| "Trouble in Town" | |
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| Song byColdplay | |
| from the albumEveryday Life | |
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| Released | 22 November 2019 |
| Length | 4:38 |
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| Music video | |
| "Trouble in Town" onYouTube | |
"Trouble in Town" is a song by British rock bandColdplay, released on their eighth studio album,Everyday Life (2019).[1] The track is widely noted as one of the album's most politically charged pieces, addressing U.S. racial injustice andpolice brutality.[1][2][3]
The song incorporates a real 2013 cellphone recording ofPhiladelphia police officers harassing black men in its second half, prompting a dramatic tonal shift as the piano line plunges and the arrangement swells.[1][2][4] The song closes with aSowetan children's choir chanting inXhosa, "UMandela Siyamthanda futhi uyaziwa yonk' indawo jikelele" ("We love Mandela and he is well known all over the world"), and repeating the word "Jikelele" ("all around the world").[5][6]
Coldplay pledged all masters and publishing royalties from "Trouble in Town" to theInnocence Project, for which frontmanChris Martin is an "Innocence Ambassador", with additional proceeds benefiting the African Children's Feeding Scheme.[7][8] Critics praised the song's somber mood and urgent social commentary, though some raised concerns about potential "white savior" undertones in its presentation of trauma.[1][2][3]
A music video, released on 12 March 2020, reimaginesGeorge Orwell'sAnimal Farm in a modern, crime-ridden New York City.[7][8] The video depicts pig politicians brawling on a debate stage, a fox pursued by a snow-leopard police officer, a cat stealing a bodega drink, and a homeless deer reading Orwell's novella.[7][8] The video's release followed earlierEveryday Life visuals for "Champion of the World", "Cry Cry Cry", "Daddy", "Orphans", andthe album's title track.[7][8]
