Terri Lyne Carrington & Social Science Address The Injustices Of Mass Incarceration On “Trapped In The American Dream” Featuring Kassa Overall

Terri Lyne Carrington and Social Science’s double album Waiting Game will be released November 8 on Motema, and the band have unveiled a new song from the ambitious project. “Trapped In The American Dream” is a pointed criticism of mass incarceration and the U.S. for-profit prison system, featuring a stunning performance and lyrics from MC Kassa Overall, set to a haunting and trance-like bed of contemporary jazz piano, guitar, sax and drums composed by Social Science co-producer Aaron Parks.

Listen to “Trapped In The American Dream” here: terrilynecarrington.lnk.to/waitinggamePR

Afropunk also shared the track today and spoke with the band about it: https://afropunk.com/2019/10/terri-lyne-carrington-social-science-kassa-overall-trapped-in-the-american-dream/

“We trapped in a dream / We tryna wake up / Sometimes it’s right and wrong but sometimes they give you life / Sometimes you gotta run and sometimes you gotta fight...” raps Overall, in a narrative that grows progressively more explosive as the track develops. "Momma wishin’ to see her son / But the officer seen a gun / See the masses / Incarcerated / Won’t let you pass on the part you playin!'" About his inspiration for the song, he comments: “How can the U.S. represent 4.4 percent of the world's population and house 22 percent of the world's prisoners? The fact that this already predatory system is affecting African Americans at such a disproportionate rate tells a story of systematic manipulation that goes all the way back to when we built this country.” 

Pianist/keyboardist and co-composer Aaron Parks also comments on his inspiration: “The prison industrial system currently in place is horrific, a national disgrace. We allow corporations and the people running them to make obscene amounts of money by keeping folks locked up, and in some cases to even sell goods manufactured by unpaid imprisoned laborers. There’s no way around it: this is modern-day slavery. We may call ourselves ‘the land of the free’ but we very much are not there yet.”

The track, which builds with a slow burn into an artistic explosion of condemnation, reveals and incites the listener to take action against the travesty of “justice” that is today's US Prison-Industrial complex. The track is also a fitting and mesmerizing start to an album that tackles a number of other pressing social issues, including police brutality, political imprisonment, gender inequity, homophobia and more.

Carrington - whose Mosaic Project and Money Jungle albums touched on social issues - has moved more and more toward confronting issues head-on with her music. Waiting Game is driven by the events of this critical time and Carrington, who just spent a week as the guest drummer in the 8G Band on Late Night with Seth Meyers, comments: "There are a lot of drummers deemed ‘great.’ For me, that’s not as important as the legacy one leaves behind.”

Social Science is built around the friendship and collaboration of Carrington, pianist/keyboardist Aaron Parks (Terence Blanchard, Kurt Rosenwinkel) and guitarist Matthew Stevens (Christian Scott, Esperanza Spalding), along with multi-instrumentalist Morgan Guerin, vocalist Debo Ray, and MC/DJ Kassa Overall.

Waiting Game boasts an impressive host of guests, including rappers Rapsody, Kokayi, Raydar Ellis, trumpeter Nicholas Payton, bassists Derrick Hodge and Esperanza Spalding, vocalist Mark Kibble of Take 6 and spoken word contributions from Meshell Ndegeocello and Malcolm-Jamal Warner. The second half of the double album is an improvised suite recorded in one take, with Esperanza Spalding (bass) joining Carrington, Parks and Stevens for an adventurous excursion musing on the idea of personal and musical freedom.

“Trapped In The American Dream” is the third single to be released from the album. The first single, “Bells,” addresses police violence against people of color. It features Malcolm Jamal-Warner, and was deemed “poignant...and haunting” by NPR and included in their Top Songs of August. "If Not Now" addresses gender equity, and the fourth and final single "Pray the Gay Away" is slated for release on October 23. 

Waiting Game is now on pre-order in double CD, digital and double vinyl LP formats

 BUY/LISTEN here: terrilynecarrington.lnk.to/waitinggamePR 

  TERRI LYNE CARRINGTON FALL TOUR DATES:

* 10/17 - Washington, DC - Nat King Cole at 100 @ Kennedy Center 

* 10/18 - Washington, DC - Nat King Cole at 100 @ Kennedy Center

* 10/19 - Washington, DC - Nat King Cole at 100 @ Kennedy Center

* 10/28 - Cambridge, MA - Radical Commitments Conference @ Harvard University, Knafel Center / Radcliff Institute

*10/30 - Boston, MA - Event for Berklee Institute of Jazz and Gender Justice 

@ 11/16 & 17 London Jazz Festival (UK) - Kings Place - LONDON ALBUM RELEASE EVENT

@ 11/30 - New York, NY - Le Poisson Rouge - NYC ALBUM RELEASE EVENT

 There will be Additional Social Science touring in 2020 

@= performing with Social Science 

* = Terri Lyne Carrington music direction