Review: “No Collusion (Remix)” by David Jonathan & The Inner City Bedlam ft. Chuckie Campbell

Protest music expresses the feelings of the oppressed by giving them voices when they’re otherwise unheard. Bob Marley and The Wailers used their platform to empower Black people to speak up and fight for their inalienable human rights with the track “Get Up Stand Up.” N.W.A’s classic “Fuck Tha Police” was an authentic anthem of distrust, highlighting the police’s bias against minorities and the disadvantaged.

Adding to this lexicon of powerful protest music, David Jonathan & The Inner City Bedlam continue the legacy of representing the oppressed through art and culture. The band’s new track, “No Collusion,” comes in response to the recent violence and brutality against innocent Black civilians. Being that the collaboration “provides the soundtrack to the inner city,” especially in Buffalo, it was only appropriate they use their platform to provide hope and sanctuary to those who feel overwhelmed and hopeless.

Another beloved local artist, Chuckie Campbell, contributed to the remix of this track with two poignant rap verses outlining the role white people play in racial inequity:

I wonder just what it would take to chart a new path?

For that to happen we would have to have a look at our past.

Campbell recognizes this inequality is a systemic issue stemming from the very foundation of American society. The antiquated ideas of our forefathers have trickled down into the modern ideals of police officers, politicians, and citizens. In order to “chart a new path” or fix these issues, we have to recognize there’s an inherent bias against Black Americans sewn into the fabric of our society.

Campbell utilizes an impressive flow that acts as a compliment to the soulfully sung chorus. He combines lyricism and storytelling with impressive pacing, syllable arrangement, and parallel structure. The introduction of each verse is also symbolic, as “We Shall Overcome” was the anthem of the civil rights movement. This call to action inspires hope in those who hear it as they recognize this oppression has been long-lived but is not permanent.

The chorus continues this message of hope and of faith. In spite of 2020’s gruesome events, Jonathon assures us things will be alright if the people can persevere through the struggle. The message is that equality can be achieved with hard work, dedication, and acknowledging where these problems stem from.

The instrumentals on this track are soulful, smooth, and bold. Jonathan provides the acoustic drum track, which adds a human element to the song. Usually in hip-hop and R&B, the drums are programmed or sampled from popular records. The humanized groove matches the pitter-patter of piano plucks and stays mostly minimal to highlight the rest of the accompaniment.

The rest of the arrangement feels like a church hymn, with strings gaining and losing momentum to match the energy of the song and background vocals creating a chorus effect. Percy Jones III was responsible for the strings, and both he and Whitney McClain created the angelic vocal backing.

Finally, the gospel vibe is shattered by a triumphant electric guitar solo with a unique, vocal quality. The combination of this ensemble and the vocal performances from Jonathon and Cambell creates a unique soundscape you can imagine blasting through car speakers or being belted through the doors of a church hall.

The music video is an extension of the equality theme. It features two young boys walking through the streets of Buffalo and playing on playgrounds. The amount of melanin in their skin doesn’t define their relationship because it’s nurture that teaches us to differentiate these things, not nature. This heartwarming message is juxtaposed with gorgeous drone shots of downtown Buffalo provided by local photographer Scott Siegel of Buffalo Drone Photography. The shots of the sun-lit city act as the cheerful backdrop to this serious discussion.

Authentic artistry such as this is a show of strength in times of uncertainty. Even though these racial issues are far from resolved, and the deaths of innocent people have mostly gone unpunished, hope and optimism shine through and inspire strength — the strength to continue the protest through music and honest conversation, and the strength to continue to fight despite the systemic nature of the adversary.