Black Lives Matter Movement Hit Home for Princeton Perez Because He's A Young Black Boy in America

Corporations are rolling back their age-old branding messaging. Statues that have stood tall for centuries are being taken down. Brands are donating millions of dollars to Black-owned businesses. This time it's different. I believe the reason for this is the number of young people who are taking this Black Lives Matter movement by the reigns.

We've heard a lot from celebrities and public figures but normally it's people who are millennials and older. But I wanted to hear what the digital natives also known as Generation Z thought about the importance of the Black Lives Matter movement and recent injustice that has plagued the country.

On his way running errands before he flies out to Atlanta for a studio session with Jermaine Dupri, I had the opportunity to speak with Princeton Perez. Many know Princeton as one of the founding members of Mindless Behavior but now Papi Chulo, as he's called by his fans, is a solo artist. As he pulled over on the side of the road, we talked about why he has been so vocal about the Black Lives Matter movement, celebrities' responsibility to speak up and new music.

On whether Black and Brown celebrities should use their platforms and voices to shed light on social injustice, he believes everyone should speak up.

I think everyone should speak on it because that is what I think this world is missing, the kindness of the soul and a kind heart. It doesn't take a lot to educate yourself even if you don't understand it or never experienced it. You have to educate yourself. And everybody in the industry who is Black and Brown have been through more than anybody else to breakthrough and get half of the opportunities that everyone else has.

Princeton said he spoke up in support of the Black Lives Matter movement because he's a young Black and Brown boy in America.

I'm a young Black and Brown boy in America so it hits homes for me. I've been racially profiled my whole life. We [Mindless Behavior] got kicked out of so many restaurants and so many hotels just because of the color of our skin. Seeing how vocal my family was. Nobody in my family is Black, I'm the only mixed one. It made me feel like wow, I could really inspire people to at least have empathy.

Princeton also shares that he was nervous when he put out his first solo project.

I had a full-on anxiety attack when my first song dropped. It was very different. I wasn't the lead singer of the group. I wasn't the lead rapper. I was just a part of the group and it was very scary for me to just do it on my own and it's still scary. But I've seen how much I've grown. I literally went from having panic attacks to recording in front of the boys [Mindless Behavior] in the studio to now. I'm about to go to Atlanta to do my third session with Jermaine Dupri.

Check out the full interview below.