South Shore Drill Team Provides Different Avenue

While news from Chicago report of dozens of shootings on the first weekend in April 2010, a group of teenage boys gather on a basketball court in a tough South Side neighborhood called the Pocket and picked up their rifles. This was the end of an especially bloody few days in Chicago as police crime scene tape hung from the South Side to the West Side. In 26 hours 41 people had been shot, 3 dead.

And so these boys pick up their rifles and began another four-hour practice session of a unique youth group, the South Shore Drill Team and Performing Arts Ensemble. The group was designed as an alternative to gang activity, high school drop outs, and teen pregnancy. The group offers young people an opportunity to develop self-esteem, self-discipline, goals for their future, and a chance to travel. The South Shore Drill Teams repertoire includes contemporary music, jazz, hip-hop, modern dance numbers and more.


Since 1980, the drill team has been providing boys and girls, ages 9 to 21, with a highly disciplined and choreographed alternative to the street. Team members use wooden mock rifles, hip-hop music and modern dance moves in their performances, which have taken them from Morocco to Walt Disney World to the annual back-to-school Bud Billiken Parade down Chicago’s Martin Luther King Drive.

In 2009, the team performed at 130 events in nine states. This past June 5, the team marked its 30th anniversary with a night of performances at the Chicago Theater. Although many on the drill team come from struggling families and from schools where sometimes up to half the students drop out before the 12th grade, 99.5 percent of the members graduate from high school and many go on to college, said Arthur Robertson, the former Chicago public school teacher who founded the team with only four boys, two of whom were his nephews. Now, its membership has grown to about 350. The team recently participated in the 33rd annual drill team and color guard world championships —the Winter Guard International — in Dayton, Ohio, where more than 300 teams from across the United States and four other countries were entered. The South Shore team won the championship in 1992.

Some parents of these boys allow them out of the house only to attend team practices and events. They want to keep them as safe as possible. The boys feel trapped in their rough neighborhoods; they can’t go outside and be regular children. Here you can be. Without groups like this, many of the boys would be headed down a path of fast-money dreams and jailhouse nightmares. Instead they now spend days learning how to twirl a mock rifle high into the air, do a back flip and catch the rifle without missing a step as they parade. For some, the drill team has saved their life.

Captain America Angers "Tea Party" Folks

The fictional superhero, Captain America, has been one of the most popular comic book heroes since his creation in 1941. But now that the Captain has turned his attention to what appears to be the "Tea Party" movement, he has upset "real Americans". Issue number 602 has Captain America and his Black sidekick The Falcon observe an anti-tax protest from a rooftop, while trying to infiltrate a White supremacists anti-government militia group, "the Watchdogs". It was fine when Captain America fought Nazis during World War II, or took on those who burned the American flag during the Vietnam era, but when he turns his attention toward "patriot Americans", he is "out of line".


The protestors depicted are all White and carry signs adorned with slogans very similar to those seen in "Tea Party" rallies. The Falcon mentions that the gathering appears to be "some kind of anti-tax protest" and notes that "this whole 'hate the government' vibe isn't limited to the Watchdogs." He then tells Captain America that he doesn't think their plan will work because "I don't exactly see a Black man from Harlem fitting in with a bunch of angry White folks." Captain America then explains that his plan to send The Falcon in among the group posing as an IRS agent, thinking that a Black government official will surely set off their anger.


It appears that certain protesters want Captain America to go back to the 60s, "when Captain America was a pro-America figure." Well I see the Captain really becoming a pro-American figure - mixing a little something for everything in the "melting pot" and not just the potatoes alone.

Super Bowl Champions, New Orleans Saints Put On A One of A Kind Parade

A co-worker, the same one who for the whole week leading up to the Super Bowl would stop by my desk three or four times a day and ask me are you getting nervous yet, stopped by Tuesday, (and no I didn’t go to work Monday), and said I still believe the Aints won the Super Bowl. I immediately came back with, they didn’t – the Saints won the Super Bowl – the Aints haven’t existed in a long time. People seem to forget that the Saints were one game away from playing the same Colts in the Super Bowl in 2007. Then they had a half the team hurt and went 7-9, and last year’s 8-8 record could have easily been 13-3 as they lost 5 games by a total of 8 points and closed out the season winning 5 of the last 6. The Aints now play in places like Cleveland, Oakland, and his team Washington, D.C.


Forget Endymion, forget Bachhus, forget Zulu. The Super Bowl champs have set a new standard for superkrewes and their Mardi Gras parades.
Anyway, the Super Bowl Champions (I smile every time I say it) put on a parade that only could happen in New Orleans. Forget the Endymion parade, the Super Bowl champs have set a new standard for superkrewes. New Orleans went all out, deliriously welcoming back the team that brought home the hardware after 43 years. Saints fans were packed 15 deep along the streets of the Central Business District on Tuesday, braving temperatures cold enough that New Orleans officials had to enact the city’s freeze plan. But who really cared? As diehard Saints fans who had endured the ridicule for years partied throughout the night.

