Fiona Apple has released “Pretrial (Let Her Go Home),” her first original song since her 2020 record, Fetch the Bolt Cutters.
Made in support of the Free Black Mamas DMV collective, “Pretrial (Let Her Go Home)” delves into the plight of women who are wrongfully incarcerated. “At homе she’s got two kids and gramma needs her care/ Who pack the lunch and give meds if she’s in jail and not there? / They already took the only daddy that they ever had / Shot him then put a gun near him that he never had / Wouldn’t let him go home /Wouldn’t let him go home / Wouldn’t let him go home,” she sings in the heartbreaking chorus.
“I was a court watcher for over two years. In that time, I took notes on thousands of bond hearings. Time and time again, I listened as people were taken away and put in jail, for no other reason than that they couldn’t afford to buy their way free,” Apple wrote in a statement about the track. “It was particularly hard to hear mothers and caretakers get taken away from the people who depend on them.”
“For the past five years, I have been volunteering with the Free Black Mamas DMV bailout, and I have been lucky to be able to witness the stories of women who fought for and won their freedom with the tireless and loving support of the leadership,” she continued. “I hope that this song, and the images shared with me, can help to show what is at stake when someone is kept in pretrial detention. I give this song in friendship and respect to all who have experienced the pain of pretrial detention and to the women of the group’s leadership who have taught me so much and whom I truly love.”
Apple opens the accompanying music video with text explaining that for the past two years, she has “observed thousands of court hearings as a courtwatcher” and saw “so many people get caged away simply because they could not afford bail. Before they even got a trial. While still presumed innocent.” The video features photos and clips of many victims of the corrupt criminal justice system, showing them during happier moments: family gatherings, daily routines with their children, and graduations.
It ends with a message urging viewers to help by visiting LetHerGoHome.org, a site set up by Apple that provides information on the women featured who survived pretrial detention and offers ways to take action.
Watch the video for “Pretrial (Let Her Go Home)” below.
