A Walk with Millennials | Book | Podcast | Community
For the record, I’m a fan of all three artists mentioned in this piece. I’m a fan of each of their new 2015 albums. I’m a product of the broader hip-hop culture that produced them, their fans, and even their haters.
So, I share these thoughts in love, in truth, and in peace…
A few days ago, one of my long-time mentors told me that he was asked to speak to a group of young people and wanted my opinion about what he should say.
When we talk to someone with a puppy, we ask all sorts of questions: Where did you get it? When did you get it? How long have you had it?
These are basically the same questions we ask about someone with a lot of money.
My dad told me this when I was in high school. It was in the middle of one of those, “I’m going to drop some knowledge on you, you ‘gon learn today” speeches parents give when their teenagers go into the “I KNOW Mom/Dad, you can’t tell me anything” stage of life.
Continue reading “V-Day – The Most Wonderful Time of the Year”
In the year 2015, ABC’s new comedy, Fresh Off The Boat, should not be groundbreaking. It should not be desperately needed. It should not be covertly and overtly revolutionary. But it is. Here’s to shattering ceilings, cracking windows, opening doors, and anything else that lets breeze of humanity clear out the stale air of misperception in our minds and in our media.
Yesterday night was one of those amazing parallel-universe moments on Twitter. It was a Wednesday night, so folks were providing quality color commentary about Episode 4 of Fox’s new hit show, Empire. There was also a fascinating discussion taking place at the same time under the hashtag #MGFerguson. Then there was the in-person discussion in Ferguson, Missouri that turned into one more reminder of how much work still lies ahead. While all this was taking place, a group of concerned citizens gathered in Denver with some questions for their police department about a young girl named Jessica Hernandez.
As we try to process the most recent display of the frighteningly dark capabilities of the human soul, my question is to us – the sign holders, the stand-in-solidarity vigil participants, the pens-in-the-air freedom fighters.
Are you…am I…really Charlie?
You know that moment after you watch or listen to something deep…when you’re just left sitting there speechless…that just happened to me. Continue reading “How to Lose”
I always listen to classical music on my way home from the movie theater. It helps me process what I have seen.
After a movie like Selma, at the end of a year like 2014, I had to take the long way home to organize my thoughts. So, without any spoilers, here’s how this movie helps all of us understand the path we’ve just trod in 2014, and the one ahead. Continue reading “We Need “Selma” Now More Than Ever”
We are at a critical moment in this country. We are rethinking a lot of things we usually take for granted. We are hearing the voices of people we usually ignore. We are finding ourselves agreeing with people we usually mistrust. Continue reading “Why This? Why Now?”