Freedom (Theme from Panther)

"Freedom" is a 1995 song released on Mercury Records featuring a chorus of over 60 African-American female artists and groups of note in hip-hop, pop and R&B music including En Vogue, Xscape, Aaliyah, Vanessa L. Williams, Mary J. Blige, MC Lyte, SWV, TLC, and Monica. It is a cover of Joi's song of the same name from her 1994 album The Pendulum Vibe.[1] Both versions were produced by Dallas Austin and Diamond D.[1]

"Freedom"
Single by various artists
from the album Panther soundtrack
ReleasedApril 15, 1995
RecordedFebruary 1995
GenreR&B
Length4:59
LabelMercury Records
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Dallas Austin
  • Diamond D

Background

The all-star recording of both the song and solemn black-and-white video for "Freedom" took place directly after the American Music Awards of 1995. According to its promotional single's liner notes, the song was a tribute to women of the past like Harriet Tubman, Sojourner Truth, Rosa Parks, Coretta Scott King, Shirley Chisholm, and Angela Davis who played major roles in black resistance, as well as the empowerment of women of the present.

"Freedom" is a cover of a song originally performed by underground R&B singer Joi on her 1994 album The Pendulum Vibe. The song was re-recorded as the official theme for the award-winning film Panther. The song was produced by Dallas Austin and Diamond D, and reached the top twenty of the Billboard Hot 100 in 1995. The song featured established and up-and-coming female R&B and pop singers. The vocals were arranged by singer Angie Stone, and Me'Shell Ndegéocello contributed bass guitar.[2]

A music video was also released to promote the song. It went top five on the MTV Jams countdown, and number two on BET's Coca-Cola Video Soul Top 20 weekly countdown.

Retail and promotional releases of the single also featured a rap-only version of the song featuring Salt-N-Pepa, Queen Latifah, Lisa 'Left Eye' Lopes of TLC, Yo Yo, MC Lyte, Da 5 Footaz, Patra, and Me'Shell Ndegéocello. The music video for this version was directed by Antoine Fuqua.[3]

The single peaked at number 10 on Billboard's R&B Singles Chart and number 45 Pop, contributing to the success of soundtrack album on the charts (number 5, R&B Albums and number 37 Pop Albums).

Track listing
CD single
  1. Freedom (Theme From Panther) (4:30)
  2. Freedom (Theme From Panther) (Rap Version) (4:20)
  3. Freedom (Theme From Panther) (Edit) (4:04)
Vinyl single
  1. Freedom (Theme From Panther) (Diamond D's Crystal Mix) (6:06)
  2. Freedom (Theme From Panther) (The Black Bag Mix) (4:30)
  3. Freedom (Theme From Panther) (Dallas' Vocal Rap Mix) (4:30)
  4. Freedom (Theme From Panther) (Dallas' Dirty Half Dozen Mix) (5:08)
  5. Freedom (Theme From Panther) (Dallas' Clean Half Dozen Mix) (4:20)

Contributing artists

References
  1. "Single File". Vibe: 132. August 1995. Retrieved 2012-06-17.
  2. Tillery, Alisha (2020-05-20). "The True Story Behind 'Freedom,' the Peak Black Girl Song of the 1990s". ZORA. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  3. Burgess, Omar (July 21, 2011). "Throwback Thursday Revisits "Freedom (Theme From 'Panther')"". HipHopDX. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
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