With You in Mind

"**With You in Mind**" (abbreviated as "**WYIM**") is the debut solo single by Conor Michael Smith. It was released through JW Entertainment and distributed by UnitedMasters on October 26, 2020, which addresses white supremacy, privilege, systemic racism, and police brutality in America. It was written by Smith and co-produced with SlimXX, BazeXX, and John Lindahl. It peaked at #38 in the Netherlands on the iTunes Top 100 Hip-Hop/Rap Songs charts.

Described as "political hip hop" by an outlet, the song mentions specific black people the media has given attention to, including George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tamir Rice, and Elijah McClain, all of whom died at the hands of police brutality. Smith mentioned his initial hesitance to release the song, stating, "Look, some people are going to hate what I have to say, and some people are going to love it, but regardless, it's going to start a conversation, which I think ultimately is what needs to happen and has needed to happen for a while."

## Background

> I just feel like the realest stuff, I dunno, it always resonates, and it doesn't always have to be y'know, about politics or whatever. [...] I wasn't going to put out music for like a year. And the fact that I wrote that, and knew I had to put music out...
>
> Smith speaking of the song's release

Since the death of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement that resurfaced online in June 2020, Smith directed his emotions into penning the single. He added that he noticed things around him growing up and wrote the track to "get it off his chest," with no intention of officially release it. He showed it to a few select people, and decided it was important to put out.

In an interview, Smith told *ECHO*, "Truthfully it's been something that's always bothered me, and something I knew I wanted to write about one day, but never had the courage I guess. I had actually written a different verse very similar to what 'With You in Mind' was talking about in January, but it wasn't as specific to the Black Lives Matter movement, that song is still gonna come out though. I say that to say I was planning on saying something in a song, but seeing the George Floyd video surface later that year, I knew my statement had to be a lot more specific to what was really going on. [...] Three weeks later, I came out to LA. On a random Wednesday I laid down the drums and started writing."

## Composition

In terms of the creation process, he began with a beat on the keyboard, and added the drums and piano. The first four bars were written. Smith estimated he wrote it in July, and it took him three days to fully write it, stating it as the "easiest" song he ever wrote, with zero hesitation, though the recording process took much longer. He reached out to BazeXX and SlimXX, recorded it all within an hour, and made several revisions over time. The string section in tribute to Elijah McClain was the last part to record, which was rearranged several times. Smith went to Lindahl's house for this portion, and wanted it to be "perfect," as he felt personally connected, being a violinist himself. He described the song as "gritty and dark," with the strings at the end representing hope.

## Music video

The accompanying music video was published to Smith's YouTube channel on October 29, 2020, produced by All Minds. It shows him standing at Los Angeles' #FAMEYARD on Melrose Avenue in front of the murals of George Floyd, and a young black girl raising her fist in protest. It took a couple of retakes, but they went with the one take version. He intended for the audience to pay attention to his words, not wanting the video to be corny or take anything away from the song.

## Personnel

* Conor Michael Smith – songwriting, vocals, executive production, violin, string arrangement
* John Lindahl – production, string arrangement, recording
* Steve "BazeXX" Basil – production
* Brandon "SlimXX" Allen – production

## Lyrics

**Lyrics**
[Intro]

Uh, uh-uh, uh-uh

Uh

[Verse 1]

If I'm bein' honest, I'm tired of seein' bloodshed

On the doorsteps of these young men, but how can I defend

When so many are treatin' this as another dumb trend?

They been fightin' for centuries, this battle ain't won yet, uh

It's to the culture I attribute my success

So now I must confess, I'm upset

Victimized, the statements are better left unsaid

And you are not exempt just because you got one friend

I lost a bunch of friends, honestly, I'm ashamed of 'em

Unaware of the style and the culture we take from 'em

We need to empathize instead of placin' the blame on 'em

While we're safe in our homes, police officers stay huntin'

I just talked to God, there's a whole lot of rain comin'

I'm glad I finally mustered up the courage to say somethin'

I just know I'm here to fight the problem, I ain't runnin'

I believe in a change and I'm certain that day is comin'

[Verse 2]

But where do we start? We all wanna know

It seems like we got the drive to accomplish our goal

But progress has been slow, congress is a joke

So this message is for my fans, I need all y'all to vote, uh

I understand this pain is way harder to cope with

But that doesn't justify you not showin' up to protest

We have a responsibility to the hopeless

And you can start a wave without rockin' the boat

This is more than a tantrum, let's give 'em an anthem

In this nation, so divided, we're finally standin'

Our country has a reputation, we're tryna rebrand it

They've been askin' for a change, it's 'bout time we demand it

Way too many question my intentions and my direction

But they ain't gotta guess anymore, I'ma let 'em know

That's it's the unity, I'm dedicated, the truth is my destination

And to my generation to set the tone

[Verse 3]

So rest in peace to Breonna, rest in peace to Tamir

Fly high, Mr. Floyd, we know you're still in here

The last thing we should see is another mother in tears

This world is gettin' scary but we have nothin' to fear

Put your pride aside, stand up for what is right

Before they have to say an R.I.P. to another life

As far as what to say to the police, I got nothin' nice

Although it's not for me, you best believe I'll put up a fight

[Verse 4]

It's bigger than me and my people, these are the demons of evil

Poisonin' our politicians, how could we be so deceitful?

If I was black, I would be tired of keepin' it peaceful

We beat segregation and they still don't treat us as equals

This is the land of the free, how hypocritical

The color of your skin decides if you're a criminal

Somewhere we stopped seein' people as individuals

And as a white man, I peep all the subliminals

And you wonder why it's hard to put hands up

When puttin' hands up still gets you in handcuffs

You feel like you can't just, it's time that we stand up

They won't listen to y'all, maybe they'll understand us

But, this isn't what you wanna listen to

It's easy to forget when the victim isn't you

[Verse 5]

It's not about what you've done, it's what you didn't do

I don't have the answers though, this is just a different view, uh

See, I have faith we're gonna find a way

And though the sky is grey, I can see a brighter day

And while I'm here, there's another thing I'd like to say

When life is difficult, that's when you find the time to pray

Under Him, there's not a difference between you and I

I told you in the music, this movement is do-or-die

So join arms, lift your fists into the sky

Elijah McClain, I orchestrated this string section with you in mind

## References

1. ↑ "Conor Michael Smith (@MichaelConor)". *Twitter*. October 26, 2020.
2. ↑ "With You in Mind Charts History". *Top Charts*. November 1, 2020.
3. ↑ "Exclusive Interview: Pop-Culturalist Chats with Conor Michael Smith". *Pop Culturalist*. December 22, 2020.
4. ↑ "Conor Michael Smith on: With You In Mind, 2020 In The Music Industry, and His Hidden Talents!". *Listen Notes*. February 17, 2021.
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Brow, Jason (October 29, 2020). "Conor Michael Smith Raps in the Shadow of George Floyd for Powerful Video For 'With You in Mind'". *Hollywood Life*.
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "E33 Conor Michael Smith". *Easily Annoyed*. April 21, 2021.
7. ↑ "Conor Michael Smith Talks "With You in Mind," Being a Solo Artist and More". *ECHO*. August 16, 2021.
8. ↑ Ju, Shirley (November 17, 2020). "Conor Michael Smith Is in It for the Long Run". *AllHipHop*.
9. ↑ Anthony, Julian (November 2, 2020). "Conor Michael Smith Debuts First Single & Video 'With You in Mind'". *Exclusive Audio*.
10. ↑ Thomson, Zangba (October 31, 2020). "Conor Michael Smith unveils an empowering debut single, entitled, "With You in Mind"".