James, who came to Austin from Nigeria via New York, has this velvety, soulful voice. He was singing a song called "War Outside," (listen to it, and others on his Web site) about violence and apathy, when my thoughts drifted homeward.

The city has experienced more than enough violence in the past few months, from armed robberies, to the brutal beating in Farquhar Park, to the two shootings this weekend. I feel as if there is a sense of looming and desperateness as we hear news of yet another incident of violence against our neighbors.

In "War Outside" James bypasses the, "Why can't we just get along?" route, admonishing us for being too self-centered and material to address the problem of violence in our cities.

His lyrics point out the sad and paradoxical way our children grow up, while we turn our backs:

"I'm old enough to hold a gun, but I'm far too young to gulp a forty
There's a war outside my friends.
I'm old enough to shed my clothes, but I'm far too young to cast a vote
there's a war outside for our future
but we don't worry bout this anymore
too concerned on the mundane things
like my hat
like my hat
we don't worry bout this anymore
too concerned on the mundane things
like my skin.
like my skin"

He's said what many have said before, which is that we need to move beyond skin color, and clothing, and base prejudice, and blame to find a solution, otherwise what hope is there for our future?

I got goose bumps as his voice surged with the lines:

"We scream we have freedom you see, but you say your neighbor is your god damn enemy."

What does freedom mean if you don't even feel safe in your own home or neighborhood? When you can't walk down your street without fear.

One song isn't a solution to what's going on in our city, but it certainly got me thinking.