The lyrics depict both the brutality of Israeli forces and the resilience of the Palestinian nation in a war that will mark its one-year anniversary next month, already claiming over 41,500 lives, the majority of them children and women.
"In our lifetime, we will be free. They can bury us, but they will find out we are seeds," reads one of the powerful lines from the song, which follows Macklemore's earlier chart-topping hit, "Hind’s Hall."
The new song is considered a sequel to "Hind’s Hall," a soulful track that captured the attention of pro-Gaza campaigners worldwide.
"Hind’s Hall" was dedicated to six-year-old Palestinian girl Hind Rajab, who, along with her family, was brutally killed by Israeli occupation forces in Gaza last January.
In her memory, students at Columbia University renamed Hamilton Hall to "Hind’s Hall" in protest of the Israeli-American war and the targeting of Palestinian children.
The latest song features Palestinian-American artist Anees and teenage Gazan rapper MC Abdul.
Anees lends his voice to the song’s key verse: "In our lifetime, we will be free. They can bury us, but they will find out we are seeds."
The music video accompanying the song highlights Israeli atrocities against Palestinians over the past year, showcasing scenes of bombed schools and hospitals, starvation and destruction as well as the slaughter of children and women.
The song also praises the steadfast resistance of the Palestinian people and their resistance groups in the face of brutal West-backed Israeli onslaught.
"Long live the resistance if there’s something to resist," reads another verse from the song, juxtaposed with footage of the Irish Republican Army, Malcolm X, Black Panther Party members, and people in Gaza.
Additionally, the song criticizes US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris for her government’s role in supplying funds and weapons to Israel.
"Hey Kamala, I don’t know if you’re listening, but stop sending money and weapons or you ain’t winning Michigan," the lyrics state.
Long read - 333 days of Gaza genocide and 333 reasons why mastermind is US By@HumairaAhad_83 https://t.co/FhAuHHGXyX pic.twitter.com/0cr71ecn60
— Press TV (@PressTV) September 4, 2024
Full lyrics of the track:
In our lifetime we will be free
One day when the light shines we will be free
In our lifetime we will be free
And they can bury us
But they will find out we are seeds
Oo-ohhh, Oo-ohhh
Oo-ohhh, Oo-ohhh
They can bury us
But they will find out we are seeds
Verse 1: Anees
I say free Falasteen because I know of every massacre we suffered
The Nakba, Sabra, Shatila, Rafah
My people have died a million times in their struggles
‘Til they rise from the tidеs
Like a rose through the rubblе
I see God himself in the eye of a refugee
Who’d rather die a martyr than live a life under siege
So if I’m not allowed to say “From the River to the Sea”
Then “From the rind to the seed Palestine will be free”
Still, they know they can’t shake us
Billion-dollar sword to the neck
Death cannot break us
And every Palestinian refugee holds a key
One day we will return
No matter how long it takes us
Chorus: Anees & Choirs, Macklemore
In our lifetime we will be free
One day when the light shines we will be free
In our lifetime we will be free
And they can bury us
But they will find out we are seeds
Oo-ohhh, Oo-ohhh
Oo-ohhh, Oo-ohhh
They can bury us
But they will find out we are seeds
Verse 2: MC Abdul
(Yeah, yeah)
I’ve seen massacres, I’m grateful to be alive
You appreciate life when you survive a genocide
Look in my eyes and tell me what you see
Ran out of tears to cry, rap ’til Palestine is free
Got a problem with the system that doesn’t want us existing
Turn a city to a prison that’s missing living conditions
My mom’s calling, she’s telling me she’s kinda scared
I hear the bombs fallin’, I smell the death up in the air
My uncle lost his children, I lost my cousins
As tears water their grave to let them know he still loves ’em
Our schools turn to shelters for the rich and poor
I just pray for peace
When I speak I don’t wish for war
Bodies layin’ out, ain’t nothing to play about
I give the people hope ’cause I’m the first who made it out
I’m just walking the path, this is God’s plan
Building up my dreams, from the rubble I touched with my hands
Chorus: Amer Zahr & Choirs
From the river to the sea
Palestine will be free (Louder)
From the river to the sea
Palestine will be free (Louder)
Verse 3: Macklemore
They done woke up the world now
We know who you serve at the White House
To kids in Gaza my vow right now
I’ma ride for your life like you were my child
Long live the resistance if there’s something to resist
Had enough of you motherfuckers murdering little kids
PC for a minute I was trynna be a bridge
But there’ll never be freedom by pleading with Zionists
World screaming, “Free Palestine”
We see the Manual we know how you colonized
You’d be surprised by how many fucks we actually really don’t give
When you take away that power of the all-mighty dollar sign
Fuck the allure, we’ll boycott the stores
Capitalism killing us that’s something we can’t afford
They want us to hate each other in the interest of war
Afraid of the mosque and afraid to light the menorah
Hey Kamala, I don’t know if you’re listening
But stop sending money and weapons or you ain’t winning Michigan
We uncommitted, and hell no we ain’t switching positions
Because the whole world turned Palestinian
I see them murdered children in Gaza and I see my babies
Life being stripped from the bombs we’re making
When will Congress decide a Palestinian’s life is just as precious as an Israeli’s
We don’t own the earth, don’t own the earth
We’re killing each other over some lines in the dirt
We bleed the same blood, feel the same hurt
Palestinian life, does it have the same worth?
What happened to us?
What happened to us?
Chorus: Amer Zahr & Choirs
From the river to the sea
Palestine will be free (Louder)
From the river to the sea
Palestine will be free (Louder)
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