Talib Kweli - Nelson Mandela lyrics

Nelson Mandela is so much more than a man
He is a phenomenon, a force of nature
One whose true brilliance we can't possibly
See without the benefit of hindsight
He used his 95 years on this
Planet in a way that
The world deemed impossible until his
Existence he changed the world
In a manner reserved for a
Very selected few people
Like Gandhi, Mother Theresa, Dr
Martin Luther King however, he was
Also a revolutionary in the
Spirit of Nat Turner
Assata Shakur and Malcolm X as every man who
Lives to reflect on their
Past eventually does
He came to regret some of the decisions he
Made when he was younger for him
That he made while fighting
For the freedom and


Rights of all South Africans ultimately
He is remembered
For his compassion, his forgiveness
And his humanity
Alongside his willingness to
Stand up and fight in the best way he knew
How, for the rights of
The oppressed this full
Complete life he led made him
The greatest leader in generations

As the son of activist parents
I learned about Nelson Mandela
Early it was like
He was part of our family while
The news called him a "terrorist
" we called him a freedom fighter by the
Time I was in high school I
Rocked a Keith Haring "Free South
Africa" button on my
Nelson Mandela book bag and
Began going to rallies, and on graduation
Day I put a sticker on the top of my cap
That said "Abolish Apartheid!" Just
Like Barack Obama said
The movement to end apartheid
And free Nelson Mandela
Was the first movement that politicized me

As a Black man, I related to the South
African's struggle against apartheid in
Many ways however
As an American there was no way I could
Truly say I understood the experience as bad
As we had it in America
Blacks in South Africa had it
Worse these were the conditions
Under which Nelson Mandela transformed
Himself into one of
The world's most powerful voices in 1961
He was jailed for daring to
Stand up to one of the world's
Most brazenly racist police states and
Then, along with others like Bishop
Desmond Tutu and Steve Biko
Convinced millions that apartheid
Was wrong while locked up doing hard time
For 27 years finally, after years of
Pressure from humanitarians around the world
Mandela was released from prison
In 1990 he went on to become the president
Of South Africa, abolish apartheid
From the law, win the Noble Peace Prize
And change the world's
View of what a revolutionary could accomplish

In 1999, while I was recording my
Reflection Eternal album with Hi Tek
Dave Chappelle dropped
By the studio this was early in our
Careers, and we were recording everything
Trying to capture the
Candid moments we decided to get drops from
Famous people, but we didn't know enough
So Dave began to impersonate people while
The drops from Lennox
Lewis and Gil Scott-Heron, rest in peace
Were real, it was Dave doing everyone
Else from Bill Clinton
To Nelson Mandela dave's Mandela
Impersonation wasn't spot
On none of them were they were great because
They were funny in premise the struggle
Against apartheid was something that
We were all
Raised to respect and participate in
But the idea
Of Nelson Mandela "chilling out"
In South Africa
Listening to Talib Kweli and Hi Tek
Was hilarious to us

Til this day, at least once a month
I get asked about how I got Nelson
Mandela to do that folks are
Shocked when I tell them it
Was Dave Chappelle it's a
Beautiful feeling every time though, because
Even though it's funny
It was done in loving tribute

We will always love Madiba