As the parade got set to roll, the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve band got the crowd primed with the unofficial Saints anthem, “Halftime (Stand Up and Get Crunk).” The second float featured quarterback and Super Bowl MVP Drew Brees, his backup, Mark Brunell, and the men in charge of protecting them: the offensive line.


The floats were loaned by Krewes of some of the biggest parade organizations. The float with the runningbacks also featured beloved Saints former tailback Deuce McAllister, who led the team onto the field in the NFC championship game and then retired. The crowd responded as if it was third-and-one on an October afternoon in the Dome: “Deuce, Deuce, Deuce.”

Coach Sean Payton, on a float with his family, held the Lombardi Trophy high above the crowd, kissing it over and over and blowing kisses to the crowd. He also showed off some dance skills, rhythmically pumping the trophy in the air while bouncing up and down, as “Halftime” blared yet again. As his float stopped in front of Gallier Hall, where politicians and other dignitaries gathered, Mayor Ray Nagin toasted the coach — and his “gazubas” — and led the crowd in a “Who Dat” chant.


Coach Payton, in turn, promised: “We’ll see you again this time next year,” to thunderous cheers.

Disney Goes Black

In the 72 years since Walt Disney's animated version of Snow White captivated audiences as "the fairest of them all," there have only been eight Disney princesses. These movies, toys, dresses and figurines, the Disney princesses have become global icons of childhood. Sleeping Beauty awakened by a kiss, Cinderella's clock striking midnight, Belle waltzing in the Beast's castle, Ariel with Prince Eric in the moonlit lagoon. These have become heroines that parents the world over feel safe to let their young girls mimic. And while Disney has brought us non-White princesses before -- Mulan and Pocahontas -- the newest princesses is a first. Tiana is the first Disney princess in more than a decade, and the first ever to be Black. Tiana is a beautiful Black princess from New Orleans. Princess Tiana is also the first modern Disney princess.


Thge message of Tiana is that Black girls can be as elegant as Snow White herself. It is another milestone in U.S. national imagery. Tiana's appearance this holiday season, comes on the heels of Michelle Obama becoming the first lady, the Obama girls in the White House, and the first line of Barbie dolls modeled on Black women, will crown an extraordinaryt year of visibility for Black American women. Considering Disney's influence and marketing to young girls, Princess Tiana might become the symbol of a culture-changing standard of feminine beauty. And given the popularity of Disney princesses at the company's theme parks, Web sites and videos, you're looking at 30 or 40 years of repetition.


Tony Award winner Anika Noni Rose voices Tiana. Other voices includes Oprah Winfrey and Terrence Howard. The Princess and the Frog opens in New York and Los Angeles November 25 and everywhere else on December 11. Tiana's doll and toy set were unveiled last month, and the Disney promotional machine is already humming.

Hootie Is Country Music's New Artist of the Year

Last night Darius Rucker became the first Black singer to win New Artist of the Year at the Country Music Association Awards, joining the legendary Charley Pride as the only Blacks to win a major individual award. He took the stage to wild cheers from the crowd. Charley Pride won entertainer of the year in 1971 and male vocalist in 1971-72. Rucker’s first country album, "Learn to Live," sold more than 1 million copies.

Darius Rucker is best known for his role as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist of the band Hootie & the Blowfish since its formation in 1986. Along with his work in Hootie & the Blowfish. Rucker has recorded two solo albums. The first, Back to Then, was released in 2002 on Hidden Beach Recordings. Then Learn to Live followed in 2008 on Capitol Records Nashville. Its first three singles — "Don't Think I Don't Think About It", "It Won't Be Like This for Long" and "Alright" — have all reached Number One on the U.S. Hot Country Songs chart.



As the frontman, Rucker began to be called simply "Hootie" in the media and brought additional attention as the sole Black member of a rock band with otherwise White members. Musically, he was sometimes criticized or spoofed for not being "black enough". He also received death threats for singing the Hootie song "Drowning," a protest song against the flying of the Confederate flag above his native South Carolina statehouse.

In 2001, he made his solo R&B debut album, The Return of Mongo Slade, for Atlantic Records. Because of contractual changes, it was never released by the label. Hidden Beach Recordings, an independent label, acquired the masters from Atlantic and released the album as Back to Then in July 2002. The album included work from the production team of Jill Scott (A Touch of Jazz) and she made an appearance on the track "Hold On."

