“White Privilege II,” performed by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis and featuring Jamila Woods, is difficult to adequately describe or even review as a piece of music. Similar to the artists’ previous work “Same Love,” the track addresses social issues in a musical format — however, unlike “Same Love,” “White Privilege II” is more of a musical than a typical song.
The nearly nine-minute story illustrates the still-prevalent fight for racial equality, specifically the battles African-Americans continually face on a daily basis, in a much more explicit manner than current songs of the genre. And Macklemore & Ryan Lewis handle the portrayal of the issues well. The track combines Macklemore’s personal experiences with white privilege and the utilization of other voices to tell perspectives he is not able to give genuinely or convincingly.
This is not to say Macklemore does not acknowledge his own past faults in the African-American equality movement, which has increased in publicity in past years. He admits his previous non-participation in the movement. It’s especially important because he shows the negative consequences of inaction — Macklemore raps, “It seems like we're more concerned with being called racist / Than we actually are with racism / I've heard that silences are action and God knows / That I've been passive / What if I actually read an article, actually had a dialogue / Actually looked at myself, actually got involved?”
“White Privilege II” is lyrically dense and utilizes changes in story direction to enhance the points the artists are trying to get across. One particularly effective example is in the third verse — "Even the old mom like me likes it, cause it's positive / You're the only hip-hop that I let my kids listen to / ‘Cause you get it, all that negative stuff it isn't cool' / Yeah? / 'Yeah, like, all the guns and the drugs / The bitches and the hoes and the gangs and the thugs / Even the protest outside, so sad, and so dumb / If a cop pulls you over, it's your fault if you run.’ / Huh?"
While the focus of the song is certainly the lyrics, Macklemore pairs his message for racial equality with an instrumental hook that gives it the vibe of an African-American spiritual. “White Privilege II” is by no means a song someone would play on repeat — it's really not even a song someone would add to a playlist — but it is an experience, and it's an experience that people of any race can benefit from hearing.
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