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Music

ANOHNI (FKA Antony) Teams up with 0PN and HudMo for a Climate Change Anthem

"4 Degrees" is about the rise in global temperature (Celsius) that could occur by 2060.
Photo by Inez & Vinoodh

Back in February, ANOHNI (formerly known as Antony of Antony and the Johnsons) announced her new album, Hopelessness. Coming co-produced by herself, Hudson Mohawke, and Oneohtrix Point Never, she wrote that it would be "an electronic record with some sharp teeth."

As of yesterday, lead single "Four Degrees" marked the first public material from the project, and it's a no-holds-barred, epic revelation of a song. With the lyrics, "It's only four degrees, It's only four degrees / I wanna see this world, I wanna see it boil," it's a scathing reproach to the culture of indifference to climate change, and indeed, the artist's own complicity in the catastrophe. Ostensibly, the track is a reference to the 2009 prediction that the global temperature could rise four degrees Celsius by 2060, and the widespread discussion that followed.

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In an interview with Pitchfork, the artist gave some background for the track. "I have grown tired of grieving for humanity, and I also thought I was not being entirely honest by pretending that I am not a part of the problem," she said. "'4 Degrees' is kind of a brutal attempt to hold myself accountable, not just valorize my intentions but also reflect on the true impact of my behaviors."

Posting the track to Facebook, the artist also shared the following note:

In solidarity with the climate conference in Paris,
giving myself a good hard look,
not my aspirations but my behaviors,
revealing my insidious complicity.
It's a whole new world.
Let's be brave and tell the truth as much as we can.
Anohni x

Check out the track below, as well as this climate map showing the world after a 4C rise.

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