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Baltimore musician Sonne Riley pens a poem for Serena Williams
For the second year, Serena Williams’ effort to make history at the US Open was cut short in a semifinal upset. Musician Sonne Riley decided to write a poem celebrating Williams
After Karolina Pliskova defeated Serena Williams on Thursday night, knocking Williams out of her bid for a 23rd major title at the US Open and losing her No. 1 spot, Baltimore musician Sonne Riley was inspired to write a poem.
For Serena Williams
9/11 1999 serena won her first one/
9/11 1999 me n mom got evicted again/
well here comes aunty in her station wagon/
in the driver seat where father should have been/
she said you don’t have much/
but you’ll always have us/
wen theres nothin else/
not much i can comprehend/
cept mom n aunty love got no end/
shall i find peril later down in life/
i remember their every sacrifice/
n all the strength it took/
to fight everytime the devil wagered war
aunty taught me how to conquer like serena/
momma taught me to beat my match like serena/
n if this match i don’t win/
this game aint over I’m coming back again/
aunty taught me to be strong like serena/
momma taught me not to quit like serena/
n if this match i don’t win/
this game aint over I’m coming back again/
might not had a daddy/
might not had a home/
still i was never alone
had 2 black queens fight for me strong/
like serena williams
momma had her flaws of course/
but even the best nets rip on the best tennis courts/
even best the players sometimes fall short/
that don’t mean that its over that your done for/
aunty spent her nights wit a bible under a lamp/
praying god pass a blessing by a back hand/
that one day she might see me again/
when they took me away/
i can see their hurt inside/
no matter how strong those woman were/
they couldn’t stand losing one of theirs/
but even without em i survived/
all cuz the lessons i learned on 9/11 1999
aunty taught me how to conquer like serena/
momma taught me to beat my match like serena/
n if this match i don’t win/
this game aint over I’m coming back again/
aunty taught me to be strong like serena/
momma taught me not to quit like serena/
n if this match i don’t win/
this game aint over I’m coming back again/
might not had a daddy/
might not had a home/
still i was never alone
had 2 black queens fight for me strong/
like serena williams
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Liner Notes
Baltimore native singer and songwriter Sonne Riley new video for “Want Love” explores the topic saliently without soap boxing, while the raw emotion of his vocals punctuates the message in just the right way.