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Image Via Hypebeast
Yasiin Bey, the artist formerly known as Mos Def, released a somber and moving speech through Stop Being Famous about the state of current events. “We are at a critical time,” he explains. “We are at a watershed moment for humanity. I imagine we’ve been here before. I imagine that we’ve probably been here for longer than we realize. Many of us are becoming even more aware of where we are and the urgency to change this miserable condition on this Earth, as Malcolm X said, is occurring to many of us, reaffirming itself.” Bey goes on to share an excerpt from “The Desiderata,” a poem by Max Ehrmann:
Go placidly amid the noise and the haste
and remember what peace there may be in silence
As far as possible without surrender
be on good terms with all persons
Speak your truth quietly and clearly
and listen to others
even the dull and the ignorant
they too have their story
Avoid loud and aggressive persons
they are vexations to the spirit
If you compare yourself with others
you may become vain or bitter
for always there will be persons greater or lesser than yourself
Listen to Bey’s “thoughts on upheaval” below and if it makes you yearn for Yasiin over beats, check out this Bey/Marvin Gaye mashup.
