(LifeSiteNews) — A Catholic musician has released a pro-life rap song that paints a powerful image of the heartbreaking reality of abortion.
Alvaro Vega, a rap artist from Florida who uses the stage name Communion, crafted a song and music video titled “Blood Cries Out.” The song follows the stories of two women and how abortion impacts their respective lives.
One would have cured cancer and saved her own mother’s life had she not been aborted. Another, a teenage girl, wrestles with the possibility of ending her unwanted pregnancy before realizing the alternative of adoption.
“Her name was Eva, a masterful surgeon,” Communion begins the song, describing the first character as a well-liked and “spectacular person” who spent 30 years in research before discovering a cure for cancer. The miraculous development saved “billions” of lives, including her mother, who is described as suffering from stage four Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
“She was answer to prayers, a chosen soul
God had sent her, but her story was never told
Unfortunately, her life was tragically shortened
It never happened because Eva was aborted”
The refrain continues with a chilling reminder that the “blood cries out” from “every life that’s torn apart.” While an ultrasound image is shown in the video, the song lyrics go on to say that “we can’t trade love for violence, and these babies won’t stay silent.”
The second verse follows another character, a 15-year-old high school student named Lupita who conceived a child with “the boy of her dreams” — a senior who walked away from her upon learning of the pregnancy. The song then describes the young mother’s struggle with “depression and panic,” taking a school nurse’s advice to go to an abortion center and wrestling with her Christian beliefs and what “Planned Parenthood told her … was her decision.”
“She was on the fence, the night before she had a dream
That she killed her baby boy, and she could hear him scream
The next day a sidewalk counselor told her there’s a better option
Now there’s hope she might give her baby up for adoption”
After the second verse, Communion sings that “God stands ready” to forgive women who have had abortions, saying He “knows your pain and understands everything that you’re feeling.” However, after emphasizing God’s mercy and desire to give “healing [to] a humble, contrite heart,” the song points to His “warning for the unrepentant.”
The lyrics emphasize the “right to life endowed by the Creator” under the Fifth Commandment, saying that those who “don’t repent [will] pay the consequence later.” Preceding the final refrain are a couple lines in which the artist reflects on God’s justice while acknowledging that “the money that funds abortion says ‘In God We Trust.’”
The final message of the song is a reminder that every child who has been killed in the womb “has a Father in the Heavens and they’ll never be forsaken.”
Artist inspired to spread pro-life message to youth
In an email exchange with LifeSiteNews, Vega explained that he was motivated to participate in the “Blood Cries Out” project thanks to his “strong belief that this song could have the potential to impact so many youth and young adults around the world.”
“We are fighting a culture war right now with this issue of abortion, and because music (especially rap/hip-hop) has the power to influence the culture, I feel a great responsibility to use my musical talent for good, to help win this war. I pray this song will help save many babies and even souls of people [who] support abortion or are on the fence [about it].”
Vega, who collaborated with fellow Christians Joe Salant and Jon Meenk on the project, co-wrote the lyrics and produced the music himself.
He expressed the importance of the pro-life message in modern society when “pro-abortionists are pushing their agenda even harder” since the historic overturning of Roe v. Wade last June. In post-Roe America, he pointed out, “there is still a lot of work to do to abolish abortion in each state (and around the world) and to bring light and truth to people’s minds about the evil of what abortion really is.”
Vega told LifeSiteNews that the song’s “target audience” includes any girls and women considering abortion, those who have already had one and “still hasn’t healed or received God’s forgiveness” as well as “anyone who supports abortion” or “might be on the fence on this issue.”
He shared the “overwhelmingly positive response” the song has received so far, particularly from women who have suffered from abortion and those who are already convicted pro-lifers. Although Vega has been in the music industry for several years, he said that “Blood Cries Out” is “very different than my previous work” due to its “very gritty, real look into a dark subject.” Comparatively, his other songs “has been positive, happy sounding music with more of a catechetical angle.”
Despite the stark contrast and shift from his typical work, Vega added his belief that his pro-life track “is definitely some of my best work yet,” and expressed gratitude for the opportunity to collaborate on it.
Evangelization to youth through music
Vega explained to LifeSiteNews that he got involved with rap at a young age, “influenced by Eminem’s music” and “making song with less than Christian ideals.” Eminem became as popular as he is controversial in the early 2000s and, like most other artists in the hip-hop genre, his songs focused on harsh and negative aspects of life. The raw themes are generally characterized by crude and obscene language.
“But after having a personal encounter with Jesus Christ while reading The Imitation of Christ by Thomas Kempis, I put away my vulgar rhymes and began rapping and singing exclusively for Jesus,” Vega said, taking the stage name “Communion” to reference the Holy Eucharist. “I now use my talents to preach the Gospel (in English and Spanish) to youth throughout the U.S. and around the world.”
Vega’s inspired “hip-hop evangelization ministry” has led him to perform at World Youth Day in both Panama (2019) and Portugal (2023). He explained that, as a former seminarian, he uses his master’s degree in theology to write music “integrating Scripture and theology into my songs.” His first faith-based rap song titled “I Believe” was released on YouTube a decade ago. Earlier this year, Vega released “Mother Mary” in honor of the Blessed Virgin.
Although “Blood Cries Out” is Vega’s “first pro-life song,” he expressed that he “hope[s] it’s not the last.” He continued, “I have been wanting to put out a pro-life song for a while, and this collaboration with Salant and Meenk provided the perfect opportunity to do so.”
A Spanish version of the powerful song is in the works, Vega said, and “should be out soon.”
Communion’s music can be heard on Apple Music, Spotify and Amazon music and music videos found at his YouTube channel. More information about his work can be found on his website as well as his Instagram page.
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