Riz Ahmed's Moving Performance of "Sour Times"

-I thought tonight, I was hoping maybe
you could give us a little something,
if you could, if you don't mind performing for us.
-Yeah.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Sure. -Maybe a --
-Yeah, I mean, you know, it's interesting.
You know, I was thinking
about the speech that you gave earlier.
And in light of all the current events that are going on,
it just seems like we're living
in really, really divided times.
And it really hurts, you know?
And I wrote this piece 10 years ago,
and every year, I keep hoping it will become irrelevant,
but it seems to become more and more relevant, sadly.
And it's my attempt to try to get behind the headlines
and work out where all of this extremism is coming from.
-Do you need music for this or anything?
-No, just a mic, please.
-There you go. -Thank you.
Cheers.
-Riz Ahmed, everyone.
[ Cheers and applause ]
-In these sour times,
please allow me to vouch for mine.
Bitter taste in my mouth, spit it out with a rhyme.
Hey, yo, I'm losing my religion to tomorrow's headlines.
Guantanamo. Sorry, bro?
Nah, nothing. It's fine.
And now it's Post 7/7.
Why they calling it that?
They're trying to link it to New York,
like we're all under attack from the same big, bad guy,
but it's taking a piss
'cause the truth is terrorism ain't what you think it is.
There ain't no super villain
planning these attacks from some base.
The truth is so much scarier and harder to face.
See, there's thousands of angry, young men that are lost,
sidelined in the economy, a marginal cost.
They think there's no point in putting ballots up in the box.
They got no place in the system and no faith in its cogs.
Easy targets that be getting brainwashed by these knobs
who say that spilling innocent blood is pleasing a god.
Well, it sounds good when you don't see no justice or jobs.
The gas bills are piling up, but all the oil's getting robbed.
So David's taking out Goliath and his wife and his dog.
Segregated, castrated.
Now we see who's on top.
So, see, it ain't religious faith
that's causing these crimes.
It's losing faith in democratic free-market designs.
It's no coincidence the bombers came from ghettos up north,
and the way that Trump talks gives a lost boy a cause.
Then double standards get them angered,
both at home and abroad.
There's a monopoly on pens.
That's why they forge their own swords.
The misguided turn violent, strap themselves up with bombs.
But they're still cowards
'cause they ain't here when the backlash is on.
So, in these sour times,
please allow me to vouch for mine.
Bitter taste in my mouth, spit it out with a rhyme.
Hey, yo, I'm losing my religion to tomorrow's headlines.
Abu Ghraib. Sorry, mate?
Nah, nothing. It's fine.
So, all the mans that want to say
that my religion has to change,
that we're stuck in a bygone age,
it's time to set the vinyl straight.
Don't you think it's kind of strange
that all this terror outrage, these last-gasp castaways,
these bastards that will blast away,
turned up in the last decade when Islam has been the way
for millions from back in the day?
Instead of thinking that we're crazed,
investigate just what it says.
Fast, help the poor, and pray.
Go Mecca, be steadfast in faith.
That's the basics, that's the base
so how did we get here today?
Well, interpretations always change.
Today, they're red with rage, been jihad-ened up.
Desperation's kind of...
Makes you use a book of peace as weapons in Iraq.
So, listen.
Terrorism isn't caused by religion
or an old-school vision of Islam.
It's against the Qur'an, and it's a new innovation
caused by mash-up situations.
That's what makes them turn to arms.
The problem is modern, and it's all local factors.
Dictatorships, injustices, and wars cause fatwas.
So, in these sour times,
please allow me to vouch for mine.
Bitter taste in my mouth, spit it out with a rhyme.
Hey, yo, I'm losing my religion to tomorrow's headlines,
but it's fine.
[ Cheers and applause ]
-Oh.
That was amazing. That's amazing, dude.
Riz Ahmed, everybody!

Riz Ahmed's Moving Performance of "Sour Times"

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