Darius Rucker made his debut in the famous Grand Ole Opry in July 2008. "Don't Think I Don't Think About It" reached Top 20 on the country charts in July 2008, making him the first Black singer to reach Top 20 on the country charts since Charley Pride in 1988. The single reached number one in September, making Rucker the first solo, Black artist to chart a number one country hit since Pride's "Night Games" in 1988.

Learn to Live was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on February 6, 2009, and received a platinum certification on August 7, 2009. Its lead single, "Don't Think I Don't Think About It", gave Rucker his first chart-topping country hit and was certified gold. The album's next single, "It Won't Be Like This for Long", spent three weeks at the top of the country charts in mid 2009. Its follow-up, "Alright", became Rucker's third straight number one hit, making him the first country music singer to have his or her first three singles reach number one since Wynonna Judd did in 1992. The album's fourth single, "History in the Making," was released in September. When Rucker found that "Don't Think I Don't Think About It" went to number one, he cried.

Darius Rucker is close friends with golfer Tiger Woods; they met in a bar when Woods was 18. Rucker sang at the golfer's wedding and at his father's funeral.

And A Child Shall Lead: A Letter to BET

Sorry my bloggings have been so few lately - my computer has been under attack the past few week. I have been giving it TLC to no avail.

Anyway, I recently received an email with this letter addressed to Debra Lee of BET. It is from a 15-year-old Black teenager from Cincinnati, Ohio. We continue to see Black teenagers in the media portrayed in negative ways. I found this letter so refreshing that I thought you might like it too.

Ms. Janitra Patrcik: Dear BET, Why Do You Hate Us?

Dear Debra Lee,

I’m Janita Patrick, a 15-year-old African-American female from Cincinnati. Recently, I watched the 2009 BET Awards and felt the strongest urge to reach out to the program. My family is of the typical middle-class variety; both parents and four brothers. See, I’m a junior in high school (got skipped), so naturally EVERYBODY in my age group watches BET. I’m used to seeing the sagging pants, tattoos, lack of emphasis on reading and respecting women that makes up your videos. People in my class live this out every day, while teachers tell us that we’re acting just like the people in your shows.

In your shows. That struck me as odd, because I would think that with your show being the primary outlet for Black entertainers and musicians, and considering the context of Blacks in this country, there’s a social responsibility factor to consider. I would never blame BET alone for the way a great deal of my classmates act and talk and dress. Everybody makes their own choices. However, if anybody is aware the power of television on impressionable minds, it’s the people running the television operations. If you are not aware, then perhaps you shouldn’t be running the operations.

Guess who watches your network the most? Not those who are intelligent enough to discern foolishness from substance, but those who are barely teenagers, impressionable and believing. It’s awfully cruel to plant seeds of ignorance in fertile minds. You know it’s really bad when the co-founder of BET, Sheila Johnson, said that she “really doesn’t watch it” anymore.

I am constantly fighting against the images and messages put forth on your program. What made you think that it’s okay to bring my classmates on stage to dance behind Lil Wayne and Drake to a song talking about boffing “every girl in the world”? Why does reality train wrecks have to [be] thrown in our faces? Are you aware of the achievement gap going in inner-city African-American communities? A report from America’s Promise Alliance, a non-profit group started by Colin Powell, recently stated that 47 percent of high school students in the nation’s top 50 cities don’t graduate. (Fifty-four percent of males of color in Ingham County graduated from high school, compared to 74 percent of white males). This isn’t because of BET per se, but I don’t see any episodes on your show doing anything to counteract this disturbing trend. In fact, your show is a part of this cycle of media depicting us at our worst.

My older brother told me something about profit being the number one goal for every business. I’m not sure I understand what that means, but I do know that your shows have to be entertaining enough to generate viewers, which is how you make your money. But surely our culture is rich enough to entertain without anything extra to “boost” ratings; why the over-the-top foolery? I listen to classmates talk about Baldwin Hills like it’s the Manhattan Project. It doesn’t take much effort to produce a throng of degenerative reality shows, nor does it take much to eliminate socially conscious shows off the air. MTV isn’t much better, but since when does two wrongs ever make a right? It’s one thing for White television shows to depict us in a particular way, but for Black television shows to do it is baffling.

Why do you hate us?
All of the values that my parents seek to instill in me and my brothers seem to be contradicted by a more powerful force from the media, and your show is at the forefront. Your network is the only network that features rap videos and shows exclusively to children of my color. I know that you have no control over the music that the artists put out, but you do have influence as to how you air these videos. I’m sure if a stand was taken to use the talent in your organization to actually crank out thought-provoking entertaining shows and videos, then artists will follow suit. Being that they need you as much as you need them.

