TAMPA, Fla. — As Americans celebrate the life of Martin Luther King Jr., a Bay area resident has a reminder that there’s goodness inside all of us that needs to be celebrated. And she’s doing it in the form of a song called The Real Ones, inspired by Dr. King.

If you ask J’Nelle Richardson there’s a process when it comes to finding what she considers a real one. At least that’s what she kept reminding herself of when she was writing the song. 

“It was actually kind of hard for me to write at first because it was for me. But then I wanted to branch out and make it bigger than what it is,” she said.

The inspiration for her song, TRO or The Real Ones, came from the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. His sacrifice, his dream and his message to the world during racial turmoil is something she wanted to honor by hitting the right note.

“I was so intentional with putting it out on MLK day because first of all, MLK is a real one. He’s done a lot for our society. Not just the Black culture. Just culture in general and he was a stand-up guy. He was a leader,” she said.

J’Nelle let us sit in on her recording session at bent string studios in Lutz. She also broke down some of the lyrics.

“The chorus of course. Take one, shake one up for the real ones and then you end up saying dupe, dupe. That’s like a declaration of saying yes, I am a real one,” she said.

She wants her words to speak life into people.

“On the second verse when I say she’s been goated, what that means is, GOAT means greatest of all time. I am the greatest of all time. that person is the greatest of all time. you don’t necessarily have to have a whole bunch of accolades to be considered a GOAT,” said Richardson.

For her, as long as you’re on your path and fulfilling your purpose, you can add your name to the list of real ones.

“I hope they take away that they are valued. That’s definitely my number one especially for creatives. Understanding that you are valued, understanding that you do deserve your flowers. Understanding that whatever you are growing through, that doesn’t make you lesser than the other person,” she said.

It’s a song for the unsung heroes-that she wants people to hear today as we celebrate the life of one of the greatest heroes of all time.

The song is out and available here https://hypeddit.com/therealones.