Uptown Notes

Times are tough but thankfully the iphone is providing some relief. Here’s a brotha who takes Falling Down to a new level.

(if you can’t see the video, click here)

*p.s. This also doubles on as a n***a moment (courtesy of Boondocks)
**p.p.s. The management doesn’t condone all this use of the n-word … or at least I think that’s what I’m supposed to say.

You’ve had the debate, I’ve had the debate, someone right now is having the debate, it all spawns from the question: “Is Hip-Hop political?” The camps usually are divided between old school and new school, hip hop and rap, underground and mainstream … in the past 8 years I’ve squarely outgrown this debate. For me, it’s more relevant to ask, which Hip-Hop is political and what are its politics? By far, my favorite political Hip-Hop has come from the Black August Hip Hop Project. The project, orchestrated by the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement merges music, politics, and activism and has been doing so for 12 years.

I remember getting fliers for Black August each year and thinking “this is the dopest line up” and remember standing in long lines waiting to see my favorite artists rock. While I can remember the performances to this day, the other thing that stuck me was the emphasis on political prisoners and global hip-hop. The project brought some of the greatest voices, both “conscious” and “non-conscious”, together to raise money and awareness with the goal of movement building. It was this project of MXGM that introduced me to a cadre of young activists who thought like me, cared like me, and most importantly got down like me. This coming Sunday August 30th in NYC at BB Kings The Black August Hip Hop Project will have its annual fundraiser for political prisoners and facilitating international Hip-Hop movement building. What is better than coming out and hearing great music, sweating it out on the dance floor (or standing with an ice grill, that’s on you!), and continuing the work of liberation?

Click here to buy your advanced tickets!!

One of the things that is always a dilemma with dope movements is the documentation of said movement, well Dream Hampton and a number of folks have been working on capturing the Black August Hip Hop Project in a documentary entitled Let’s Get Free: The Black August Hip Hop Project. A trailer for the project can be seen here (embedding is disabled but it’s well worth the click).

To me, asking if Hip-Hop is political is about as useful as asking, “why is the sky blue?/ why is water is wet?” (what you know about that?), it’s self-evident. The better question is what are you doing with your politics since you are Hip-Hop?

The month of August has been the seat of many important events in the history of African people, particularly people of African descent in America. Black August was founded in memory of the late great George Jackson and the fallen in the rebellion at San Quentin prison. The month is one of reading, reflection, and revolution with an emphasis on understanding Black freedom fighters. I first learned of Black August through the Black August Hip Hop Project which is produced by the NYC chapter of the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement (more on that next week).  I started nodding my head to the Hip-Hop and moved to nodding my head to the political thought of our political prisoners and freedom fighters.

For me, Black August represents a time when Black folks can think deeply about our communities’ unsung heroes. Not too long ago I wrote about Black leaders and liberation and that post came in part because I feel that people of African descent in America are given too little information on folks born and bred in our neighborhoods and instead look solely outside of our communities for revolutionary guidance. While I find nothing wrong with reading the work and teaching of great revolutionaries across the globe (as our greatest have also done), there is value in knowing deeply that your people have been instrumental to revolutionary thought as others have. CONTINUE READING

I was recently sent a clip from This American Life from 2007 that covers “The Weiner Circle” in Chicago, a local late night eatery on the north side. The story begins benignly discussing the “insult culture” of the late night destination for post-bar drunken attendees. The story of course gets interesting when the racial reality of the place is covered. The employees, almost exclusively all Black and the clientele, exclusively all White. And yes, the owners of the shop are White men. Chicago’s notorious hyper-segregation meets in the little diner and results in epithet slinging and even request for  a “chocolate milk shake.” I’ll let you watch the story to find out what this all means.

If it’s not embedded for you, click here.

I am undoubtedly late to this, but I am most interested in what happens when the “rules of engagement” are lifted and people “speak freely.” In a society where so much is corked and coded around race and gender, does it really help to uncork these sentiments?

Hat tip to  SW via FSL

Today marks the birthday of the one of the greatest African leaders of all time, the Honorable Marcus Garvey! While vilified by false charges and re-written narratives of failed mobilization, Garvey remains one of greatest and more stirring members in the history of the world. At its height, it has been argued that Garvey’s Universal Negro Improvement Association was the largest organization of Africans in the history of the world. Garvey’s forward thinking on the African Diaspora continues to challenge us to rethink, rework, and re-envision “Africa for Africans, those at home and those abroad.” Garvey’s boldness should continue to motivate us in the face of continued oppression of African peoples globally. In my opinion, there would have been no Nation Of Islam, Civil Rights Movement, Black Power Movement or many of the other movements that we lay claim to that focused on the struggle for Black liberation without Garvey. We give thanks for your legacy and take the lessons forward.

Here is one of two known recordings of Garvey’s voice as he breaks down the call for UNIA.

So one of the problems with being a sociologist of race and offering public commentary is it sometimes creates the illusion that “anyone can do it.” I present to you, a failed analysis of the digital divide. Don’t try this at home kids!

