[Kim]

I love all the music that is included in the lectures, some familiar favourites and others I have not heard. I have been looking to add more Black music to our classroom playlist. Thanks!

[Lyndsay]

Love this! Thanks for sharing 🙂

[Sarah]

I too loved the music in this course and am excited to share the diversity of the playlist in my middle-school classroom. Any chance there’s a “clean” playlist that anyone can suggest?

[Ron]

Thank you for sharing this. Music is a powerful tool that can be used for healing and connection!

[Julia]

This is really amazing thank you for sharing! I connect so much to music and think it can be so powerful. I will for sure be enjoying this playlist and will share with others too☺

[Meaghan]

Thank you very much for sharing this.

I’ve taught the song “Rise Up” to my English class and it was very powerful. We listened to the song first, then followed along with the lyrics and lastly watched the music video. It was very interesting to see the different interpretations and connections.

Quite a few of the songs are explicit. Are there clean versions of those songs?

[Mica]

Thank you so much for sharing this, it’s amazing! ‘Brown Skin Girl’ and its anthem of self-love was a song from the modules that’s really close to my heart, especially growing up with blatant colourism and racism in my home country and now here, too.

[Stephanie]

Thank you for sharing this.

[Abena]

As I was going through the courses, I kept looking up the songs and wishing that there was a playlist available! This is great!

[Holly]

Love this play list. Definitely playing this in the background. My faves: Preach – John Legend, Changes – 2Pac👏

[Lux]

Such a great playlist to listen to while reflecting on these powerful teachings. Rise Up and Brown Skin Girl are on my faves playlist and they get a lot of play already. I had not heard Baldwin before but it was great. Thanks for this great resource. Music is such a powerful way to connect with others.

[Leigha]

I’m looking forward to using this in the school setting for our morning music in February where we exclusively centre Black identifying artists during Black History and Heritage Month.

[Lisa]

That’s a great idea! Thank you for sharing 😊

[Carmel]

This is incredible – thank you!!

[Madina]

Great list – thanks for sharing!

[Laura]

Thank you so much for sharing this playlist. It’s fantastic. I can’t wait to pass it along to others.

[Marie]

Thank you so much for sharing this, Toni! Music is such an incredible resource and can be one of the easiest way that students can start to feel a sense of belonging and appreciation in the classroom.

[Toni]

Growing up I did not listen to “Black Music.” There were the occasional classics that I heard on the radio, but in the house we played Jesus music. Which was fine by me. But there was always something in me that felt at home when I was at my grandparents restaurant listening to the music. Something that centers me in a way that I can’t really explain. Even now, as an adult, I have no idea who is who, and what is “hot.” When I hear a song I shazam it. So I cannot tell you how amazing it was to have this amazing music opening and closing each module. I shazammed the heck out of them! It’s weird that a course that it supposed to be about helping others has affirmed and empowered me. And part of it – is the amazing music. Thank you so much for making this a part of this program.

[Abdulai]

What a wonderful commitment to get our people out to vote and their voices heard, loudly! Part of the process of dismantling systemic racism is when we vote to effect those positive changes, especially when we no longer in the “minority”.

[Ivan]

Thanks for sharing this list with us! I was definitely motivated and deeply engaged, with such powerful music! All these songs are great, many I didn’t know, but I did know 2pac’s ‘Changes’. Which is still one of my all time favorites.

[Claire]

Will definitely listen to these in my own time! Thank you for sharing ☺

[Joan]

Thanks !

[Kathe]

Although his songs are not (yet?) featured on this playlist, I’m wondering if anyone has been listening to Cadence Weapon? His most recent album, Parallel World, was named the winner of the 2021 Polaris Music Prize for best Canadian album this week.

In his acceptance speech, he said, “If I won this, I wanted to announce that next year I’ll be using some of my resources to organize some voter registration events around the Toronto municipal election, as well as the Ontario provincial election because we need some changes to our leadership and we need to make things more equitable for people in this city to be able to vote. I also just want to take this time to mention that Justin Trudeau has worn Blackface so many times he can’t even remember how many times, and he was just given a third term. That’s exactly why I need to be making rap records that are political, that are about these subjects because that’s still a fact today.”

[Rachelle]

Wonderful playlist. I will share it with my kids!

[Kiaunna]

Agreed! The playlist was lovely, hearing Brown Skin Girl always puts me in a good mood and makes me feel so beautiful.

[D]

The playlist was amazing. Thank you for this. It really made the modules that much more powerful.

[Joy]

Great playlist! I liked how the music opened and closed each module. My favourites here are Glory, Rise Up, and Brown Skinned Girl.

[Jenny]

A diverse and amazing collection of artists. We have a Section 23 school that is run Monday to Friday for the young people accessing our services. Now with Covid restrictions allowing for meals to be shared together again (of course following all health recommendations and social distancing protocols), I would love to hear this playlist being played in our common areas/dining room over meal times and between classes. Music has the uncanny ability to bring us all together and this playlist would be an awesome addition to our site.

[Arielle]

THIS part! 🙌🏾

[Meron]

Great playlist! Vibes all day. Thanks for sharing 🙂

[Mitch]

Really appreciate the range on this playlist. It is a great reminder of the diversity that exists among Black musicians and artists and an important teaching that a wide range of music can be featured and celebrated in youth meetings and programming spaces.

This range when shared also makes it possible for Black youth in programming spaces to bring their unique interests and talents to a group or space.

[Mitch]

My faves are: If I have a son, Preach, Brown Skin Girl, and Rise Up!