There was one awkward segment in the BET Awards when Jamie Foxx singled out three black doctors-turned-authors, but the introduction was so powerless that many of the viewers had no idea who they were. Had they been introduced as Sampson Davis, Rameck Hunt and George Jenkins, three brothers who overcame major obstacles to become a success without the use of lyrics that berate women, the sell of substances that destroy communities or through raps about loose gunplay, then maybe my classmates would have come to school talking about more than Beyonce, T-Pain’s BIG A## CHAIN and Soulja Boy Tell Em’s hopping out the bed.

But they weren’t introduced like that. It seemed like a throwaway obligatory tribute to appease some irritated fans. It missed the mark. Big time. Ask Michelle Obama if she watches BET or encourages Sasha and Malia to do so. Ask President Obama. It’s a reason he is the leader of the free world, and it isn’t because of Buffoonery Exists Today.

You’d be surprised how smart young Black children can be with the absence of Blacks Embarrassing Themselves. If your goal is to deter engaged, forward-thinking articulate Black minds, then consider your goal fulfilled. It’s hard-pressed to think that your shows are working to promote cultural betterment. However, it’s quite easy to conclude that the destruction of Black children through the glorification of immoral behavior and rushed production is by design. Poison is being swallowed by every viewer who adores your network, and the worse thing is, these viewers - my classmates - are not even aware what they’re swallowing.

There is nothing edifying for Black women on your show. I don’t judge people who do throng to your programs though; I mean, if a jet crashes right in front of me, I’ll watch it too. That’s why I don’t flip by your channel…I don’t even want to be sucked in.

I have aspirations of acquiring a law degree and possibly entering the public sphere, so I can counteract conditions in my community perpetuated by the images on your channel. So I should thank you, because in a weird sense, your shoddy programming is the wind behind my back. And it is my hope that I can accomplish my dreams despite BET’s pictorial messages, because Lord knows it won’t be because of them.

Sincerely,

Janita Patrick

'For Colored Girls' Has Lasting Power

Ntozake Shange


Cast of "For Colored Girls"


Ntozake Shange, (pronounced En-toe-ZAHK-kay SHONG-gay), author of the famed play “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf," was inspired to write the play by a rainbow while driving down Highway 1 in Northern California. At the time Ms Shange was in her mid-20s and had reportedly tried to commit suicide four times. The rainbow gave her inspiration by becoming the colors – the voices – of the unnamed femaile characters in the work. Her grandmother gave her the inspiration for the words "For Colored Girls", as she always told Ntozke that she was such a pretty little colored girl.

"For Colored Girls" was a sensation upon its debut in 1975 and remains a mainstay of theatrical companies across the country -- as well as a popular book for high school students. Ntozake Shange, now 60, calls the work a "choreopoem". It consists of 20 poems, some based on Shange's own experience, plus occasional music, dance and song. The characters are associated with the rainbow and known as "lady in green," "lady in blue," "lady in yellow," and other colors of the spectrum. Currently it is in Atlanta and directed by Jasmine Guy and staring Nicole Ari Parker and Robin Givens among others.

The current edition features a seventh color -- brown -- added to yellow, purple, red, green, blue and orange. Each is also associated with a city across the country: "I'm outside Detroit," one says; "I'm outside Baltimore," says another. In fact, "For Colored Girls" is amazingly flexible. Each actor can appear in different cities. Each story has no specific setting. This makes topics all-inclusive. The topics of "For Colored Girls" are raw and honest. They include losing virginity, needing love, having an abortion, even pressing charges against a rapist who was not a stranger. Ms Shange said her intent was to free the female body and to unearth unspeakable secrets as well as to have nostalgia about wonderful things.

Critics loved the work's originality. It won an Obie Award for best off-Broadway play and also earned Tony, Grammy and Emmy nominations. More than 30 years later, Ms. Shange said she hopes women draw positive emotions from the show and her other works, which includes seven novels, four children's books and several other plays and poems. "I like women in general, women of color in particular, to feel pride and dignity and joy and fullness that we're capable of," she said.

There are no male characters in "For Colored Girls," but men take away something from it, too. “When most men see the play they realize they they know so little about us,” she said. Ms. Shange said that what she looks forward to is men drawing from her work the strength, virility and the comedy of the women they are surrounded by.

Ntozake Shange was born Paulette Williams in Trenton, New Jersey to an upper middle class family. Her father, Paul T. Williams, was an Air Force surgeon and her mother, Eloise Williams, was an educator and a psychiatric social worker. Shange's family had a strong interest in the arts and encouraged her artistic education. Among the guests at their home were Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Chuck Berry, and W. E. B. Du Bois. In 1971 she changed her name. "Ntozake" means "She who comes with her own things" and "Shange" means "she who walks with lions" in Xhosa.

