Ciara releases new music video featuring Black Lives Matter protesters to celebrate 'Black Excellence'
Ciara just released a powerful new single "Rooted," featuring artist Ester Dean, along with a new music video for the track.
In a post introducing the song, which speaks of "Black excellence," Ciara wrote, "To all my Black Queens & Kings, always know everything you need to survive and thrive is rooted in you!"
Some of the single's lyrics include, "All my songs come with melanin/Got the heart, got the soul like Harriett/A queen since she born, that was evident/That's evidence, of Black excellence."
"Young girl stay rooted/I done plant my seeds now I'm rooted/Brown skin poppin', I'm rooted/ATL bred, I'm rooted," the Grammy Award-winning artist sings in the chorus of the song.
The music video for "Rooted," which Ciara said she shot two days before delivering her newborn son Win, is equally powerful.
Directed by Annie Bercy, the video features moving images from nationwide Black Lives Matter protests.
A young woman is shown wearing a T-shirt featuring a picture of Breonna Taylor with the words "Say Her Name" printed on it, while another person wears a shirt with "I Can't Breathe" printed on the back in honor of George Floyd.
Footage of protesters raising their fists, holding signs featuring photos of Floyd and chanting for justice appear throughout. Celebrating Black dancers is also a central focus of the video.
Ciara fans will also notice that her 6-year-old son Future and 3-year-old daughter Sienna make appearances throughout the video.
The video ends with a strong message of hope and resilience from the singer. "To all my young Rosa's and Young Luther's keep marching," it says.
"Don't stop fighting for what you believe in," Ciara's message continues. "To all my Black queens and kings, continue to plant and spread seeds of love, hope and pride in your tribe. Everything you need to survive and thrive is rooted in you. Stay rooted."
A portion of the single's proceeds will be donated to Grantmakers for Girls of Color, a philanthropic organization devoted to growing investment to support girls of color.
