On Friday night, an all-star group came together for the Concert for Peace and Justice held in Montgomery, Alabama. The night was hosted by the Equal Justice Initiative—an organization “committed to ending mass incarceration and excessive punishment in the United States, to challenging racial and economic injustice, and to protecting basic human rights for the most vulnerable people in American society”—and served as one of a handful of high-profile events that celebrate the grand openings of the National Memorial For Peace and Justice and The Legacy Museum in Montgomery.
For the Concert for Peace and Justice, Equal Justice Initiative tapped a star-studded group of performers to come together and celebrate. While the event initially announced The Roots, Usher, Common, Brittany Howard (Alabama Shakes), and Kirk Franklin, other high-profile musicians, such as Stevie Wonder, Dave Matthews, and Jon Batiste, also made it out for the performance to perform truncated sets.
As noted by AL.com, Wonder told the audience during his performance, which featured the iconic musician performing with The Roots on hit songs like “Higher Ground”, “Visions”, and “Another Star”:
I come to you with a deep pain in my heart and a great love in my soul…. I dare you, I challenge you, to have a year of atonement. I dare you artists and you leaders of the world and this nation – including you, Mr. President – to see with your eyes that are open as clearly as my eyes that are blind… My hope is that we will come together as a united people, before it’s too late.
Dave Matthews, a last-minute addition to the bill, dedicated his three-song set to John Henry James, a man who was lynched in Matthews’ hometown of Charlottesville, Virginia, in 1898, telling AL.com, “I didn’t know his name before, but I saw it at the memorial today.”
The entire show was streamed on Tidal for both subscribers and non-subscribers. You can watch the performance below.
[H/T Rolling Stone]