"For Colored Girls" still has staying power. It's headed to Broadway and is under contract for a film next season. The production was filmed for a 1982 episode of "American Playhouse" on PBS; the version included several members of the original New York cast, including Shange. The voices in "For Colored Girls" remain vivid, like the colors of the rainbow. Be sure to check it out if you get a chance, but for sure pick up the book.

Role Models or Silly Dads

Listening to my pastor’s Father’s Day sermon yesterday concerning characteristics of a good and godly dad made me take a look back at what we have been groomed to think what a father is supposed to be. When Black folks begin to appear on TV in family settings, usually in the form of a sitcom, we really didn’t care what they were doing - just the fact that they were there was “good enough”. But now that I look back, and even today there were no really good father figures on TV. Even on one of the most successful sitcoms of all times, the Cosby Show, Heathcliff Huxtable was made to look like an idiot at home, even though he was a successful doctor. The children had little respect for him and anytime a real problem came up they went to wife Clair to solve it. And the ridicule of the male image was passed down to the son Theo, who was just as bad or worse.

And you can go down the list of Black sitcom and basically interchange the dads despite their varied social economic status was. There was the longest running Black sitcom, the Jeffersons, where George Jefferson, a successful entrepreneur who worked and “moved on up” from a working class section of Queens into a luxury apartment in Manhattan, by owning seven dry-cleaner stores. And still he was the wacko dad with the goofball son, Lionel and they both needed wife Louise to make sure they behaved. How about Michael Kyle of My Wife and Kids with the stupid son, Junior, kept in line by wife Jay.

Family Matters originally focused on the character of Carl Winslow who was always bailed out by wife Harriette. The producers changed it a hare and gave them a rebellious son Eddie. That didn’t seem to be working so they brought in a nerdy next-door neighbor, Steve Urkel, midway through the first season and he quickly became the focus of the show. Sanford and Son only had dad Fred G. Sanford, a 65-year-old junk dealer living in Watts, and Lamont, his 30-year-old son in the household. Fred was stubborn and argumentative with frequent money-making schemes which backfired and created more troubles. Fred was constantly insulting his son, usually calling him a “big dummy”. Lamont insulted his father also, sometimes referring to him as an "old fool".

There was the Evans family in Good Times. James Evans was father of the buffoon son J.J. and wife Florida worked around the clock “keeping their heads above water”. They lived in the infamous Cabrini-Green projects of Chicago. They killed off James in the fourth season because he was fed up with J.J. character. Then there was Amen where Deacon Ernest Frye, of the First Community Church of Philadelphia was often dishonest and frequently got into trouble with his many harebrained schemes. His 37-year-old daughter, Thelma was in charge of keeping him in line.

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air with a man intelligent enough to be Judge Philip “Uncle Phil” Banks but made to look foolish by all the children, especially nephew Will Smith. Two foolish men are not enough for the Fresh Prince producers. Son Carlton is ignorant and Will’s friend Jazz is just plain stupid. And do we even to go to Martin Payne and Gina Waters, Martin's more level-headed, long suffering better half, and later his wife. How about The Bernie Mac Show, The Hughleys, House of Payne, and Meet the Browns.

Cartoons even got into it with Oscar Proud with rational and level-headed Trudy Proud with daughter Penny Proud, a 14-year-old who is usually embarrassed by the way her father acts.

As with other sitcoms with a common target audience, TV networks have often scheduled Black sitcoms in blocks on a given night of the week. While this has helped to foster an audience for many of these shows, it has been criticized as creating a "ghetto" for them, where they are less likely to be watched by non-Black viewers who might tune in early for a "White" show they are already interested in, or stay tuned in after another show has finished. In the 2000s, UPN emerged as the most prolific broadcaster of Black sitcoms, scheduling one or two nights of programming each week featuring them.

Jonathan Butler: Falling In Love with Jesus

Jonathan Butler is a born and brewed South African Grammy award nominee and an internationally acclaimed artist whose music has weaved hope and faith, inspiring fans all over the world.

Time dedicated to his music is time dedicated to a life changing experience, for this is a gifted man with a phenomenal voice and extraordinary musical skills. The message in his songs overflows with a depth and profoundness, whether he is talking about love, or love-changing topics.

With many years as a jazz singer, song writer and guitarist, Jonathan Butler, like a fine wine, has surely gotten better with time. Jazz affectionists in around the world have loved him for years. However, most have no idea that he has dominated the African gospel music industry for years. Now sharing stages with Grammy award winners like Cece Winans and Kirk Whalum at the Stellar Awards, he is quickly becoming one of the biggest gospel forces in the world music industry.

Black Presidents Not New to Hollywood

"The Man"
When the President and Speaker of the House are killed in a building collapse, and the Vice-President declines the office due to age and ill-health, Senate President pro tempore Douglas Dilman (James Earl Jones) suddenly becomes the first brother in the Oval Office. The events from that day to the next election when he must decide if he will actually run challenge his skills as a politician and leader.

