The rapper Common was initially approached to write a song for the movie “Selma” about that pivotal campaign during the U.S. Civil Rights Movement. The movie depicts the marches from Selma to Montgomery calling for voting rights, a protest which led to President Lyndon Johnson signing the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Common invited John Legend to join in the project, merging their two distinct musical styles into an incredible anthem for action. Legend came up with the title and the major musical hook while Common developed the rap verses that linked the events in the Civil Rights Movement to contemporary struggles for racial justice.
The song won for Best Original Song at the 2015 Golden Globe Awards. During his acceptance speech Common spoke about how his involvement in the film project impacted him: “As I got to know the people of the Civil Rights Movement I realized I am the hopeful black woman who was denied her right to vote. I am the caring white supporter killed on the front lines of freedom. I am the unarmed black kid who maybe needed a hand, but instead was given a bullet. I am the two fallen police officers murdered in the line of duty. Selma has awakened my humanity.” The song also won the 2015 Academy Award Oscar for Best Original Song.
Common said in an interview, “You can look at what’s going on in Ferguson, and it’s not a far comparison to what happened to Jimmy Lee Jackson during the time of the civil rights movement that is shown in the film. So I really was thinking about encouraging people that we’ve come a long way, but we’ve still got some fighting to do, and we are capable. We’ve got to carry this torch and take it to the next level.”
Regarding the music which has no percussion, Common said he wanted to capture the feel of classic protest songs. “I wanted people to really hear what was being said. We don’t have a drumbeat to it. It’s just vocal, piano and an orchestra arrangement. We wanted it to have an intimacy, but for it to be majestic, because it’s for Dr. King.”
“Glory” has become not only a song from a movie but now a part of the soundtrack of protest and community organizing. Here is the Oscar ceremony performance of the song: