‘One Mississippi’ replaces state song that had racist roots

By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS
Associated Press

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi is ditching a state song that’s based on the campaign tune of a former governor who pledged to preserve segregation. The current governor, Republican Tate Reeves, signed a bill Thursday to replace “Go, Mississippi” with a new song, “One Mississippi.” The change happens July 1 — two years after Mississippi retired a Confederate-themed state flag. “Go, Mississippi” has been the state song since 1962, using uses Ross Barnett’s 1959 campaign tune with different lyrics. “One Mississippi” is written by country singer and songwriter Steve Azar, who’s a Mississippi native. It uses familiar images, including magnolia trees, fried catfish, hurricanes and kudzu.