SPECIAL BONUS TRACK!

No need to mind the gap between Juneteenth and the British Invasion because we’re gonna bridge it right proper with the multi-talented, award-winning British actress, singer, songwriter, style icon Cynthia Erivo.

As the Academy Award nominated star of 2019’s Harriet, Cynthia not only performed but also wrote the movie’s closing credits song. Between her moving vocals, a stunning visual, and the song’s composition, “Stand Up” soon became an anthem for us all.

Reviews for the film were generally positive, though nothing to write home about, but everyone agreed that Cynthia brought every bit of her power, presence and dedication to depicting Harriet Tubman as a fully-fleshed human being, with moral convictions, deep faith, physical beauty and strength, and intelligence that exceeded her role as leader of the Underground Railroad.

Cynthia’s musical talents, which were only featured on this song, were simply bonus points. It’s a huge departure in her career. Cynthia’s first leading lady film role came JUST THE YEAR BEFORE as she played talented but torn soul singer Darlene Sweet in neo-noir thriller Bad Times at the El Royale. But she was a little bit of a ringer, if I’m being honest. Cynthia was already quite accustomed to the spotlight having won Emmys and Tonys as Celie in Broadway’s The Color Purple, and performed in many more stage and TV shows throughout the UK and US. She’s even portrayed another African-American matriarch as Aretha Franklin in National Geographic productions. Her skill transcends media, and she’s become more than just a Black actress or singer: she’s one of the most decorated (and in-demand) Black talents in modern history.

Which opens a whole separate can of worms… whether British talents should be so heavily recruited to play iconic African-American roles. Brits David Oyelowo (MLK Jr.), Chiwetel Ejiofor (Solomon Northup), Daniel Kaluuya (Fred Hampton), and of course, Cynthia (in multiple roles), have all come under fire for taking part in fundamentally American storytelling.

It’s not as simple as geography. It’s a question of whether American fascination with British culture has been superimposed over Blackness to create a false respectability hierarchy among Black actors (and Black people at large), that ultimately results in Black British actors being more highly reviewed, desired, and of course, hired to play historic African-Americans than the people most deeply engrained in the culture. And the truth is… there is no right answer.

But Cynthia did offer her own perspective on the question to Oprah Magazine: “They are a part of American Black history. They’re also a part of my history because I liked them and I knew them in the U.K., where we don’t discuss very many women of color at all. They’re not in the history books, they don’t exist there,” she said. “Those are the women I know, the women I look to. When I was growing up and I was learning to sing, you cannot name on one hand, five women of color who have been given the opportunity to do as much as the musical women from the U.S. At all. All of my idols who happen to be Black females are probably American.” We won’t nitpick the language, because her overall point is taken: African-American women are heroes to women all around the world.

And there’s no doubting her conviction in the way Cynthia delivers “Stand Up” visually and vocally. I honestly find no need to break much down here because the sounds and the storytelling are rather simple in both as well. But let me point a couple of things to you. The hauntingly beautiful refrain she closes this song with—”I go to prepare a place for you”—is much more than a lovely lyric. First and foremost, it’s taken from John 14:3 where Jesus tells his disciples “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” The verse’s relevance to the brave Conductor’s role in the Underground Railroad is obvious, but you should also know that these were Harriet Tubman’s dying words.

I’ve featured Cynthia’s 2020 LIVE Oscars performance in today’s post because I wanted you to experience the unbelievable range and power of her voice without production assistance, but also because the choir that backs her in the song actually appears here in full robes styled to closely resemble sackcloth, and that combined symbolism might genuinely put you over the edge. But if you do watch the Official Music Video—which I’ve also embedded because you SHOULD—pay attention to her attire throughout. As Cynthia sings of the struggles she’ll have to overcome, she’s in a simple slipdress. But during the triumphant chorus, she appears in a gorgeous designer gown. These aren’t just clever costuming. It’s a deliberate moment of refusing to see Harriet Tubman as a poor, sad, ugly slave who did great things, and instead depicting her as the shining savior of thousands, if not millions, when we consider the generations who weren’t born as slaves thanks to her bravery.

British or American, we should ALL want to be her. There is no question that Cynthia Erivo earned the privilege.

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