John Legend: Glory’s controversial

John Legend is glad his and Common's song Glory is "a little controversial".

The pair created the tune for director Ava DuVernay's movie Selma, which centres on Dr. Martin Luther King's campaign to secure equal voting rights for African-Americans in 1965.

John and Common call attention to the August 2014 killing of black teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri in Glory's lyrics.

And John thought it was very important to incorporate current events into the track.

"I think it is a little controversial to bring the now into the song because these are things that are being debated right now in this moment, but we have to also realise that Dr. King was controversial," he explained to Deadline. "Dr. King was seen as a radical by a lot of people. Dr. King wasn't extremely popular before he died, and so for us to talk about things that may not be popular with everybody, it is part of carrying on with his spirit. I always quote [jazz singer and civil rights activist] Nina Simone. She said, 'It's the artists' duty to reflect the times they live in,' and so with this song we wanted to pay tribute to the important roles that all the people play in Selma, but we also wanted to reflect the time that we live in."

Common shares his Glory co-writer John's sentiments.

The rapper believes many activists today are still fighting for the equality predecessors sought during America's 1960s Civil Rights Movement.

"It's necessary to speak about it and show that, yes, we've come a long way but we have a long way to go," Common said. "So with these situations we are still facing right now, we have to acknowledge them and do what we can to heal them and move forward."