HIStory

Happy Birthday Michael Jackson! May you continue to live in our memories. And here is the teaser that was released for his album, History, which I have (actually, it’s my mom’s CDs, shhhh). This teaser is kind of giving off a dictator vibe, but it is cinematically appealing.

Right to Ride…

My first day of classes is cancelled for today because the MTA is still trying to recover from Hurricane Irene. Speaking of public transportation and since yesterday was the anniversary of the March on Washington and Emmett Till’s murder, the same murder that sparked the modern Civil Rights movement, I would like to give a […]

Emmett Still…

Blitz the Ambassador– Emmett Still Today is the 47th anniversary of the March on Washington in which Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his famous “I Have A Dream” speech. Sadly, it is also the 56th anniversary of the lynching of Emmett Till in Mississippi and 56 years later, it still resonates. On June 26th in […]

Remembering Aaliyah

This is the tenth anniversary of Aaliyah leaving us and I still miss her. Very few Hip-Hop/R&B singers today can compare to how cool she was as a singer, dancer and budding actress. To this day, I still listen to all three of her albums that she made before she passed and wonder how far […]

Enough Monkeying Around

“The Rise of Planet of the Apes” came out in theaters this month. Entertainment is never just entertainment; it is always feeding into the zeitgeist of the time. So, I started to think about the use of monkeys and apes in media, especially film, and their social and even racial symbolism. Is it a coincidence […]

What Ever Happened to Hip Hop?

“It began with the beat of the drum. With the beat, came a voice for those without one. From this voice, came a movement. Overcoming the odds, the originators of hip hop took their music from block parties of New York City streets to world wide radio waves. During the early years, the music and […]

The Power of Words: Revolution

Revolution: From the latin words, re + volvere, volgere, which means to roll back, turn back around or return. Definition: 1 a (1) : the action by a celestial body of going round in an orbit or elliptical course; also : apparent movement of such a body round the earth (2) : the time taken by a celestial body to make a complete round in […]

In My Solitude

Everyday I pass by this work of art when I am going in and out of my room. This is one of my favorite prints that I have on my wall not only because it is a beautiful piece of art, but also because of the history behind it. Painted by French artist, Sabbio, “La […]

A Little History Lesson

During the recent London riots, David Starkey, a British historian (oh, the irony), had quite a few disparaging comments to say about the rioters and Black people, including that the “Whites have become Black.” Nabil Abdul Rashid, a British comedian, decided to do a rebuttal, giving Mr. Starkey another side to the story. Ouch!

Modern Griots: Blk Jks

This will be a new segment in my blog where I highlight artists, musicians, filmmakers, etc. who blend together influences from the past and present to create new, even futuristic, stories. The first post is of the South African rock band, Blk Jks (pronounced Black Jacks). Besides performing with Alicia Keys at the 2010 World […]