Maggie Rogers’ “Give A Little” Was Inspired By The National Gun Violence Walkout

Singer-songwriter Maggie Rogers' latest single is cathartic and uplifting, but it was inspired by the grave issue of gun control in the United States. “Give a Little” was written the same day as the National School Walkout, where students joined together to protest gun violence.

The song’s second verse alludes to the polarizing issue of gun control and asks for trust between opposing parties:

If you would open up your heart
Drop your weapons, drop your guard
Just a little trust is all it takes
Oh, I know that you’ve been around
But hear me now, I’m crying out
Let me be the light upon the lake

Rogers accompanied the song’s release with a handwritten letter explaining that she was “so inspired by the change those students were fighting and continue to fight for.” The National School Walkout took place on April 20, the 19th anniversary of the Columbine shooting.

Rogers worked on the track with producer Greg Kurstin, who has also collaborated with Adele, Sia, and Kendrick Lamar.

In the lead-up to her debut album Rogers has made a habit of releasing notes that explain the backstory of her new tracks. She posted one with her previous track, “Fallingwater,” which said, “It’s a song that celebrates rapid change and how simultaneously scary and electric it can feel.”

She has not announced a release date for a follow-up to last year’s Now That the Light is Fading, but fans online have been referring to her upcoming debut album as MR1.

In 2016, Rogers appeared on Verified to break down the lyrics of her breakout single “Alaska.”

Read all the lyrics to “Give a Little” and the rest of Maggie Rogers' discography on Genius now.