Frank Ocean Gives Away Merch to Voters
In honor of Election Day, Frank Ocean is getting out the vote.
On Tuesday (Nov. 6), the reclusive singer returned for a new episode of his Beats 1 radio show, blondedRADIO. During the early morning show, dubbed “blonded Midterms pt. 1,” he encouraged listeners to vote in Tuesday’s midterm elections.
The episode opened with his song “U-N-I-T-Y” off his 2016 visual album Endless, according to The FADER. Ocean and his co-host, producer Vegyn, discussed right-wing conspiracies including #PizzaGate, and the “anti-intellectual” movement to suppress voting. “We’re against gerrymandering. We’re against voter ID laws. We’re against voter suppression,” said Ocean.
""We're against gerrymandering. We're against voter ID laws. We're against voter suppression." #blondedRADIO
— Frank Ocean Daily (@TeamFrankDaily) November 6, 2018
“Let’s get the ideas out of the shadows so everything is out in the open,” he added. “Everyone needs to trust their common sense when it comes to things in politics. If it seems morally wrong, it’s usually wrong.”
He reminded listeners to vote before closing the show by playing The Honeydrippers’ 1973 song “Impeach the President.”
As part of his get-out-the-vote campaign, Ocean is giving away free merch in four cities—Houston, Miami, Atlanta, and Dallas—to those who hit the polls. He posted a flyer on his Tumblr page with details. “Bring proof (a ballot stub) that you voted to any of the locations below and get some free merch. Because God bless America,” reads the flyer.
The merch includes white tees with an abstract blue graphic and the number “42%” written in large type. Forty-two percent stands for the percentage of the U.S. population that doesn’t vote.
First look at the merch via @Tylerwolf_ pic.twitter.com/SCNp8e68Vm
— Frank Ocean Daily (@TeamFrankDaily) November 6, 2018
I’m loving the turn out #comeoutcomeout @FRANKOCEANinfo pic.twitter.com/V0aZOgPDJD
— Cierra (@KierraCrawfish) November 6, 2018