(October 16, 2024) When it comes to developing one’s own path in life and how faith will factor in, everyone has their own journeys to travel. Some find comfort in tradition, others decide to eschew it altogether. And then there are those, like Lady Blackbird, who apply its teachings along with her personal identity, homegrown soul power and flamboyance into a direction of her own making, as evidenced in the anthemic uptempo, “Let Not (Your Heart Be Troubled).”
If the stacked choruses, searing lyrics and soaring soprano are any indication, Lady Blackbird pushed through some struggles to get to where she is: most believers understand that they fall short of perfection, but being both queer and a woman, LB felt her burden was a doubly heavy one. Slang Spirituals, her newly released album, includes “Let Not” as a strength-inducing mantra to herself and others who also don’t fit in the pews as neatly as their peers, yet still want to encourage feeling seen and supported in the Creator’s sight: “Baby Girl, she’s all alone, she’s going home to sorrow/In her world, we know her soul is calling for/another tomorrow.”
Lady Blackbird’s fervor, vocals and messaging, combined with the brash, yet polished production skills of Chris Seefreid, is inspirational and empowered: being unconditionally loved means not being forced to shrink down into narrow expectations, right? Hearing and experiencing Lady Blackbird is not only galvanizing, she literally personifies Revelations 22:17, since she “takes the water of life freely” and with all her conviction, invites you to join her, with all your quirks and imperfections, to do the same. And this fervor makes “Let Not” and its artist worthy of streams, shares, downloads and yes, a chorus of ‘amens.’
By Melody Charles
