Playlist: Black & British 2020

On May 25th, George Floyd, an unarmed black man, died in Minneapolis after a white police officer knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes.

In the week since, protests against racial inequality and police brutality have erupted across the United States and around the world, including marches in London, Manchester, Cardiff and Birmingham.

Millions have voiced their support online for the #BlackLivesMatter movement, which included a widespread social media 'blackout' on Tuesday 2nd June, instigated by the music industry. Hundreds of thousands more have donated to the BLM cause and associated fundraisers, including one to bail protestors out of jail.

Many of music's biggest names - including Beyonce, Adele, Ariana Grande, Jay-Z, Rihanna, Lady Gaga, Billie Eilish and Dr. Dre - have spoken out about the death of the 46-year-old father-of-two, and also the deaths of Tony McDade, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and countless other black citizens at the hands of the police.

Streaming platforms, including Spotify, Apple and Amazon, have also pledged their support, staging moments of silence and creating playlists to showcase music produced by black artists.

For what it's worth, Skiddle has also created a playlist, featuring some of our favourite tracks by black British artists including the likes of Little Simz, Dave, Arlo Parks and Michael Kiwanuka.

We know that, in the grand scheme of things, this one playlist isn't going to change much, and that meaningful, structural change is the only solution to the scourge of racial inequality in our societies.

But we do believe that music has the power to heal, unify and bring joy, and that using our platform to promote some of the best black artists and music to come out of the UK in recent years is a positive thing.

So please listen, enjoy, and do let us know via social media if you think we should include another artist or track.