These Days

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The Twilite Tone (Ft. Common, King Louie & Lil Herb & More) • "Put The Guns Down"


Directed By Andre Mayon


Chicago has its problems and that isn't a new revelation. The city has faced an ever-more polarizing war that rages most prominently on its south and west sides. As the upper crust of River North and the Gold Coast steel themselves behind their glass and ivy, hundreds of Chicagoans die due to gunfire each year, thousands are struck by bullets and live with the imprint, and tens of thousands of families are affected. It's become bad enough to poison the once teflon relationship between Police Chief McCarthy and Mayor Rahm Emanuel and has elicited pleas from communities across the city and beyond to put a stop to the violence. It is in that context that Twilite Tone came together with John Monopoly to bring together some of the city's biggest voices for a song underlining the message to put the guns down.

The track features a cross-section of the current hip-hop landscape, including King Louie, Common, G Herbo, Katie Got Bandz, Saba, Tree, NoName Gypsy, Mic Terror, and Nick Jr. of Treated Crew. The single is an honest and up-front message that touches on every corner of the scene here locally and an uplifting position for the music side of the city to take in the wake of a spike in gun deaths this year. The problem may not be solved, but the people are talking, and that's important.