The rock and metal scene has rallied together to echo the sentiments of the George Floyd protests and the #BlackLivesMatter movement across the world.
As protests in America enter their sixth day following the death of George Floyd last Monday, a huge number of musicians have shown their support for the movement – both online, and by attending these events themselves.
While the demonstrations started off in Minneapolis, they have now spread to New York, Los Angeles, D.C., and Chicago, as well as taking off across the globe and reaching Canada, Germany and the United Kingdom. In America, the likes of Machine Gun Kelly, YUNGBLUD and Palaye Royale took to the streets to march with fellow protestors, while elsewhere everyone from Corey Taylor to Green Day to Enter Shikari to Hayley Williams had their say online, supporting #BlackLivesMatter and encouraging others to do the same.
"We will never truly understand the depth & magnitude of the pain black people have had to endure for years, but we hope we can use our voice and this platform to show our support & solidarity," wrote Canadian pop-punks Simple Plan. "More importantly, we are here to listen & learn how we can do better."
"I was beat up by a group of cops when I was 14 years old," said Against Me! leader Laura Jane Grace. "They stepped on my head and put a knee in my back then hogtied me. Carried me around like a suitcase. I know the only reason I’m alive is because of my white privilege."
Understandably, artists from every spectrum of the rock genre have weighed in on the situation, sharing their personal experiences, demanding justice, showing solidarity to all those affected, and embracing the fact that there's even more work still to be done. Read a selection of those thoughts below, and donate to George Floyd's GoFundMe to cover funeral and burial costs, The Minnesota Freedom Fund, Reclaim The Block, Black Lives Matter or any of these black-led organisations to help do your part.
