The Killers have posted a new, stripped-down rendition of their 2019 protest song “Land Of The Free,” featuring newly revised lyrics that address the death of George Floyd.
In the new version, frontman Brandon Flowers sings, “How many killings must one man watch in his home? Eight measured minutes and 46 seconds, another boy in the bag/Another stain on the flag.”
Eight minutes and 46 seconds is the exact length of time that former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin kept his knee on Floyd’s neck, making him unable to breathe.
The original version of the song came out in January 2019. It spoke out against gun violence and Donald Trump‘s proposed border wall. Flowers said that the lyrics date back to 2012 in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook school shooting that killed 20 children and seven adults.
The Killers’ new LP Imploding The Mirage was originally slated to come out in May, but the pandemic changed those plans. Although three singles have come out, the LP has no official release date yet.
