Kirk Franklin – It Gets Better Ft. Tobe Nwigwe

Anybody who has ever told a friend those words knows how hard they are to believe when you are the one hurting. It is what you say at the hospital corridor, at the burial, after the breakup and during the long wait for a job. The sentence is simple, and that is the strength of it. It does not promise perfection. It promises improvement, which is easier to hold on to.

Tobe Nwigwe is a notable guest for Nigerian readers. His surname is Igbo, he is of Nigerian descent, and he has spoken about that heritage in his music. Seeing him on a Kirk Franklin record feels like a quiet homecoming of sorts. How his verse fits with the gospel setting is for your own ears to decide, since I would rather not describe what I cannot confirm.

The title works because it speaks to the tired. People going through a season they cannot explain do not need a lecture. They need someone to say the thing they are scared to say to themselves.

Play it when the day has been long and the week even longer.

Download MP3