"24" (Seasons 2 and 3)
President David Palmer (Dennis Haysbert) had his work cut out for him, working with Jack Bauer to save Los Angeles from the threat of terrorist thugs, dealing with traitors, knocking heads with his shady ex-wife Sherry Palmer (played brilliantly by Penny Johnson Jerald) and dodging attempts on his life.

"24" (Season 6)
David Palmer's death paves the way for his younger brother Wayne (D.B. Woodside) to move into the Oval office. He helps free Jack Bauer from the Chinese government, fakes a nuclear bombing, is severly injured by an explosion at a press conference, and ends up in a coma by the season's end.

"The Fifth Element"
250 years in the future, ex-soldier, cab driver Korben Dallas (Bruce Willis) works to save the planet from extinction with the help of Ruby Rhod (a whacky role played by Chris Tucker). Dallas saves the world, but only because President Lindberg (Tommy 'Tiny' Lister) said so.

"Deep Impact"
A comet is set to collide with planet Earth, and President Beck (Morgan Freeman) has devised a plan to save a million lucky people to keep the human race going.

"Head of State"
Mays Gilliam (Chris Rock) gets his party’s nomination for presidency. But after speaking his mind about society’s ills (as well as hiring a Klan member to endorse his White opponent).

"2012"
Coming in July 2009, Danny Glover will play preisdent Glover in a fight to counteract the apocalyptic events that were predicted by the ancient Mayan calendar.

Idiocracy”
Terry Crews plays President Camacho. Imagine President Obama with that hair.


Hollywood, despite all its stereotypical crap, has often been ahead of the national curve and was ready for a Black president long before America was. On television and in movies, Black actors such as acclaimed as James Earl Jones to the other end of the spectrum as Tommy Lister have played commanders-in-chief. Sammy Davis Jr. was only 9 when he assumed the POTUS in 1933’s "Rufus Jones for President."

A Black man in the Oval Office has provided ample joke routines for comics such as Richard Pryor and Chris Rock. On one episode of "The Richard Pryor Show," he played a president hosting a press conference. During the sketch, he tells reporters that he'd seriously consider Black Panther Huey Newton for the job of FBI director -- and nearly decks one journalist who inadvertently insults his momma. And when he's asked about his fetish for white women, he jokes, "They don't call it the White House for nothing."

In the 2003 film "Head of State," Chris Rock's president, Mays Gilliam, is an even more exaggerated character. His language is filled with slang and he is partial to baggy jeans and Kangol caps and looks less like the leader of the free world than the latest star of Def Jam Records. His running mate, played by Bernie Mac, thinks NATO is a person. Gilliam is catapulted onto the public stage after the sitting president dies in a plane crash.

It is not the first time a Black man on screen has risen to power through calamity. In "The Man," James Earl Jones becomes the POTUS after the entire cabinet perishes in a series of freak accidents. It's not on DVD, but if you can find it on VHS it is well worth the search. In "Deep Impact," Morgan Freeman has to calm the nation as he contends with wayward comets threatening to destroy the planet. Morgan Freeman looks and sounds conventionally presidential in the way that only a Visa pitchman can. And in "The Fifth Element," set in 2263, Tommy “Tiny” Lister's President Lindberg has to battle asteroids and an enemy named The Great Evil. Lister—a 300-pounder best known for playing a larcenous thug in Friday—Lindberg is not a suitable role model. Too "angry." Too "hostile." Too much "bestial grunting." That said, his menacing glare somehow suggests he'd stand firm against lobbyists.

It's not until the hit series "24" that things start looking up for the Black president. Dennis Haysbert's character, David Palmer -- in the first season a senator running for the presidency -- is handsome, composed and ready to lead on Day One. We were in good hands with David Palmer who radiated dependability. His race is a non-issue as he struggles with modern-day threats such as terrorism, bomb scares and a social-climbing wife. Yes, he's eventually assassinated, but only after he leaves office. And Palmer's equally self-confident younger brother, Wayne, takes the reins shortly thereafter. Another “24” alumni Roger Cross, who played Agent Curtis Manning from 2005-2007, was the President in a Sci-fi Channel made for TV movie, “Polar Storm”, this past weekend which started me thinking about this post.

Janelle Monáe: Girl from Another Planet, Fugitive Android or Time-traveling Songstress

Janelle Monae is a girl from another planet, and she's invading your world. Open your minds, earthlings, and prepare to be launched into an alternate universe. "I'm an alien from outer space," declares Janelle Monáe on the first song of her debut album, Metropolis: The Chase Suite (Special Edition). Toto, we are no longer in Kansas anymore.

