Victorious Zaq Baker is a talented singer-songwriter who is passionate about many causes. While the majority of his music topics range from love (“Bri”), mental health, and growing up (“Treadmill”), his latest song of “Victorious” takes dead aim at the heartbreaking ICE takeover going on in his hometown of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Baker could’ve gone in a multitude of directions on this protest song, but he chooses to focus on the human element and the neighbors who will be joining together to stand up for each other in the wake of fascism. On this five-minute song, that dives deep into the horrors that Baker and others have witnessed, his instrument of choice is an upright piano that evokes strong emotions with each chord.
Baker begins by shaming these ICE agents with, “To show up to a protest / In tactical vests / With masks and arrests / They are cowards / With wartime guns / And federal funds / Feels like their methods adjust by the hour,” and it becomes crystal clear on where Baker stands on this side of history taking place before our very eyes. He leans into the human element of the situation, and he recognizes that the people that are left behind long after these agents leave Minneapolis are the ones who will be most affected. The pre-chorus of “We have every reason to be / Afraid for our own safety / But neighborhoods still turn out with strength in numbers,” is the most important part of the equation, and Baker showcases his love for his hometown.
Baker goes into a higher vocal register on the bridge of, “There’s more of us / Than there are them / And they can’t match the truth our system speaks / We will persist / We will resist / We’ve done it countless times throughout history,” to evoke the pain behind each of his pointed lyrics. I applaud Zaq Baker for taking a stand as an artist, a person, and as a neighbor in his community to mark an important turning point in the discussion of what’s right versus evil.