Black people are no monolith, and we do not all look the same. Yet no matter where you go in the world, from America to Latin America, Africa, and beyond, music has been used to unify the Black community. Music is a tool to call out injustices, to demand change, and to celebrate the boldness in each other. In honor of Black History Month, see the list below for the hits from all over the world that celebrate the Black experience.
1. “Brown Skin Girl” by Beyoncé feat. SAINt JHN and Wizkid
“Brown skin girl
Your skin just like pearls
The best thing in the world
Never trade you for anybody else…”
2. “Say It Loud, I’m Black and I’m Proud” by James Brown
“We’re people, we like the birds and the bees
We’d rather die on our feet
Thank be living on our knees
Say it loud, I’m Black and I’m proud!
Say it loud, I’m Black and I’m proud!”
3. “I Am Not My Hair” by India.Arie feat. Akon
“You can shave it off like a South African beauty
Or get in on lock Like Bob Marley;
You can rock it straight like Oprah Winfrey –
If it’s not what’s on your head
It’s what’s underneath…”
4. “What’s Going On” by Marvin Gaye
“Picket lines and picket signs
Don’t punish me with brutality
Come on talk to me
So you can see
What’s going on (What’s going on)…”
5. “Glory” by Common feat. John Legend
“Enemy is lethal, a king became regal
Saw the face of Jim Crow under a bald eagle
The biggest weapon is to stay peaceful
We sing, our music is the cuts that we bleed through
Somewhere in the dream we had an epiphany
Now we right the wrongs in history…”
6. “Rooted” by Ciara feat. Ester Dean
“Young Rosa, young Luther keep marchin’ (yeah, yeah)
Flood gates coming over don’t stop ’em (hey)
I know that life it ain’t easy (oh-oh, oh)
Your life it matters, believe me (oh-oh, oh)…”
7. “Shea Butter Baby” by Ari Lennox
“Coconut oil, the scent of your body still lingers on sheets
I got a shot at you, you wouldn’t reach
Cock back, cock back, trigger release…”
8. “Formation” by Beyoncé
“My daddy Alabama, Momma Louisiana
You mix that negro with that Creole make a Texas Bama
I like my baby heir with baby hair and afros
I like my negro nose with Jackson Five nostrils…”
9. “Melanin” by Ciara feat. Lupita Nyong’o, Ester Dean, City Girls, LaLa
“I’m black girl magic
Skin like expensive fabric (fact)
He like him ghetto and I’m ratchet
I’m a boss-boss, chick’s still askin’ (so?)”
10. “Dear Mama” by Tupac Shakur
“You always was committed
A poor single mother on welfare, tell me how you did it
There’s no way I can pay you back
But the plan is to show you that I understand
You are appreciated…”
11. “Umi Says” by Mos Def
“Black people unite and let’s all get down
Gotta have what,
Gotta have that love
Peace and understanding
One God, one light
One man, one voice, one mic…”
12. “Summertime” by Will Smith
“And as I think back makes me wonder how
The smell from a grill could spark up nostalgia
All the kids playing out front
Little boys messin’ round with the girls playing double-dutch
While the DJ’s spinning a tune as the old folks dance at your family reunion…”
13. “BGM” by Wale
“Ok black is beautiful shorty
Black is bold
Black is black, true, but black is gold
If God a color I know she black for sure
N****s blasphemy, but God gave me a daughter
Black women I love you…”
14. “Freedom” by Beyoncé feat. Kendrick Lamar
“Freedom
Where are you?
‘Cause I need freedom, too
I break chains all by myself
Won’t let my freedom rot in hell…”
15. “Blk Girl Soldier” by Jamila Woods
“See she’s telepathic
Call it black girl magic
Yeah she scares the gov’ment
Deja Vu of Tubman…”
16. “Poetic Justice” by Kendrick Lamar feat. Drake
“Young East African Girl, you too busy f****** with your other man
I was trying to put you on game, put you on a plane
Take you and your mama to the motherland
I could do it, maybe one day
When you figure out you’re gonna need someone…”
17. “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now” by McFadden & Whitehead
“I want ya’ll to listen, listen
To every word I say, every word I say!
Ain’t no stoppin’ us now!
We’re on the move!”
18. “Brown Skin” by Indie.Arie
“Brown skin, you know I love your brown skin
I can’t tell where yours begins
I can’t tell where mine ends
Brown skin, up against my brown skin
Need some every now and then, oh hey…”
19. “How Many” by Miguel
“Brothers and sisters it’s time to wake up, wake up, wake up
Brothers and sisters it’s time you say something, do something, make ’em
How many black lives, how many black lives
How many heartbeats turned into flatlines…”
20. “Fight the Power” by Public Enemy
“While the Black bands sweating
And the rhythm rhymes rolling
Got to give us what we want
Gotta give us what we need
Our freedom of speech is freedom or death
We got to fight the powers that be…”
21. “Don’t Touch My Hair” by Solange feat. Sampha
“Don’t touch my hair
When it’s the feelings I wear
Don’t touch my soul
When it’s the rhythm I know…”
22. “Four Women” by Nina Simone
“My skin is black
My arms are long
My hair is woolly
My back is strong
Strong enough to take the pain
Inflicted again and again
What do they call me?
My name is Aunt Sarah…”
23. “Black Girl Magik” by Sampa The Great
“I can’t stand your Black Girl Magik
I can feel it in the air
It’s so strong it’s like a magnet
You would think that God is here…”
24. “Black Woman” by Danielle Brooks
“You want my thighs, you want my stride
But not this melanin
You want my hair
But you don’t care for this complexion…”
25. “La Diaspora” by Nitty Scott feat. Zap Mama
“Whine to remind and she twerk to resist
Working it and worship the earth in her dip
Stolen from Africa seeking a gift
Sixteen on a ship…”
26. “Keep Ya Head Up” by Tupac
“Some say the blacker the berry, the sweeter the juice
I say the darker the flesh then the deeper the roots…”
27. “Black Love” by Masego
“Your dress, it brings me to a time of class
You’re so elegant, your skin is shining melanin
We are king and queen
I see the next one thousand years with you
The smiles worn by both our families
They can see the power in our new found unity…”
28. “Colors” by Black Pumas
“It’s a good day to be
A good day for me
A good day to see
My favorite colors, colors
My sisters and my brothers
They see ’em like no other
All my favorite colors…”
