Black Sabbath Releases Black Lives Matter Shirt; All Proceeds Go to the Movement

The Masters of Reality has answered the call of the people for these shirts. Last week, Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello was spotted wearing the same Black Lives Matter shirt. In an Instagram post, the Rage musician and Harvard University alum wrote about his 96-year-old mom, who was also a lifelong advocate for Black lives.

Among the people who saw and liked the photo was Geezer Butler, Black Sabbath bassist. Butler commented: "Nice shirt & nice sentiment & awesome mum."

Black Sabbath has put up the Black Lives Matter tee, a black shirt with the civil rights slogan emblazoned using the iconic purple iconography. The shirt is now available on the band's official apparel shop. The minimalist ad puts the sought-after tee on the center, announcing: "100% of Net Proceeds will be donated to Black Lives Matter." Black Sabbath's Instagram post also called for people to "help make a difference."

The shirts are priced at $25 each and can be shipped anywhere in the world. Delivery begins in July from their website.

Raising Funds To Help Black Lives Matter

Black Sabbath is the latest band to release merch in support of the BLM movement. Post-hardcore band Drug Church announced their band merch in line with the protests against institutional racism and police brutality. Two weeks ago, they posted the design on Twitter. It sports the group logo in front, and the statement "The Cops Aren't Your Friends" over an illustration of a burning police vehicle. All proceeds for their shirt go to the Black Visions Collective.

Fellow hardcore rock band SeeYouSpaceCowboy also launched their protest shirt via Instagram. On the same day as Drug Church, SYSC described their concept. "Throughout history, change has been made through taking a stand, and now is that time. Whether in the streets or through any other means we must stand together to fight oppression and the abuse of power happening in our time."

Black Sabbath Also Takes A [Gasp] Political Stand

Like most metal bands, Black Sabbath does not shy away from expressing their opinions. A week after George Floyd was killed by policemen in Minneapolis, June 2, the band also posted a plain black picture on their IG page. Some fans have started calling them out and even threatening to unfollow the page. Their fellow rockers Rage Against the Machine experienced the same minor backlash. Tom Morello posting a response to an embarassing critic by another Twitter user.

In fact, one of the most popular anti-establishment hits was their "War Pigs." The opening track for their 1970 album "Paranoid" recounted the band members' fears of being forced to serve in the army during the height of the Vietnam War. However, while it has gone down in history as one of the most enduring anti-war and anti-establishment songs, the band has previously explained that the war was actually against evil in general. Its original title was supposed to be "Walpurgis," considered as the sabbath among witches and occultists.

However, as their fellow rock bands directly criticized law enforcement units and actively called for change, Black Sabbath preferred a softer, more inclusive, approach. The band has been posting the cover art for their previous albums with messages of love and hope.

See the Black Sabbath announcement below: