Today Ava DuVernay‘s film collective, ARRAY, unveiled the song Safe Where? by Ra-Re Valverde in supports of its Law Enforcement Accountability Project (LEAP). The song is the fourth artist commission for LEAP – a propulsive fund founded in the wake of the 2020 murder of George Floyd. The funds goal is to catalyze creative expression around police violence. Ava DuVernay ARRAY Song
Safe Where? was originally written and performed by Ra-Re Valverde in protest to the 2011 murder of Kenneth Chamberlain Sr. due to the actions of White Plains, New York, police officer Anthony Carelli. Chamberlain’s medical alert device was accidentally activated while he slept, prompting a welfare check by police that resulted in two fatal shots being fired from officer Carelli’s gun. Ultimately, Carelli or any other officers were failed to be indicted for Chamberlain’s murder. Safe Where? features raw and honest lyrics to address how badges allow police officers to blame fear as a reason for their actions, contributing to a Black genocide. The song will also be included on next Tuesday’s season finale of DuVernay’s Queen Sugar.
“We are thrilled to introduce Ra-Re’s powerful song, Safe Where?, in response to the murder of Kenneth Chamberlain Sr.,” said ARRAY Vice President of Public Programming, Mercedes Cooper. “Music has frequently been used to address social justice issues and the lyrics of this song further amplify the calls for police accountability in Black and brown communities.
Valverde is an accomplished artist having toured the world as a background singer for artists such as; Jennifer Lopez, Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, Lalah Hathaway and Rahsaan Patterson. Her song is now available for download at www.leapaction.org and is streaming on Amazon Music, Apple Music, Spotify, and Tidal.
LEAP is administered by the non-profit ARRAY Alliance fund; commissioning projects
across multiple disciplines including film, literature, poetry, theater, dance, fine art and music. The two-year project looks to set in motion a minimum of 25 artist
commissions. LEAP’s previously announced artist grantees are photographer Steven
Irby’s photo essay, “41 To ’99”, poet and activist W.J. Lofton’s visual poem “Would You Kill God Too?” and Jocelyn Jackson’s “Fixed Price Menu”. The Ford Foundation was an
inaugural funder of LEAP with data contributed by the analytics organization – Mapping Police Violence. For more information on ARRAY’s fund to help keep police accountable, go to www.leapaction.org and follow LEAP on social media at @leapaction.
Ava DuVernay ARRAY Song Ava DuVernay ARRAY Song
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