Music is important to all people; but this fact becomes particularly pertinent when you’re talking about black people. As a “race” who have had to endure some of life’s worst hardships, many times, creating, listening to or dancing to music has been our only escape. I’m convinced that without music, quite a few of us wouldn’t be able to cope. Music is therapeutic. So in honor of uplifting and inspiring ourselves, here’s a list of songs that do just that. This list is in no way exhaustive. In fact it’s a continuation of a list I created last year about this time. Check out the original list and be sure to add your suggestions in the comments section below.

1. “Ain’t No Stopping Us Now”- McFadden and Whitehead

I know we’ve got a long long way to go, yeah
And where we’ll end up
I don’t know
But we won’t let nothing hold us back
We gonna get ourselves together
We gonna polish up our act, yeah
And if you’ve ever been held down before
I know that you refuse to be held down any more…

Last year, one of our readers suggested I include this song on the list. They were so right, I can’t believe I forgot it. I mean, this song was so popular and so moving that people began to refer to it as the new “Black National Anthem.” There’s so much passion and hopefulness behind the delivery, that you can’t help but be encouraged.