In honor of Black History Month, legendary soul singer Mavis Staples teaches how to look past skin color in the new video for her latest album’s titular track “If All I Was Was Black”. Watch it HERE.
“In 2017 I watched as all the Confederate monuments came down in New Orleans, but the conversation never arose as to what would replace them,” explained director Zac Manuel. “This video imagines a reality where we venerate people who are truly deserving of being immortalized in public spaces, a reality in which Black people can be proud to see themselves on pedestals in the air, cast in iron and stone. The intent of this video is to highlight black excellence, and to provoke and encourage a larger public appreciation of the labor – physical and emotional – the people of color often are expected to bear.”
The album If All I Was Was Black was produced by Jeff Tweedy and released in the fall of 2017 to much critical acclaim and late night appearances on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Later… with Jools Holland and most recently a Martin Luther King Jr. Day performance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! “Mavis Staples is a hit-maker, a civil rights activist, a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and a true believer in her God, in this country and in the power of good over evil. If we need a voice to listen to right now—to educate us, to comfort us, to spur us into action—it’s hard to think of a better one than hers,” proclaimed Paste. All upcoming Mavis Staples tour dates are listed below.
TOUR DATES
2/16 – Bow, WA – Skagit Valley Casino Resort
2/17 – Bow, WA – Skagit Valley Casino Resort
2/21 – Greenville, SC – Peace Center
2/23 – Charleston, SC – Galliard Center
2/25 – Ponte Vedra Beach, FL – Ponte Vedra Concert Hall
3/3 – Park City, UT – Eccles Center
3/15 – New York, NY – Beacon Theatre
4/28 – Long Beach, CA – Carpenter Center
5/11 – Atlanta, GA – Wolf Creek Amphitheater
5/15 – 5/17 – Santa Barbara, CA – Live Oak Fest
6/7 – 6/10 – Manchester, TN – Bonnaroo
