Blood On The Leaves
West performed the song live at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards.[35] He was originally supposed to perform "Black Skinhead", though changed to performing "Blood on the Leaves" instead shortly before the show.[36] The performance was notable for its minimal lighting and forest-themed backdrop.[35] Moments before taking the stage, West posted a photo of the backcloth on Twitter with the caption; "it's a tree that was used for lynching."[35] Later he posted a message on his website, "This tree was used for lynching. Those who were murdered are buried in the ground around the tree. Blood on the leaves."[35] The song was performed live by West on Later... with Jools Holland in September 2013;[37] this performance was singled out for praise by Bruce Springsteen during an interview with NPR, who called it "fantastic".[38] West omitted Jay-Z's name from the song's lyrics when performing it live at the X Games Austin 2014 Music Festival, where his name was also omitted from the lyrics of "Cold".[39] Other live performances include Glastonbury in June 2015 and on the Saint Pablo Tour in August 2016.[40][41]
Blood On The Leaves
In this sense, the song draws from critiques like those of Bill Cosby—the violence the black community now does to itself is a great threat, and that threat is nowhere more evident than in the deterioration of the family. “Do your part” and care for those you’re responsible for; make responsible decisions; emulate the stability and mutual respect of Jay-Z and Beyonce—these are the positives that West leaves in a song whose focus is the tremendous selfishness of adults who cannot understand the importance of families or children.
Stetson's first novel gets off to a provocative start: in contemporary Mississippi, charismatic African-American professor Martin Matheson polarizes students and the larger Jackson, Miss., community with his incendiary lectures about lynchings and other atrocities inflicted by local whites upon local blacks at the height of the struggle for civil rights. The inclusion of graphic photos in the lectures, as well as the names and addresses of the unpunished perpetrators, sparks controversy and a spate of revenge killings of the identified men. On this riveting premise, Stetson builds a thriller cum social commentary cum character study, anchored in a courtroom drama. In this, the book resembles nothing so much as a (very good) episode of Law & Order, with a controversial issue depicted in broad, compelling strokes and examined from a number of vantage points. Because blood evidence links Matheson to the killing of unrepentant racist Earvin Cooper, he's tried not for inciting murder (as seems likely) but for murder itself. Prosecuting Matheson is a meticulous and well-respected black deputy district attorney, James Reynolds, who, caught in the middle of the larger ethical debate, becomes the novel's moral center. Todd Miller, venerable white liberal past his courtroom prime, defends Matheson, who takes the strategic lead in his defense. Miller and Reynolds have often faced each other before, but never in a case like this. Reynolds has a rough time in court, and a rougher one outside, under siege for the first time in his life by members of the black community. Stetson's sharp storytelling pushes buttons as skillfully as Matheson's lectures in this promising debut. (July 7) 041b061a72