in the streets. This place doesn’t smile on you, colored child. Whose blood built this land with sweat and their hands. But we’ll die in this place and your memory erased. Oh, say, does this truth hold any weight. This is not the land of the free but the home of the slaves.”
“Everyone, please rise for the only national anthem we will be recognizing from this day forward. Jill Scott, we thank you!” ESSENCE captioned their Instagram post of the Philadelphia native’s performance.
On her IG platform, Scott revealed her stop at the festival occurred while she embarks on her “The Who Is Jill Scott? 23rd Anniversary Tour.” Her North American and European musical experience began on Feb. 28. The “Gettin’ In the Way” performer is nearing the end of her tour with only stops in London, Paris, and Chicago remaining.
During a TIME 100 discussion in 2020, Scott spoke on issues plaguing society in America. “We can’t ignore what is happening in this country. It’s impossible. And to see people motivated to speak up, speak out, rise up, fight back, and not sit down is motivational. And I enjoy being a part of it,” she said. “I think it’s important that actors create plays and movies and films… Dancers dance out frustration… Writers write. And singers sing. And for people who’ve always been aware of what’s happening in society to continue to speak out and continue to move forward. There’s a real possibility for this country to actually be great.”