“Traffic Stop” is the result of a collaboration between Triz Nathaniel and Soft Sailors. Triz wrote the lyric over a track called “Just Going” from Soft Sailors’ 2018 instrumental EP Gentle Meanders.
“Traffic Stop” presents a hard-hitting and incisive rhetorical blow against the racially-motivated violence so often committed with impunity by police across America. Triz explains:
When I was 11 and got robbed at gunpoint for the first time, of course I was scared. But I knew that for the robber, there were consequences - a life sentence if he made the choice to shoot - so as long as he got what he was after, I would probably be okay. When I was 15 and I had police point their guns at me for the first time, I was terrified. For the cops, there would likely be no consequences if they decided to shoot, so my life was wholly in the hands of a stranger, who, for whatever reason might have seen my skin color as an inherent threat.
While I've had a few traumatic experiences at the hands of police, I still have my life. There are many, many other innocent people who no longer have their lives, because their brown skin caused them to perceived as a threat -- and, because their murderers seldom face any consequences. I wrote this song using the names of the high-profile, innocent victims to tell stories I see each day of murder with no consequences, so often happening at traffic stops, and of what it's like to live in fear for your life just because of your skin color.
In an era when many artists work remotely, Triz and Soft Sailors’ Geoff Geis recorded the track together at Geis’ apartment in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Angelino Heights. The raw, in-person energy is apparent in Triz’ performance, which bounces with a vibrance that belies the heavy subject matter.
“It’s an honor,” says Geis, “to have our beat used for such a powerful statement by such a potent MC.”
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