Be prepared for a sci-fi soundtrack with elements of musical theater, funk and the dirty south. Her alter ego, Cindi Mayweather, the heroine of The Chase, is an "Alpha Platinum 9000 android." She is on the run because she's fallen in love with a human being, a situation that is forbidden in the future landscape of Metropolis. Monae insists that her real identity is Cindi Mayweather, an android traveling through space and time to escape destruction ordered because she fell in love with a human, a fatal infraction of robots' rules.
Along the way, she's making music that moves into the future while drawing from decades past.

Monáe has carved out her own path by following her instincts. "I want to be looked at as a leader and a businesswoman…My goal is to help bring as many people as I possibly can together with my music." She may be living in a fantasy world of her own creation, but Janelle Monáe is confident you won’t want to leave once you’ve visited.

When her song "Many Moons" was nominated for a Grammy in December, it was in the urban/alternative category. At a Los Angeles show this month, she mixed 20th-century classics with her own futuristic songs. Monae delivered a sweet version of Nat King Cole's "Smile" while standing atop a barstool. Senior citizens danced the "Twist" when her band broke out into the Beatles' 1964 hit "I Saw Her Standing There."

Janelle Monae: The next big thing? Poised to (possibly) break out in a major way, Monáe certainly has the pedigree to justify the buzz. Once a protege of fellow Atlantan Big Boi, Monae signed to Bad Boy Records last year, thereby making Diddy one of her biggest cheerleaders. She plays herself in two episodes of the Sci Fi Channel's "Stargate Universe" this fall. Sightings of the singer-songwriter will include this week's "American Idol" finale, the Hollywood Bowl and concert stages across America this summer. Janelle Monáe is a Grammy Award-nominated American urban/alternative singer, and performer.

Monae clearly has her own sound and style. Usually garbed in a dapper suit-and-tie -- and sporting some sort of combination of a mohawk and Afro -- the lady stands out in a crowd. So, what's the problem? Well, her music is, shall we say, odd. Her dense, other-worldly songs manage to sound both futuristic and throwback to Motown. While interesting, her mass-appeal is questionable. Monae seems like a love-her-or-hate-her artist who isn't going to change for the sake of commercial success. In other words, the next Rihanna or Beyonce she’s not. We have no idea who her closest contemporaries might be without hearing a full album. Is she just another example of an artist whose buzz has been artificially created by the internet? Only time will tell.

Some of Janelle Monáe's musical influences include Judy Garland, James Brown, Michael Jackson, Jackie Wilson, Grace Brown, Karen O, Lauryn Hill, Mick Jagger, Stevie Wonder, Outkast, Nona Hendryx, Bach, Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, Fiona Apple, Björk, Anita Baker, and The Hives.

Pack House 2000 Gets Extreme Makeover

In the season finale of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” the beneficiaries are Bernard McFarland and his three sons, Courtney, Curtis and Dominique. Bernard McFarland is an amazing guy and even more amazing father. He knew he wanted to give something to youngsters in his community where they could be involved after school. And with that aim in mind, McFarland started “Pack House 2000” to mentor and give food to the minds of young people and to keep them away from street. He provides them with books and a place to hang out. He tries to instill a habit of reading in them.

Pack House began as a shed in Bernard McFarland's backyard in Indianapolis. But through his perseverance and hard work Bernard has been able to help so many people from his old house, but now with the new library, Pack House 2000 will live on. With all of the educational tools, and the books, and the new technology that was placed in there, these kids will be able to expand their horizons to new levels.

Bernard McFarland grew up in an impoverished household, but graduated from college and served in the military. When he returned to Indianapolis with his sons, he found that in his community violence was on the rise and young people were dropping out of school. He embarked on a mission to change those scenarios via his “Pack House 2000” program that is dedicated to expanding young minds and horizons.

In another surprise, all three McFarland boys were given full ride scholarships at Butler University. We hope they take full advantage of this opportunity. Knowledge is power.

First African Playboy Playmate of the Year

Tanzanian-born model Ida Ljungqvist recently received a necklace from Hugh Hefner in recognition as the 2009 Playboy Playmate of the Year at the Playboy Club at The Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada. She was Playmate for March 2008.

The 27-year-old African/Swede stunner was discovered while working at a Bebe clothing boutique on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills by 2007 Playmate of the Year Sara Jean Underwood. She made history as the magazine’s 50th woman to hold the title, and the first African to do so. She is tri-lingual (English, Swahili and Swedish, and), and has a degree in fashion design and marketing and plans to study economics. Ljungqvist quit her job at Bebe a month later and appeared on the cover of Playboy in March of last year. She said her parents were hardly proud when she told them she was going to bare all for Playboy. “My mother didn’t speak to me for a month,” she said. She hopes being Playmate of the Year opens doors for her; she'd love to act. And from now on, she says, she's keeping her clothes on in photos.

