Exclusive: On a new episode of DrunkHistory, Atlanta’s Brian Tyree Henry shares the story behind the civil rights anthem
” retrospective—also appears for the first time as an actor, playing, as Henry described her, “Sam’s amazing wife, Barbara.”
The story begins in 1963—“the era of fuckery for black people in this country,” Henry says. The story follows Cooke’s journey with “A Change Is Gonna Come” from start to finish. As Henry explains, Cooke was first inspired by’s “Blowin’ in the Wind,” a song apparently Cooke responded by saying: “This song is dope, first of all—but this white dude is singing about everything that me as a black man is feeling going through this bullshit. I have to believe I can do better than that.
Cooke wrote his own song in jail after being arrested trying to check into his motel. As Henry notes, his life was filled with tragedy even after that: His debut onand the singer’s senseless death prevented him from watching his song eventually achieve the cultural relevance it deserved. Henry recalls all his subject’s struggles as he rambles with freewheeling wit and the occasional drunken exclamation. In the end, he sums up the story by reflecting on how relevant the song—and its backstory—remain today. “It just really lets you know the pain that we have gone through,” Henry says. “Like, damn. Being black in this country is so hard, it’s just so stupid. Change needs to come!”
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