Gracie Abrams, Aaron Dessner, and Bon Iver collaborated this holiday season to honour the victims of gun violence with their Charity Single “Sold Out”. The song dropped on 22nd December on Bandcamp. The collaborators shared, “We are releasing this song to raise awareness of their mission of reducing gun violence,”.
The song was recorded in 2024 in the wake of school shooting, and it arrives amid renewed conversation following a recent shooting at Brown university. “It’s a sad one to share during the holidays, but the world is hurting and we shouldn’t look away,” The trio said in a statement.
Music turned into activism
The song features haunting lyrics that hits hard. In the opening lines, Abrams sings :
“Hiding from a gun inside your high school / Just another Tuesday, normal, old news / Someone spilled their blood on Molly’s white shoes / Someone called their mother from the bathroom.” The song further explores the feeling of frustration , anger, and grief.
The songs does not avoid political commentary. The artists call out the politicians for their incompetence and lack of sincerity in addressing gun violence. ““They collect a check in pride and the system works and we all stay terrified.”, one lyric states.
The trio released the song for $5 on Bandcamp to raise awareness and emphasised their support for Everytown for Gun Safety. It is an organisation dedicated to reducing gun violence in the United States. In Gracie’s Instagram post, the collaborators wrote, “We are releasing this song to raise awareness of their mission of reducing gun violence, Please visit their website for more information on the unbelievable work they do”.
When Holiday Glee Meets Hard Truths
During holiday season, many artist release festive music filled with cheer and nostalgia . However, Gracie Abrams, Aaron Dessner and Bon Iver chose to use their voices and art to speak a difficult truth, one that may be hard to digest, but necessary to raise awareness and help push back against ongoing acts of gun violence.
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