“Black Like Me” by Mickey Guyton

This song came out during the height of the 2020 George Floyd protests, when racial tensions in the United States were arguably at their peak since the days of the Civil Rights Movement.  But as implied by the latter part of that sentence, race has long been an issue in the United States.  And that’s the fundamental concept upon which this song is based.

The vocalist grew up witnessing racism first hand. For instance when she was a child, her ‘heart was broken’ when other kids, presumably White ones, labeled her “different” as a result. She also watched her dad work especially hard just to make a decent living for the family, with the overall implication being that the long hours he had to put in to achieve that goal is related to him being treated unfairly due to his skin color.

And these recollections aren’t so much about Mickey harping in the past. Rather, we can say in light of the aforementioned protests, she realizes that “nothing has changed”. 

Or put more plainly, racism is as much a problem in America now as it was when she was a child. And as such, Guyton is acknowledging that realizing the American Dream, as far as Black people are concerned, is particularly “hard”. And in terms of her more personal disposition on the matter, she not only feels that one day her people “will all be free” but also conclusively asserts her own proudness to be Black.

“Black Like Me” Facts

Artist(s): Mickey Guyton
Writing:  Guyton, E. Davidson-Dillon, Nathan Chapman, and Fraser Churchill
Production: Forest Whitehead in conjunction with Chapman
Release: June 2 of 2020
Album/EP: “Bridges”

Genre(s)

“Black Like Me” fits comfortably into the Country Pop genre of music.

Awards/Honors

In 2021 it received a Grammy award nomination for “Best Country Solo Performance”.

Was “Black Like Me” a single release?

 Yes. It was single No.2 from Guyton’s EP of 2020 titled “Bridges”. Below are other singles that came out from “Bridges”:

• “What Are You Gonna Tell Her?”
• “Heaven Down Here”