Anderson .Paak Drops Powerful Video For Juneteenth Single 'Lockdown'

Anderson .Paak has dropped a new single, "Lockdown," and accompanying music video in honor of Juneteenth, the holiday honoring the official end of legal slavery in the United States.

The mid-tempo track arrived on Friday (June 19) and hears the Oxnard-born MC reflect on the ongoing struggle for Black America, which has seen global protests come to life in the wake of George Floyd's killing, as well as the subsequent wave of activism against racial injustice and the unemployment rate due to the COVID-19 pandemic. "Stayin' quiet when they killin' n***as, but you speak loud," he spits on the protest cut, which was self-produced, alongside J.LBS. "When we ride, got opinions comin' from a place of priv'/ Sicker than the COVID, how they did him on the ground/ Speakin' of the COVID, is it still goin' around?"

Along with the song, fans were blessed with a Dave Meyers-directed video, which sees .Paak and other friendly faces like Jay Rock, Syd of The Internet, Andra Day, SiR, Dominic Fike and Dumbfoundead. For the visual, the crew head to a diner after a protest, before the leading man heads home to create "Lockdown" at his piano, alongside his son. Additionally, the clip features a spoken-word verse from Rock that isn't included on the studio version of the song. However, the final frame of the video speaks volumes as it states that .Paak's oranization, .Paak House, has donated to Action Bail Fund LA, Atlanta Solidarity Fund, and Albany Safety Fund for Black Lives. Meanwhile, all cast and crew salaries for the video were donated to Dream Defenders, BEAM, and Color of Change.

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Photo: YouTube/Anderson Paak