Angela Johnson has a message of unity on her new single “Inclusion.” It is the first single from her seventh album and she was inspired by the differences among people. She told PopMatters,Â
“At first, I wanted to write a song to celebrate our uniqueness as individuals. As I got deeper into the idea, I started to feel sad. My heart breaks every time I learn about a child or young adult committing suicide because of bullying. Whether it’s in school or cyber-bullying, they are so vulnerable and feel so pressured to hide their true selves from the world.”
“Inclusion” welcomes the existence of all people with bustling percussion, smooth brass and Johnson’s velvety vocals honoring those who feel like outsiders.Â
Johnson’s journey as a solo artist after she started her career with Cooly’s Hot Box has been a consistent advance into her ideas of soul music. Her self-directed muse has always been centered around honesty and seeing the beauty in the world around her. She also admitted to PopMatters that she too has been influenced by the movements of the current president’s administration and could not allow herself to be silent about something as important as respecting who people choose to love or being an immigrant. Johnson does not have a title for her next album but she is drawn to making R&B that is more suited for the dancefloor.Â
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