"Won't Be Around" is a song by American singer-songwriter Terry Blade, released on January 6, 2023, as the lead single from his third studio album, Ethos: Son of a Sharecropper.
Background and release
Blade released "Won't Be Around" on January 6, 2023.[1] Blade described the song as being "about leaving an abusive relationship by having the will to speak it, the courage to do it, and the strength to never return to it."[2]
Blade produced and directed the music video for "Won't Be Around", and released it on September 22, 2023.[10] For the music video's logline, Blade wrote: "The music video follows three individuals who are descendants of African-American sharecroppers, and who confront the racial history of sharecropping in the American south by showing that black bodies can exist and subsist on land in the south without the exploitation of black labor."[11]
Sharecropping in the American South is captured in the video's rural/pastoral setting. The black suits worn by the performers represent racial blackness and the professionalism and dignity with which black American sharecroppers performed their work. Leaving the abusive relationship of sharecropping is shown by the performers not working the land, but defiantly standing/resting on it (looking directly at the viewer). In this way, the video illustrates that abusive relationships can take many forms, even economic and socioeconomic ones.
Ryan Cassata'sRock the Pigeon publication wrote: "The lyrics are raw and emotive, delving into themes of loss and love."[26] Bee Delores of B-Sides & Badlands wrote: "Blade’s voice carries immense weight and pierces right through the heart. You can’t escape his power as a performer."[27]
On January 4, 2023, Country Queer featured Won't Be Around as its Song of the Week.[28] Christopher Treacy of Country Queer wrote: "The instrumentation lays low, allowing the arresting vocal to remain at the forefront of the mix. Blade is telling an excerpt from a larger story, here, so context is hard to pinpoint, making the narrative all the more compelling."[28] He continued, "'Won’t Be Around' still oozes plenty of soul, though, and the sentiment could either be one of independence or abandonment, depending on perspective."[28] Treacy added, "As an excerpt from a more linear storyline, 'Won’t Be Around' leaves us wondering about context: is he inhabiting a character, or is this a first person narrative?"[29]
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^"Archived copy"(PDF). Archived(PDF) from the original on 2024-09-16. Retrieved 2024-08-27.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^"Virgin Spring Cinefest". Wayback Machine. 2024-09-01. Archived from the original on 2024-09-01. Retrieved 2024-09-02.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)