H.E.R. Premieres Moving New Song "I Can't Breathe" During Live Performance

H.E.R. joins the countless musicians the world over delivering messages of solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. In a new performance through iHeartRadio‘s Living Room Concert Series the artist, real name Gabi Wilson, opened with the premiere of a dialed back acoustic rendition of a new song titled “I Can’t Breathe.” Before she went into the emotional ballad, H.E.R. delivered the following message:

“I really want to recognize all of the people across various communities that are promoting justice and equality and peace and passion. We need that unity right now. This first song is called “I Can’t Breathe” and just by the title you know that it means something very painful and very revealing. I think it’s necessary. These lyrics were kind of easy to write because it came from a conversation of what’s happening right now, what’s been happening, and the change that we need to see. I think music is powerful when it comes to change and when it comes to healing and that’s why I wrote this song, to make a mark in history. And I hope this song does that.”

Later in the performance, H.E.R. covered Green Day’s “Boulevard of Broken Dreams”, letting her audience know that she always found the track to be prescient no matter the year and to listen to the lyrics because “they’re super profound and super relatable.” Earlier this year, the GRAMMY Award-winning artist teamed up with Skip Marley for a live performance of “Slow Down” on The Tonight Show. She also debuted new singles “Comfortable” and “Sometimes” earlier this year.

Watch the full rendition above starting at the 1:30 mark alongside another half-hour of her favorite tracks. In more music updates, Alicia Keys released a new video calling for action for Breonna Taylor featuring Tinashe, Snoh Aalegra and Janelle Monáe.