'A Change Is Gonna Come'

Sam Cooke was one of the first singers to bring Soul music to the forefront. His music served as an inspiration to incredibly iconic artists like Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye, and Stevie Wonder just to name a few. Early in his career, Cooke was known for more light-hearted songs like one of my personal favorites, 'You Send Me.' However, Cooke had been inspired in 1963 when he heard Bob Dylan's 'Blowin' In The Wind.' He was deeply moved by Dylan's lyrics that told of the sad reality of racism in America. After attending at sit-in demonstration in Durham, North Carolina, Cooke wrote what would become one of the greatest songs in all of music history according to Rolling Stone. Cooke was born in Mississippi and had been affected by harsh discrimination in the Deep South. Specifically, Cooke and had band and tried to register at a motel for whites only. By doing so, they were arrested in Shreveport, Louisiana for disturbing the peace according to law officials. Naturally, he wanted to incorporate these emotions and experiences into his music. However, he was at first hesitant because he had garnered many white fans and he didn't want to alienate them. Luckily, Cooke overcame his fears and wrote the song that lived within his heart. I couldn't find a video of Sam Cooke singing this song live. However, I encourage you to listen to this song with your eyes closed. When I did so, I was able to feel the emotion and pain in his voice. I imagine the pain must be similar to what blacks felt during the era of slavery. Even though Cooke's life has been hard, he remains hopeful that change will come. Sadly, Cooke died a year after he wrote 'A Change Is Gonne Come.' Rest in peace, Sam.

On a side note, if you wish, please watch this second video. The interviewer asked Sam Cooke to hum 8 bars of what soul represented to him. The 30 second clip gave me goosebumps!