Living Colour’s Corey Glover on BLM Uprising: “We’ve Been Talking About This Stuff for a Very Long Time”
Living Colour frontman Corey Glover was our recent guest on The Quarantinecast, and we spoke at length about the recent uprising against racial injustice in America, as well as the current spike in coronavirus infection rates, and the connection between those two issues in how so many continue to deny the severity of the problem. We also chatted about new music from Living Colour and his latest project, Disciples of Verity.
While discussing racial issues in America, Corey was quick to remind us that he’s been singing about these issues for more than three decades:
“The thing about Living Colour that most people don’t realize is that, well, we’ve been talking about this stuff for a very long time. Any of the stuff that’s happening right now with police brutality, and the state of white supremacy in this country, we’ve been talking about from day one. I don’t think anyone can deny that’s what we’ve been saying to the point where we have a record of it, literally, we have a record of all the things we’ve been saying about the world we live in. And we just think… people should listen. We’ve been talking about this for a long time, it’s not like we’re new to this. So if you’re looking for a soundtrack to what’s happening right now, it’s on our records.
[Interviewer: ‘I’m sensing frustration in your voice.’]
“There is a little frustration in that, you know, we’ve been doing this for over 30 years, and not that we’re not grateful for the opportunity that we’ve had to do any and all of this stuff, but it would be nice to get some recognition for something that, particularly right now when we see these things going on and we hear what people are saying and how the world is reacting to it, we’ve been talking about it. We did ‘Which Way to America,’ we did ‘Open Letter (to a Landlord),’ we did these songs, we talked about these things a long time ago. So a little recognition for that would be nice.”
On whether people are finally hearing that message:
“It’s hard to sort of square that with [the fact that] it’s not changing. We’ve been talking about this stuff in an effort for it to change and that’s disconcerting as well. I think it will change. I think we’ve gone through this thing for so long that it’s not going to be a pleasant one. It won’t be a pleasant change.
“I think what happens in these things, because this is not the first time we’ve had this kind of mass outcry for these things. It happened in Staten Island with Eric Garner, it happened in Ferguson with Michael Brown, it happened before, these things have not stopped happening. I think part of the issue is, in order for it to change, it’s going to have to disrupt the way that you deal with the world and some people are not comfortable with that. But you have to be ready for that to happen, you have to be cognizant of the fact that the world has to come to a 180 degree turn for it to really change. ‘Cause it’s not untenable.”
On the relationship between racial injustice in the U.S. and the current coronavirus pandemic:
“Just because you don’t see it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. That seems to be the overarching theme of 2020 thus far. Just because you don’t see COVID, just because you don’t see racism, just because you don’t feel the effects of these things, doesn’t mean it’s not happening. It is. Deal with it.”
A quick update on new Living Colour music:
“I talked to them last week, actually talked to Will [Calhoun, drums] yesterday, so we’re constantly in contact and we’re trying to make some new music as well. We’ve been throwing ideas around to figure out what we’re going to do. We’re still sharing ideas, not swapping files just yet, but like I said, as soon as I get my gear to work, I will be sending files all day long.”
Listen to/watch the full episode of The Quarantinecast below.
