Stand Up For Something
by Andra Day (featuring Common)

Album: Marshall (Music From and Inspired By the Motion Picture) (2017)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Diane Warren and Common wrote "Stand Up For Something" for the biographical film Marshall. The 2017 legal drama movie focuses on an early legal case of lawyer Thurgood Marshall, who would eventually become the first African-American Supreme Court justice.
  • Warren told Billboard that after reading the script for Marshall, "I scribbled down 'it all means nothing if you don't stand up for something.'"

    She added: "I kind of had a vision of the song I wanted to write for this. And I wanted to write a song that could have been sung by Sam Cooke. Like 'A Change Is Gonna Come,' or 'People Get Ready.' Those kinds of songs."
  • After writing the lyrics for this rallying cry, Warren had the idea to bring Common on board for a guest rap.

    "My intention was to put out positive energy at a time when so many people are feeling discouraged and a lot of fear is out there," said Common about his verse.

    He added that he wrote the rhymes, "to remind us that in these days and times, we need more art that's part of the movement."
  • The song resonated with groups fighting injustice and became a protest anthem for several causes, including the #MeToo movement, gun violence prevention, and immigration rights awareness. When the song was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song, Day and Common decided to invite 10 political activists to join them on the Oscar stage during their performance of "Stand Up For Something." The group included Tarana Burke, founder of the #MeToo movement; Patrisse Cullors, queer activist and co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement; and Alice Brown Otter, the 14-year-old citizen of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe who protested the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline.

    Common explained before the show: "The activists we asked to join us on stage are people who have dedicated their lives to making the world better. For some because their own personal experiences have driven them to this place, and some because they’ve seen the injustices going on in the world and felt they had to take action."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

James Bond Theme Songs

James Bond Theme SongsMusic Quiz

How well do you know the 007 theme songs?

Ian Anderson: "The delight in making music is that you don't have a formula"

Ian Anderson: "The delight in making music is that you don't have a formula"Songwriter Interviews

Ian talks about his 3 or 4 blatant attempts to write a pop song, and also the ones he most connected with, including "Locomotive Breath."

Lita Ford

Lita FordSongwriter Interviews

Lita talks about how they wrote songs in The Runaways, and how she feels about her biggest hit being written by somebody else.

Songs in Famous Movie Scenes: Tarantino Edition

Songs in Famous Movie Scenes: Tarantino EditionMusic Quiz

Whether he's splitting ears or burning Nazis, Quentin Tarantino uses memorable music in his films. See if you can match the song to the scene.

Jules Shear - "All Through The Night"

Jules Shear - "All Through The Night"They're Playing My Song

Shears does very little promotion, which has kept him secluded from the spotlight. What changed when Cyndi Lauper had a hit with his song? Not much, really.

Female Singers Of The 90s

Female Singers Of The 90sMusic Quiz

The ladies who ruled the '90s in this quiz.