Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
New Solo Version of Aretha Song About Race, Faith Released
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 4 years ago on
June 19, 2020

Share

NEW YORK — A never-before-heard solo version of the late Aretha Franklin’s riveting and powerful collaboration with Mary J. Blige about faith and race, 2006’s “Never Gonna Break My Faith,” has arrived on Juneteenth.
Sony’s RCA Records, RCA Inspiration and Legacy Recordings released the song Friday, aligning with the holiday celebrating the day in 1865 that all enslaved black people learned they had been freed from bondage.
“Never Gonna Break My Faith” resonates today, featuring lyrics like: “You can lie to a child with a smiling face/Tell me that color ain’t about a race.”
“The world is very different now. Change is everywhere and each of us, hopefully, is doing the best he or she can to move forward and make change as positive as possible,” Clive Davis, Sony Music’s chief creative officer and Franklin’s close friend and collaborator, said in a statement.
Dozens of artists have released new songs detailing the black experience amid the global protests sparked by the recent deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and many others. Some performers have released covers of protest anthems or re-released older songs that resonate with the times, like “Never Gonna Break My Faith.”

‘Everyone Should Hear This Record’

Lyrics from the song include: “My Lord, won’t you help them to understand/That when someone takes the life of an innocent man/Well they’ve never really won, and all they’ve really done/Is set the soul free, where it’s supposed to be.”
Calling Franklin’s performance “chilling,” Davis said the song’s lyrics and relevance “will shake every fiber in your body.”
“Everyone should hear this record,” Davis said. “It deserves to be an anthem.”
“Never Gonna Break My Faith” won best gospel performance at the 50th Grammy Awards in 2008, marking Franklin’s 18th and final Grammy win. She died in 2018 at age 76.
The song was originally featured in the film “Bobby,” about U.S. Sen. Robert F. Kennedy’s 1968 assassination, and features background vocals from The Boys Choir of Harlem.
“This solo version has been sitting on my computer for years, and when I heard Clive was making a film on Aretha’s life, I sent this version to him. The world hasn’t heard her full performance and it really needed to be heard,” Grammy-winning singer Bryan Adams, who co-wrote the song, said in a statement. “I’m so glad it’s being released, the world needs this right now.”

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

Easy Time-Saving Tips for Classic Easter Dishes

DON'T MISS

Did You Fall for These Well-Known April Fools’ Day Jokes?

DON'T MISS

Country Star Toby Keith Died Before Being Told He Was Elected to Hall of Fame

DON'T MISS

New Book Explores the Myths, Truths and Legacy of the Macho Man

DON'T MISS

Beyoncé’s Country Album Will Be Called ‘Act II: Cowboy Carter’

DON'T MISS

Eric Carmen, the Raspberries Frontman and ‘All by Myself’ and ‘Hungry Eyes’ Singer, Dies at 74

DON'T MISS

Oscar Moments: Talk of War & Peace, a Coronation for Nolan, and Ken-Demonium for Gosling

DON'T MISS

Dirt-Cheap Gardening Secrets

DON'T MISS

Dirt-Cheap Gardening Secrets

DON'T MISS

WWE, a Social Media Powerhouse, Tops 100 Million Subscribers on YouTube

No data was found

Trump Criticizes Judge and His Daughter After Gag Order in Hush-Money Case

11 hours ago

CA Insurance Market ‘in Chaos,’ Says Former Insurance Commissioner. Can Lara Fix It?

12 hours ago

Stock Market Today: S&P 500 Sets a Record After Wall Streets Breaks Out of Its Lull

12 hours ago

House Speaker Mike Johnson Headed to Fresno on April 4

12 hours ago

Bredefeld, Smittcamp Debate the Salary of Valley Children’s CEO

12 hours ago

CA’s Liberal Government Has a Long History of Caving to Special Interests

13 hours ago

Corrupt Process? Bullard, Edison Parents Blast Handling of Superintendent Search

13 hours ago

Police Had About 90 Seconds to Stop Traffic Before Baltimore Bridge Fell. 6 Workers Are Feared Dead

14 hours ago

NBC Has Cut Ties With Former RNC Head Ronna McDaniel After Employee Objections, Some on the Air

14 hours ago

Here Are Some Numbers That Will Help You Get Your March Madness Fix for the Sweet 16

14 hours ago

Ukrainian Navy Says a Third of Russian Warships in the Black Sea Have Been Destroyed or Disabled

KYIV, Ukraine — Ukraine has sunk or disabled a third of all Russian warships in the Black Sea in just over two years of war, the navy spokes...

5 hours ago

5 hours ago

Ukrainian Navy Says a Third of Russian Warships in the Black Sea Have Been Destroyed or Disabled

Composite image of President Trump and Devin Nunes
9 hours ago

Wired Wednesday: How Going to Work for Trump Turned Devin Nunes Into a Millionaire

10 hours ago

Former Sen. Joe Lieberman, Democrats’ VP Pick in 2000, Dead at 82

11 hours ago

Trump Criticizes Judge and His Daughter After Gag Order in Hush-Money Case

12 hours ago

CA Insurance Market ‘in Chaos,’ Says Former Insurance Commissioner. Can Lara Fix It?

12 hours ago

Stock Market Today: S&P 500 Sets a Record After Wall Streets Breaks Out of Its Lull

12 hours ago

House Speaker Mike Johnson Headed to Fresno on April 4

12 hours ago

Bredefeld, Smittcamp Debate the Salary of Valley Children’s CEO

MENU

CONNECT WITH US

Search

Send this to a friend