A small moment of anger pushed Grammy-winning artist Gary Clark Jr. to create the unapologetic, seething song "This Land."
The singer and guitar prodigy grew up in a place he describes as "right in the middle of Trump country," in Austin, Texas, where he experienced regular instances of racism. In an interview with
Rolling Stone, Clark talks about instances of people writing the n-word on the fence outside his house, shoving dog feces in his mailbox, or putting the Confederate flag over his fence.
It wasn't until last year that his anger over how he was being treated hit a boiling point.
In an interview on
All Things Considered, Clark told NPR's Michel Martin that a neighbor came up to him last year and asked who lived on the 50-acre property that Clark had bought in Austin with his wife Nicole Trunfio to raise their two children.
"I do," Clark responded.
"There's no way you can live here," the neighbor responded.
His neighbor didn't believe him, he said, and insisted on speaking with "the homeowner," despite Clark repeatedly insisting, "This is my house."
The whole time, Clark's 3-year old son was watching, and later asked, "Daddy, why is he so mad?"
Mak