‘Don’t Judge Me’ is the latest release from FKA twigs with rapper Headie One and producer Fred Again.. The track is an expanded version of the ‘Judge Me (Interlude)’ released on Headie One and Fred Again..’s mixtape GANG. ‘Don’t Judge Me’ is accompanied with a powerful and moving music video, co-directed by ‘BLACK IS KING’ director, Emmanuel Adjei, and FKA twigs. The collaboration was announced yesterday on twigs’ social media saying ‘so proud to release don’t judge me into the world. this project is very personal and special to me.’
The music video explores the experience of being Black in modern Britain and ‘the struggle against an invisible oppressor propagated by cultural, systemic and structural biases – that is often hard to see and even harder to overcome.’ The collaboration of Headie One’s honest rap with twigs’ avant-pop vocals singing ‘Don’t judge me, be there for me / Hold me in your arms’ whilst watching Black artists and influential figures being pushed down by the invisible oppressor creates a powerful and though-provoking audio-visual document. Twigs, who is also a renowned dancer, provides stunning, contemporary choreography that highlights this projects message.
Adjei and twigs’ visualisation features work from many influential Black British artists including Kara Walker’s ‘Fons Americanus’. The Hyundai 2019 commission is a fountain that was based off the Victoria Memorial outside Buckingham Palace. However, Walker’s fountain depicts ‘the legacy of Empire, public monuments, contemporary and historic violence of water, the black Atlantic and culture and narrative.’ Walker’s visual representation of these themes ‘questions how we remember history in our public monuments’. Adjei stated “Having the enormous Victorian-inspired fountain Fons Americanus by visual artist Kara Walker – depicting the historical, sorrowful story of slavery and colonisation – as our setting, and particularly as the spirit of the film, this important monument creates another layer of depth and meaning to an invisible yet shared history”. Twigs tweeted her adoration of the work stating, ‘it was an honour to shoot with kara walkers fountain exploring the interconnection of black history between africa, america and europe’
so proud to release don’t judge me into the world. this project is very personal and special to me. it was an honour to shoot with kara walkers fountain exploring the interconnection of black history between africa, america and europe. pic.twitter.com/YvlG3PgqMz — FKA twigs (@FKAtwigs) January 26, 2021
Set with a backdrop of ‘Fons Americanus’, the video features multiple Black, British artists and influential figures including writer Reni Eddo-Lodge, activist Munroe Bergdof, mental health advocate Nicole Crentsil and Black Lives Matter activist Solomon O.b. Twigs is dressed by Black designers, supported by FarFetch.
FKA Twigs is also launching a new radio station, named the ‘main squeeze’ on Sonos Radio. Twigs stated that the station will include, ‘music that has not only made me into the woman i have become but also inspired the artist that i am today’. It will launch February 10th 2021, alongside new stations by Björk, D’Angelo and The Chemical Brothers.
Watch the new ‘Don’t Judge Me’ video below.
