Meek Mill Draws on Childhood, Prison for Protest Song ‘Other Side of America’

Meek Mill has lent his voice to the ongoing protests against systemic racism and police brutality, in the form of his new song “Other Side of America.” The Philadelphia rapper draws on both his childhood and the time he spent in prison in 2017 for a string of hard-hitting verses. “Reporting live from the other side / Same corner where my brothers died,” he raps. “Livin’ like we ain’t got care / Told my mama I ain’t dying here.” Mill opens the song with President Donald Trump speaking about black Americans, saying, “You’re living in poverty, your schools are no good, you have no jobs, 58 percent of your youth is unemployed — what the hell do you have to lose?” The song closes, meanwhile, with audio of Mill talking to CNN’s Michael Smerconish, asking, “You see murder, you see seven people die a week, I think you would probably carry a gun yourself. Would you?” Smerconish replies, “Uh, yeah, I probably would,” and the song ends. “Other Side of America” comes in a string of recent Meek Mill singles, including the Nipsey Hussle–dedicated “Letter to Nipsey.” Last year, he chronicled his ongoing legal battle — along with his case for criminal-justice reform — in the Amazon Prime series Free Meek.