28. Single Review of Black History by Chï

Originally published August 12, 2024

About the Artist

“I just want to change lives with my music.” This is a sentiment that many artists desire when they create. Somewhere along the way, for many, it gets lost. I personally started out that way. Then something terrible happened to me in my late teens and early twenties. Somebody, somewhere along the way, told me that I was great. Then somebody else did. Then another. And so on. And so on. I became a very young narcissist who hadn’t accomplished a thing and felt I had to prove nothing. 

I didn’t know it then, but that ego boost was actually a blow that had me on the ropes. Set up perfectly for the knock out punch. I put myself out there and was then told I was good. I just wasn’t special. I didn’t stand out. There were hundreds just like me. At first, I dismissed it. But it dug in. I started making lineup changes in my band. I started changing my style I started rewriting my songs. I started chasing pop culture. As well all know, if you’re chasing a trend and not making one, you’re in trouble. After going through half a dozen band members, a name change, a sound change, and band break up for the ages, my dreams of singing in front of multitudes of people had come to an end.

I forgot the reason I wrote my first song. “I just want to change lives with my music.” It’s exactly the reason. I wanted a particular someone to know exactly how I felt about them. To change how they saw me. I don’t remember how quickly that went away, but it wasn’t long after. 

For Chï, that doesn’t seem to be the case. It’s the last line of her bio on Spotify. Chï is a Weat-Coaster, born in Seattle, Washington, but also gre me up in New Brunswick, New Jersey. She advocates for the LGBTQIA+ community. She promotes positivity and humble gratitude throughout her social media profiles. Most importantly, she writes with purpose. It seems she does everything with a purpose. Perhaps she doesn’t just want to change lives with her music. She seems to have the world in her sights. She operates as though she sees a brighter, better world. It is an energy I hope she maintains. How amazing would it be to have more people like this leading society into the future?

It’s a lot of pressure to put on a 23 year old person, but Chï presents herself as a person that can handle the pressure. In fact, she might welcome it. She is proud of her heritage, she is proud of her culture. She is proud of her sexuality. She is not afraid to show it. Her strength is inspiring. And what is inspiration after all, if not an agent of change? 

About the Song

Part of Black History is an R&B song with a run time of about four minutes and fifteen seconds. It was released by Chï on July 15th, 2024. It is a slower ballad, but with a moving percussion. It features, programmed drums and synthetic strings and piano as the accompaniment. Vocally, Chï gives us a performances that’s layered and features sporadically featured backing vocals. There are some subtle effects like reverb, echo, and a sort of megaphone effect as well.

About the Music

It is important to note this song is heavily driven by its lyrical content. The musical performance seems to have intentionally taken a supportive role to that. Instrumentally, there isn’t much that is complex. The string and piano parts are simply representing the chord progression and supporting the vocal melody. The beat is pocket and essentially there to drive the tempo of what would otherwise be a very legato accompaniment. Vocally, Chï delivers a fundamental performance without focusing too much on ornamentation. Her performance is structured, sound, and pleasant. 

About the Lyrics

Lyrically, Chï says a lot. She opens the song with the chorus which feature the lines “My Skin is a big part of me, I can live life full happy and free, and No one can tell me who I’m meant to be,” which are all followed by different alliterations that lead into the phrase “I’m a big part of black history.” Here, Chï is boldly claiming her heritage, her race, and her ancestry.

In the first verse, Chï starts with the lines “I’m tired of straightening my hair. I’m tired of acting like this is fair. This is the way that god made me. Why do people work so hard to make me feel shitty.” I think this verse is interesting because she is acknowledging how black cultures and white cultures tend to appeal to one another; stylistically, artistically, and socially. She seems to question that choice by saying it is covering the natural beauty she already possesses. 

Then she goes on to give further insight by incorporating lines like “they try to hold us down. Chokehold us to the ground,” and “ignorance is everywhere and it’s never going to just disappear.” When hearing this and looking back to the beginning of the verse, it can almost read to say she will no longer be disillusioned to admire a culture that can’t appreciate her own. 

The second verse goes on to say, “I’m climbing, I’m trying to navigate the world the way white men designed it,” and “you barely give us basic rights and we deserve more.” This is a clear shot at the ongoing culture wars that are unfortunately being waged in America to this day, the coded racism used by politicians, corporations, and more that use cowardice to indirectly lodge complaints about cultures that they just don’t want to support and the systemic racism that has denied generational wealth to so many impoverished black families in our country, not to mention more direct attacks like police brutality, hate groups/hate crimes, and gentrification. 

She follows this with a very interesting circle back to her first line of her first verse, but from the other side of the fence. “No one could care for us yet everyone tries to be just like us.” Culturally, white America loves black culture. We love their style, their art, their music, their athleticism. We love the way they talk, we love the way they cook, we admire everything about them. Except the color of their skin. I think it was very interesting how the lyricist opened and closed the piece in this way, giving perspective to the culture-swapping that goes on and how ironic it is that the same cannot be said for the respect. This was very intelligently executed.

Final Thoughts

Chï is not the first person to acknowledge that there is a cultural divide in America and she sadly won’t be the last. There has been some progress made but, in many ways, black Americans are presented with the problem of taking “two steps forward and three steps back.” The twenty-first century has welcomed our nation’s first black president, who happened to be the president to finally legalize gay marriage. He made strides to rectify the wrongdoings of the unjust war on drugs and has paved the way for a multitude of progressive politicians to be elected who can create much necessary reform for our nation. 

However, “the brighter the light, the darker the shadow it cast.” ("Hi Ren" Ren) In recent years, we have seen increased media coverage of instances of police brutality, we have seen political indifferences to crises like the Flint Water Crisis, the societal breakdown of Hurricane Katrina, and disparaging actions by radical political leaders. We  still have so far to go, as a people.
Chï has eloquently acknowledged all of these frustrations, and shown that, in spite of it all, she rises above with pride. She is a shining example of  what our society could be without distracting from what it is. For we don’t need to be distracted. We need to be reminded of the work that still needs to be done.
At the beginning of this article, I spoke of myself as a representative of where some musicians fail. I know it’s not the only reason we fail. I know my story doesn’t define anybody else’s; it’s my own. I just wanted to point out that so many have a similar destination though they may start and journey may differ. 
That’s not the point. What I wanted to shine a light on is the fact that Chï seems to be a different type of artist. One who puts her culture and her society before herself. One who focuses on a bigger picture and one who doesn’t seem to dwell on the idea of her own personal success. She’s not going to compromise her music, her ideals, or who she is to fit the popular narrative. Chï represents a better quality. A better generation. A musician who can celebrate the legacies of her past and use them to create a legacy for the future.