Black Pantera , one of the biggest rising names in Brazilian rock today, spoke with Rafael Bittencourt of Angra Amplifica podcast about criticism of activism in music and hate speech on the internet.
Vocalist and guitarist Charles Gama and bassist Chaene da Gama participated in the podcast last Tuesday, the 21st, and spoke about the difficulties they are facing at the beginning of their careers, especially the instances of racism they suffered during shows in Europe. However, Chaene points out that the hate mostly comes from the internet.
“When we released the music video for 'Fire on Racists,' which literally has that empowering phrase in the chorus that gained traction on social media and that other artists also use… the haters are a minority in our comments, but there were people who tagged the Federal Police, saying: 'They're trying to set others on fire!' [laughs] They tagged ministries too. Man, I'm not trying to set anyone on fire!” (via Tenho Mais Discos Que Amigos! )
He continued: “Those who are dying daily are young Black people, every 23 minutes due to violence. We're just using music as a weapon of defense. This isn't about revenge, it's about equality. Our music is our cry, it's about being present with our bodies at festivals that have 60 bands and only one Black band.”
Charles and Chaene also commented on their expectations for performing at the 10th edition of Lollapalooza Brazil this Sunday, March 26th, between 12:40 and 13:20 on the Adidas Stage.
Check out the full interview below.
