Stevie Wonder Says Ferguson Mayor 'Has Blinders On'

American music legend Stevie Wonder has spoken out on the recent controversy involving the killing of teen Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, saying that the mayor of the St. Louis suburb "has blinders on."

The blind soul artist said in a recent interview with ABC News that claims by Ferguson mayor James Knowles about no racial issues in the town are "unfortunate."

"I don't know if the mayor has blinders on, but to say that he didn't know that there was a racial or cultural problem in the city is unfortunate," the artist told ABC News.

Wonder also commended President Barack Obama's handling of the situation in Ferguson, where the shooting of a black unarmed teen by a white police officer prompted weeks of riots, some of which turned violent.

Mayor Knowles previously told MSNBC that he doesn't see a racial problem in Ferguson. "I don't believe that's the case, still. There's not a racial divide in the city of Ferguson," the mayor said in the August interview with MSNBC host Tamron Hall.

In his recent interview with ABC, Wonder said that he draws new inspiration for his music from tragic events like Brown's death and the subsequent riots, as well as the current issues in the Middle East.

"Obviously the good, the bad and the ugly, I've seen it all. I check out all of it," Wonder said. "I am always challenged [by] anything that's negative to write. How can we take it from that wrong place to getting it back to the right place? Unfortunately we're living in a time of disposable love and we've got to get it from that place to really valuing life, valuing love and valuing each other."