Earlier this week, August Alsina released a trailer for the latest single "Song Cry" from his new album, This Thing Called Life. On Tuesday (Oct. 27), he shared the track in its entirety.
In a stark contrast from the previously released "Why I Do It" featuring Lil Wayne, the song finds Alsina reflecting on darker times, namely dealing with fame and coping with his brother's death.
“I can’t hold back these tears / Let me cry / They say a man ain’t supposed to cry / So I’ma let the song cry,” he sings on the chorus, in reference to Jay Z’s 2002 hit, which bears the same name.
Elsewhere, Alsina also opens up about other family matters (“I tried to buy my mama’s love, she don’t appreciate it”), suicidal thoughts and his peers in the music industry (“I figured maybe Jay or Cole or Drizzy Drake would drop a verse and tell the people how we hurtin’ / Guess I was mistaken”).
The aforementioned trailer, which the New Orleans crooner co-directed alongside Payne Lindsey, shows Alsina in a black Range Rover as a crowd gathers at a funeral. A woman's heart wrenching cry plays in the background as clips of protests in Ferguson and footage of Alsina fainting onstage flash across the screen.
Alsina first announced his new album back in July. Since then, DJ Khaled has listened to the project and sang its praises, comparing it to classic albums by Dr. Dre and Nas.
Fans have been patiently awaiting Alsina’s sophomore release for some time now, partly due to touring and partly due to the fact that he's had a few medical issues. This summer, the "I Luv This Sh*t" singer revealed that he has a disease called Keratoconus, which caused blindness in his left eye and loss of vision in his right. He underwent a surgery that would prevent his vision from getting worse. Prior to that, the 23-year-old fell into a coma after collapsing on stage during a New York performance.
