REP YOUR VOTE is a PSA collaborative piece aimed to encourage young voters to exercise their right to vote! Rep Your Vote was produced by a dynamic husband and wife duo, Qisoundra Flowers and Alex Flowers. The story line paints the picture of the historical context and significance of people of color voting.

 

The piece consists of two segments: a poetry portion and a rap portion. The piece starts off with two talented poets, Joseph "Church Da Poet" Churchwell and Dasan Ahanu. Both poets take turns explaining the struggles Black America has undergone to gain the right to vote, all the way to modern day adversity the Black community still faces such as racial profiling, police brutality, and poor judicial representation. Following their poetic narrative comes the infamous chant "I VOTE CUZ IT'S MY RIGHT TOO" which serves as both an empowering slogan and a seamless transition into the rap portion of the song.

 

Starting off the rap segment is a high energy MC by the name Eshod "Eternal The MC" Howard. Eternal describe voting as a "right of passage" and an opportunity for young voters to have their voices and demands heard by politicians. In spite of voter restrictions and that have been implemented to stifle the voice of voters, we must do our part to remain active by registering, voting, and encouraging our friends to vote too.

 

Closing out the video, I had the utter privilege of sharing some additional insight and valid points before voters "turn in their ballots." The goal of my verse is to stress the importance of voting being a personal decision. During the age of immense social media noise and pressure, it can be overwhelming keeping up with politics. However, when we ask ourselves who we can see leading us, the answer will come from within. In addition to that, I wanted to warn voters against blindly voting. There is a ton of information available to us to research candidates to see if they have a track record that supports what they say they'll do. We need to be conscious voters, who not just show up to vote, but ensure we are present and active AFTER voting.

 

It was an honor to be a part of such an iconic and influential piece, as well as being able to work alongside such talented, creative, and passionate individuals. Huge thank you to the man who brought this visual to life by directing, filming, and editing this piece, Dan Mercer. Also another shout out to the insanely gifted engineer, Chaka "C'Highest" Harley, for bringing all of our voices, ad-libs, and chants into beautiful union with the beat by Tales of True Life. Lastly, thank you to the young actors, actresses, and extras who participated in helping this story be told!