Back to School? We Belong 21' is an Anthem for Asian and Pacific Islander American Students

APIA artists Magnetic North & Taiyo Na and Ann One reunited after the Atlanta spa shootings — to remind us of where and who we come from

Screenshot from “We Belong ‘21” by Magnetic North & Taiyo Na ft. Ann One with photography by Corky Lee and other cultural documentarians

I’m here, grew up on the shores of America
Open up shop ran stores in America
Washed windows cleaned floors in America
Only trust me with your chores in America

Just need one open door in America
Cried when we elected 44 for America
My families here fought wars for America
On TV just a whore for America

In 2010, Magnetic North & Taiyo Na released the original “We Belong”, describing it as a rallying cry for a collective AAPI experience marked by “erasure, exclusion and absurdity”. Sampling Asian American folk pioneer Chris Iijima on the chorus, the song was part of a larger thematic album Home:Word, where homeland and refuge were explored from an Asian American migrant perspective.

In 2021, the context of increased anti-Asian violence, particularly the mass shootings in Atlanta and Indianapolis, the artists created a new rendition and video of the song that “adds layers of urgency and relevance to the original topic…while pointing towards the possibilities of solidarity and action to bring us forward.” With resonating vocals by LA artist Ann One, Magnetic North and Taiyo Na shared the song with fans and supporters on their Facebook page with this: “Dedicated to Corky Lee and every other photographer who captured the AAPI experience so that we cannot be erased.”

F*ck these colonizers, calling us outsiders
We built this country too, and they built it alongside us
1 generation 2 generation 3
To the young generation, you generate me

So T, Taiyo, Ann One, and Chucky
And anyone who feels like a guest in their country
And everyone who’s ever lost somebody to the struggle
Know you’re not alone, I promise all of my people, y’all we love you
And we’re here

“We Belong ‘21” director An Rong Xu: 許安榮 and with animation by ZIPENG ZHU seamlessly tells a more than centuries’ old Asian American story with archival photographs from APIA cultural ancestors like Corky Lee, who passed on January 27, 2021, at the age of 73, due to complications related to COVID-19. The song is intergenerational at its core — Taiyo Na share that when he “was recording and doing my parts, I was thinking of my son and what kind of a world I want him to belong to and not belong to. I was thinking of when I’m no longer living in the flesh how Jayu could feel a sense of home in this song whenever he listens to it.”

The song was released for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, but the lessons it contains should be a part of every U.S. curriculum, as grassroots APIA groups across the country are currently fighting for from Oklahoma to New Jersey. Check out the video on YouTube and on any streaming platform.

P.S. Check out our guide and APIA children’s book list for year-round reading: bit.ly/apiakidlit.

Song Background: “We Belong ’21 (feat. Ann One / prod. by Chucky Kim)”

All streaming platforms: https://ffm.to/webelong21

By Magnetic North & Taiyo Na (C. Iijima, D. Kan, C. Kim, T. Ebato, T. Vu) Instagram: @mntn_music @taiyona @gotvu @directdk @chuckykim @annonemusic

Produced and mixed by Chucky Kim

Original sample from Chris Iijima “Asian Song”

Keys by Jaron Lum

Guitars by Takenori Nishiuchi

Horns by Andrew Sumabat

Bass by Chucky Kim

Additional drum samples by Abraham Kim and David Kong

Mastered by Bob Power

Album Artwork by Sahra Nguyen

Photographs by: Corky Lee, An Rong Xu, Pete Pin, The Chin Family, Shuran Huang, Caroline Yang, Edward Cheng, Cindy Trinh, Ken Ji, Alan Chin, Vi Son Trinh, Toyo Miyatake, Mengwen Cao, Kapulei Flores, Dorothea Lange, Thomas Holton