M.G. Reviews: Black Panther + Brown Girl Begins + S0.CI3.TY (SPOILERS!)

Black Superheroes + Black Leadership + The Responsibility of Building Societies in World-Changing Times Last week I had the privilege to see three films — of course, Black Panther, Canadian filmmaker Sharon Lewis’ Brown Girl Begins inspired by Nalo Hopkinson’s book, Brown Girl in the Ring, and Martinique-based filmmaker Khris Burton’s S0.CI3.TY.

M.G. Reviews: Kiini Ibura Salaam’s “When the World Wounds”– Breaking Open the Boundaries of Self

Who we think we are is a fluid concept. We might have a stable image of ourselves but in reality we are constantly in flux as we come into contact and collide with others. And it’s not just other bodies but other possibilities of your self that disrupts who you are at this moment. […]

Modern Griots Reviews: Nichol Bradford’s The Sisterhood

“Emancipate yourself from mental slavery, none but ourselves can free our minds…” – Marcus Garvey/Bob Marley Everyone wants to be free, but most people don’t know how to be free. Either we are physically enslaved and imprisoned, or we are mentally, spiritually, emotionally, and financially in bondage. The latter are mostly invisible chains; it is harder to be conscious of their […]

Modern Griots Reviews: Rasheedah Phillips’ “Recurrence Plot and Other Time Travel Tales”

*Become a patron and support my blog and other writing endeavors on Patreon! __________ Experiment: Write a letter to your future self or past self. Try to meditate and astral project yourself into the body of one of those selves before or while you are writing to do so. Can you remember past and future […]

Modern Griots Reviews: Colored Girls Hustle Hard Mixtape

Become a patron and support my blog and other writing endeavors on Patreon! ____________ What is your hustle? Colored Girls Hustle featuring founder Taja Lindley and Jessica Valoris released their first official mixtape, Colored Girls Hustle Hard, a 19-track compilation reimagining the conventional ideas of what it means to hustle and giving positive encouragement and […]

Modern Griots Reviews: MoonDance at PS1

Many go to church on Sundays for inspirational music and message, but last Sunday I was at the Moondance event at MOMA’s PS1 in Queens for them. Organized by DJ King Britt, the event, which took place in tent dome, featured several DJs, several musical performances, poetry and a discussion on Afrofuturism. The afrofuturistic event […]

Modern Griots Reviews: A Dream to Fly – The Bessie Coleman Story

This is for all the Diesel Funk fans out there and for Women’s History Month! What legacy are we leaving for others when we dare to dream our special dreams, despite all the limitations that face us or all the naysayers? That is what Madeline McCray aims to answer in her one-woman performance, A Dream […]

Modern Griots Reviews: Odysella – Empress of Nar

Despite its critics in its early days, Hip-hop as an artistic medium has spread to all corners of the Earth, but could it spread throughout the galaxy? What about world violence against young people? Chicago-author Shirley Hardy-Leonard explores these questions in her latest work, Odysella: Empress of Nar series. The series follows two main leads […]

Modern Griots Reviews: Birth of a Dark Nation

Imagine seeing the journey of the Black Atlantic through the memories of a centuries-old vampiric human. A DC IT specialist working at an HIV organization Justin Kena is privileged with this information when he falls for one named Dante. As he falls in love, he learns of the ancient indigenous Yoruba group, the Razadi, who […]

Modern Griots Reviews: Afrofuturism – The World of Black Sci-FI and Fantasy Culture

I know I am a bit late on reviewing this one, but finally here is my review of it: Ytasha L. Womack’s Afrofuturism: The World of Black Sci-fi and Fantasy Culture is a well-thought out introductory book that is a smooth blend between a personal memoir and a reference source for those interested in delving […]