The brutal treatment meted out to black Americans has been documented for well over a century. Many of those incidents have inspired songs like ‘Wanted’ by Jamaican singer Eric Moore.
Released in January, the self-produced single is inspired by the Rodney King beating in Los Angeles in March 1991 and the May 2020 murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Moore said watching videos of both incidents moved him deeply to write ‘Wanted’ which is currently in the Foundation Radio Network’s New York Reggae Chart, compiled by veteran broadcaster Clinton Lindsay.
“I came up on a clip when the police were beating Rodney King back in the day, so that was a big influence, just looking at that tape and how they mistreated Rodney King. And then I looked back at George Floyd, and I decided to write ‘Wanted’,” he explained.
A seasoned artist, Moore played all instruments on the song including its piercing rock guitar solo. He developed an appreciation for different sounds while performing for many years on Jamaica’s tourist scene, and the Carnival Cruise Line which took him to the Caribbean, South America and Europe.
Based in South Carolina, Moore is wary of problems people of color have with police in the US, but has never had negative encounters with them.
“I’ve never got into that situation with the police. Whenever they stop me, I try to be respectful and polite,” he said.
