A day after debuting the cinematic trailer, August Alsina lets the tears flow on his new single “Song Cry,” produced by Brandon “Bam” Hodges (Chris Brown, Trey Songz). The New Orleans pours his heart out on the emotional song, on which he reflects on dark and desperate times in his life and the world.

“I can’t hold back these tears / Let me cry / They say a man ain’t supposed to cry / So I’ma let the song cry,” he sings in reference to Jay Z’s 2002 hit of the same name.

He also opens up about family (“I tried to buy my mama’s love, she don’t appreciate it”), suicidal thoughts, and his peers (“I figured maybe Jay or Cole or Drizzy Drake would drop a verse and tell the people how we hurtin’ / Guess I was mistaken”).

August’s sophomore album This Thing Called Life, the follow-up to his 2014 debut Testimony, is due later this year.