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Jasiri X Releases New Track, ‘Occupy’, In Support of Occupy Protests

Written by Tyler Hakes. Published: Wednesday, October 19, 2011.

Jasiri X Releases New Track, 'Occupy', In Support of Occupy Protests The acclaimed Pittsburgh rapper weighs in on the sweeping Occupy movement taking place across the world.

As more protests rise in cities around the globe, Pittsburgh MC Jasiri X this week released his newest song and video for the track “Occupy (We the 99)”, showing his solidarity with the increasingly-prevalent protests against Wall Street greed and income inequality.

“We gonna Occupy. We the 99,” Jasiri X chants in the song’s chorus. The video for the track features live footage from protests in his hometown of Pittsburgh, PA, as well as the seminal demonstrations taking place in the Wall Street district in Manhattan, NY.

The video and the song open up with audio and video that recently made its way viral on the Internet. The original footage showed a single protester — identified as retired Marine Sgt. Shamar Thomas — berating NYPD officers for their violent treatment of protesters. “They don’t have guns,” Sgt. Thomas shouted at the officers repeatedly.

The song “Occupy” does much to draw much attention to the violent reaction that has become the result of many protests worldwide, as well as the actual ideology behind the protests themselves, showing footage of both violent attacks and peaceful demonstrations.

Jasiri X, who was recently a featured artist in aboveGround’s recurring Get Familiar column, has a history of releasing controversial songs motivated by social and political themes. Last year, the rapper challenged the conservative Tea Party movement with his video, “What If The Tea Party Were Black?”. He also recently released a song and video to protest to execution of Troy Davis.

Jasiri X is currently working on his sophomore album, Ascension, with producer REL!G!ON, which is scheduled for release on November 29 via Canadian imprint, Wandering Worx Entertainment.

Watch the full video for Jasiri X’s “Occupy (We the 99)” below. The song is also available for free download from Jasiri’s BandCamp page.