JAY-Z Is Turning His Focus To Social Justice

JAY-Z has a new name and a new mission.

The 47-year old, who's dropping the album 4:44 next Friday, penned an article in the Hollywood Reporter in which he discussed his documentary on Kalief Browder.

Browder was arrested at 16 for stealing a backpack and killed himself after being held for three years in Rikers Island, mostly in solitary confinement.

The power of one voice is strong, but when it comes to social justice, the power of our collective voices is unstoppable," Hov writes. "Now is the time to recognize that through our voices we really can effect change. Some of us will do the important work locally at the micro level to awaken our neighbors. Some of us will work for progress regionally. And a few of us will be like Kalief Browder, a modern-day prophet whose death two years ago started a discussion that continues today about how poor, black juveniles are treated in the criminal justice system.

My hope is for my next documentary, Rest in Power: The Trayvon Martin Story, to create a similar conversation that leads to change and helps keep our children safe. And it's an honor to have the support of Trayvon's family in telling the story. But social justice isn't a political issue. It's a human issue. It's a story of empathy. When we are able to identify that we are all not perfect and have compassion for someone else, we can move forward as a society. Look around at what's happening in your town and your city right now. Think small, and you can do much bigger things.

[Learn more about Jay Z's upcoming album.]