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 […]

Clarke and Krishnamurti and Thoughts on History

While I was on Tumblr, I came across a blog post that had quotations from John Henrik Clarke and Jiddu Krishnamurti about how we should think about our history, our past, our present and our future: “The events which transpired five thousand years ago, five years ago or five minutes ago, have determined what will happen […]

Thelonious Monk and Hip Hop

Jazz pianist and composer, Jason Moran, discusses Jazz and Bebop legend Thelonious Monk‘s influence on Hip Hop music and artists like Wu-Tang Clan and Slum Village.

What Are We Doing Now?

Space Thank you to Andrew Rebatta, who you will find out more about in a later post, for this video! In the future, when we are looking back, what will we be able to say about the things we did today to make our future better? What plans, actions, organization and training are we […]

Back From the Future

Hello everyone! I am back from London, which is five hours ahead of New York time. In London, I went to a science fiction exhibition at the British Library and one part of it displayed writers who have discusses our perceptions of time. When you actually think about it, the time we have created — […]

In Flight….

We have come full circle. At the beginning of this blog, I wrote how I was inspired to create this blog because of a clip from the documentary, “The Last Angel of History.” Fortunately, one of my followers, Mr. Thumble Waddle, gave me a link to the documentary and I was finally able to see […]

“I’m Strange and I Like It, Just the Way I Am”

Earlier, I posted about how I was never impressed by Lady Gaga because I have had enough experience with quirky female artists who I feel do a better job, especially in the music area. I am not saying that Gaga is not smart or talented; I am saying that she is not very convincing at […]

Art and Ms. Jones

During my Art of the Other (Black and Latino Art) class, I found out about Lois Mailou Jones, a Harlem Renaissance artist. I came across, a few days ago, her painting “The Ascent of Ethiopia.” In this 1932 painting, Jones traces the journey of Black people from the Egyptian/Ethiopian culture to the Harlem Renaissance in New […]

What the Fourth of July Means to the Slave…

For our Independence Day, here is Danny Glover reciting Frederick Douglass‘ 1852 speech, “The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro:” It still holds true to this day. Also, here is an article discussion how today’s young Americans know little about the country’s history, such as what year the nation declared independence (it was 1776, […]

The Holy Spirit – Mother and Child

Growing up in a Christian religious family, you hear the famous trinity line all the time: the father, the son and the holy spirit. I used to not question it because, in general, conservative Christians do not allow for much questioning. But now as my beliefs are changing, I find it strange that the mother […]