Courtesy of failblog.org

I often spend time thinking and writing generically about the ancestors and the energy and guidance that they provide for us on our path but sometimes you realize how real and specific those ancestors are/were. Last night, as I was surfing the internet casually, I came across a blogpost/tribute to Charles Huntley Nelson. Nelson was my painting instructor at Spelman when I was attending Morehouse. Around the AUC the resident painting instructor was Arturo Lindsay, an artist who was revered throughout the African Diaspora, but he was on sabbatical when I was to take his class. I remember being disappointed that I wouldn’t study under Lindsay. Instead I was to be instructed by some guy named “Charles Nelson.” I remember feeling robbed, given that I had spent copious hours (I probably spent way more hours in undergrad doing art than studying sociology) darting through the painting studio where I often found Lindsay working and felt as if it was a rite of passage to take painting with him. Thankfully, I experienced a different rite of passage when I took the course with Charles. A time and a course that I would not trade.

Charles was a young guy, not much older than me having just finished up his MFA from Howard. When I walked in the first day it was clear he was soft-spoken, a bit reserved, and awkward in a way. But these features somehow drew me to him. Though he was the most junior on the faculty, I can say that I honestly took his critique more seriously than any other instructors I had during my artistic training. I took him seriously because I felt his love for producing art that was present, past, and future tense at once. He became my favorite professor in Art at Spelman because I felt “he got me.” Charles got me because he made art that was loosely yet well crafted, that was hip-hop/not hip-hop, that was political/non-political, that was racial/post-racial, that engaged the audience, that said fuck you to the audience, that critiqued the participants, that loved the participants. His work represented the reality of Black masculinity in this country: coherent contradiction. In sum, he produced the work that I had dreamed of producing since I was a teenager and continue to dream of today. Whenever I heard ruminations of artists that were on the cutting edge or emerging from the Atlanta scene I always would feel a bit pissed that his name was not mentioned (he was not only tied into the Atlanta Art scene but was also part of its life blood), but also I felt a bit of pride because he was the best kept secret, you know “the next big thing”. Those were my dreams, I’m not sure they were his.

The reality is that I wasn’t the closest to Charles, but he had a huge impact on my life. I never got a chance to see Charles again after I finished at Morehouse but we emailed me a couple of times after college to check in. His work was always dope to me and a couple of years ago I even worked extra hard  to steal an image of his site for a blog post (yeah, if you’re reading this from the ancestoral realm, you caught me, but I didn’t put in on a tee shirt of nothing like that, chill!). Each time I saw his updates on shows and installations I was “proud” of the work he was doing. To be honest, I’m not sure he would have accepted the “proud” thing, especially since he influenced me way more than I influenced him. Not to mention, in my experience, he was the kind of dude to shirk off praise and quietly throw a middle finger to affirmations that were half-earned. And if you know me, I appreciate that sincerely. He left a mark on me that I carry with me to this day in my own work in sociology and beyond. He really showed me you should take you work seriously and not seriously at the same time. He taught me if you can’t create it and destroy it, laugh and cry about it, then it probably ain’t worth doing. Thanks so much for walking with me briefly on this plain Charles and I look forward to you spreading your wisdom on all of us from that great beyond.

This is one the backdrops from his backdrops project, probably one of my favorite things he did (hopefully the links will get fixed so you can share his work).

Here are some links to reflections on Charles Huntley Nelson

Fahamu Pecou (where I learned of his passing)

AJC

Atlanta Examiner

You know how you say “what is there to do today/tonight?” Well I have an answer for you from today until Friday, yeah that’s right 5 days and nights in a row (even kid cudi couldn’t do this!). Okay, so most of you won’t go 5 days/nights in a row, but you should! This week, two amazing artists Fahamu Pecou (he is the shit) and Hebru Brantley will be descending on NYC to share their brand of art. In this living installation at Lyons Weirs Gallery Pecou and Brantley will have Warhol-Basquiat painting session that hearkens back to Andy Warhol’s Factory. Every night at 7pm, they’ll have an “opening” which will run back the day’s events (you know all the stuff you missed while you were sitting in your cubicle or at home watching judge judy, hey unemployment is still high) and a party, no like really a party. I know sounds odd, but trust, like Fahamu is widely known as, it will be “the shit“! I’m looking forward to what these two brothas who are certainly some of the finest painters in their generation are going to put down, so roll through the Lyon Weirs which is on 7th and 20th to take part and make part of instant art history.

We here at Uptown Notes are very much in accord with the African belief of respecting one’s elders and are anti police terrorism … so in honor of that here’s some elders & non-police terrorism! Just be glad these aren’t your grandmothers!!!

Click here!!!!!

Sorry the video won’t embed right, but it’s worth the click… I promise.

Today, August 4th, marks the birthday of Barack Obama, the President of the United States. I can honestly say I’ve never paid attention to any president’s birthday as much as Obama’s because I’ve been inundated with emails, punditry and plain silliness about his place of birth. If you’re not familiar, “Birthers” are sets of “Americans” who claim that Barack Obama has not provided sufficient proof of birth in the United States, thus violating his ability to be president. If you don’t know why this is thoroughly wrong, click these links 1, 2, 3. Now what I’m more concerned with is the message that I’ve received from Black folks regarding the birth and legitimacy of Obama as president. Yes, Virginia, there are Black birthers. While I’m not suggesting they’re in the majority, they still constitute an overlooked demographic in this population.

Sign on Harlem's Atlah Ministries

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