Kelly Rowland: We need to support minority artists
Kelly Rowland says there is a need to "support" minority artists.
The 35-year-old singer has spoken out about minorities in the music industry, saying that she is "proud" of people exercising their rights, but says there is still a long way to go in terms of equality.
Speaking to Schön! Magazine, she said: "There are black artists – we just have to support them. I’m so proud that people are actually exercising their right to speak up and taking action, but I also think it’s important for government and congress to pay attention. This new generation can be radical and they’re not playing when it comes to their freedom and their lives, which are at stake."
The former Destiny’s Child star – who has two-year-old son Titan Jewell with husband Tim Witherspoon – also spoke about how she is constantly "nervous" about raising a boy in a society like America’s where she says they have to "think about if someone is going to hurt them".
Kelly has many African-American boys who are now fearful of their safety due to the recent spate of police shootings involving black men and have sparked the Black Lives Matter activist movement.
She said: "I talk to minority boys. They have to think about if somebody is going to hurt them, shoot them, because they have some freaking skittles. It’s one of the things that made me nervous about having a boy. I have to make sure I raise a man who is respectful of himself and authorities and is well-spoken so he can communicate. Every minority mother thinks about it nowadays."
But the ‘Motivation’ hitmaker says it isn’t all about the boys, as girls have an equally hard time and says she thinks things are "taking a turn" as she says women are "very powerful".
She said: "You’re talking to a feminist! Yo, you think I want to say it’s a man’s world? Women are very powerful these days. I think things are definitely taking a turn. We’re in a nation right now where we’re on the brink of the first female president. Anything is possible."
