High school teacher and Canadian Hip Hop artist Jon Corbin has teamed up with Orijin, Es, Anthony Sawyers, and Creo. to craft a track on the subject of ‘navigating the world while Black.’
Amplify (Megaphone Remix) is featured on Corbin’s “Amplify / Outcry” project, an expansion on his two protest songs “Amplify” and “Outcry” which were released during the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020.
Corbin chose to revisit these songs “after George Floyd’s death shook the world, because I remember seeing thousands of feet taking to the streets with a collective cathartic cry, one pulled from generations of pain. It was so clear that we were witnessing an historical moment. Two years later, that moment can feel like a distant memory, one that my heart has been stirred to recall. I wanted to remind people that the antiracism conversation needs to continue, and that we all have a lot more processing to do.”
Corbin’s project incorporated the work of Black musicians and artists from all over North America. American musicians Johnny Bishop, Steven Dukes, and Matthew A. Thomas all contributed work, while the project’s cover was a photograph from a Kitchener, ON Black Lives Matter rally, shot by the notable photographer Alicia Wynter.
“Amplify (Megaphone Remix)” features the work of Canadian underground rappers Orijin, Es, Anthony Sawyers and Creo. According to Corbin, it is the work of these “everyday voices” that makes this version of Amplify so special.
“These are the voices that should be amplified: the people in our neighbourhoods that need space to bear witness to their joy and their pain,” Corbin says. “This song carries the voices of five unique artists, each sharing their own stirring expressions of the Black experience, each verse filled with gem after gem. We are all going to be better people after listening to this song.”
Throughout a 16 year career of simultaneously teaching and releasing music, Corbin has constantly sought the betterment of the student, and the listener. He has released 15 musical projects including three full length albums. Jon is a member of the Hip Hop Headucatorz, a collective of Ontario based teachers who are Hip Hop practitioners. He is also the co-author of #BlackMusicMatters, an educational resource focused on Canadian Hip Hop and Social Justice.
Video directed by Jordan Ramitt – https://jordan.ramitt.com/
Buy / Download the “Amplify / Outcry” project – https://linktr.ee/joncorbinmusic
Learn more about Jon Corbin https://linktr.ee/joncorbinmusic