Ida Ljungqvist was born to a Tanzanian mother and a Swedish father and she traveled the globe while her father worked for UNICEF. In Africa she has lived in Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, South Africa, Zimbabwe; in Asia, she lived in Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand; in Europe, she lived in France, the U.K., Sweden, and Denmark. She currently lives in California.

So What Are the Cosby Kids Up to Today?

In the 1980s, Thursday nights belonged to "The Cosby Show". Heathcliff and Claire Huxtable and their crew of kids were the talk of the entertainment world. I saw that little Rudy (Keshia Knight Pulliam) was developing a reality show and wondered what was going on in their lives. And this is what the Cosby Kids are up to today.

Keshia Knight Pulliam (Rudy): She was the youngest for the majority of the time. She's back in the public eye on a couple of fronts. She had a role in Tyler Perry's latest flick and she is starring in a new reality show, "Keshia and Kaseem." The show is airing on Oxygen and will follow the lives of the actress and her live-in boyfriend, entrepreneur Kaseem Penn.

Raven-Symoné (Olivia): She was the new cute kid who the producers brought in when Rudy reached her awkward tween years. Of all the kids, she has had the biggest post-Cosby career, starring in numerous films and her own TV show: "That's So Raven."

Lisa Bonet (Denise): She starred in the Cosby Show spin-off “A Different World.” She may be best known for her role opposite Robert DeNiro in the controversial movie "Angel Heart." Bonet also made news when she and husband, Jason Momoa, named their child Nakoa-Wolf Manakauapo Namakaeha Momoa.

Malcolm-Jamal Warner (Theo): He is both an actor and a singer. The Emmy-nominee has starred in his own sitcom, "Malcolm and Eddie," the Showtime hit "Dexter," and the poorly received 2008 romantic comedy, "Fool's Gold". He's also released a few CDs; including "The Miles Long Mixtape."

Tempestt Bledsoe (Vanessa): She had the unappreciated task of playing the annoying middle child. Still, she went on to host her own short-lived talk show, and also appeared on the third season of "Celebrity Fit Club." She is also developing a reality show with her boyfriend called "Househusbands." What’s up with all this watching people’s daily unreality, who watches this stuff anyway?

Sabrina LeBeauf (Sondra): The eldest Cosby kid was probably the least popular. She does however, continue to act and has her own interior design company. And in trivia alert: she beat out Whitney Houston for the role of Sondra.

T.I. Sentenced to Year in Prison, Fined

Rap star T.I., whose real name is Clifford Harris, was sentenced in Atlanta federal court Friday to one year and one day in prison and ordered to pay a $100,300 fine on weapons charges (purchasing machine guns and silencers).

The 28-year-old Harris, who was dressed in a gray suit and black shirt and tie, spoke these words to the court, "I would like to say thank you to some, and apologize to others. In my life, I have been placed in the worst-case scenario and had to make the best of it. Most often, things I have learned have been from trial and error. I knew no way to protect myself than to arm myself."

Mr. Harris also was sentenced to some property forfeiture, supervised release for three years after his prison sentence, 365 days of home confinement and 1,500 hours of community service. He has already served 305 days of home confinement and 1,030 hours of service. He also must undergo DNA testing and drug counseling, cannot own firearms and must submit to reasonable searches and a financial audit.

Former Atlanta Mayor and U.N. Ambassador Andrew Young spoke on behalf of Harris. Young said he regarded working with Harris not so much as a chance to help him but more as "an opportunity for him to help me." "It was a grandfather type of relationship." He spoke of a visit to a hospital for paraplegics by him and Mr. Harris, "He heard the testimonies of guys in their 50s and 60s who talked about being shot back when they were 16." Bishop Eddie Long also spoke in support of Harris.

For his court hearing Friday, Harris' attorneys submitted more than 100 letters from officials who thanked him for his community service since the weapons arrest. One of the letters was from Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Leah Ward Sears, who said Harris did an "outstanding job" talking to a group of teenagers about not breaking the law. "If only one young person in that courtroom listened to Mr. Harris -- and I believe they all did -- we are all better for it," Sears wrote. "He was honest, humble and inspirational."

Harris will be taken into custody no earlier than May 19. The plea agreement, which federal authorities called unique, allowed the entertainer to remain out of prison for a year while he performed community service. In that time, he mentored at-risk students at 58 schools, 12 Boys & Girls Clubs, nine churches and many other nonprofit organizations.

The multiplatinum rapper has starred in the MTV reality show, "T.I.'s Road to Redemption: 45 Days to Go," which chronicles his efforts to shave years off his sentence by completing his community service. The show features him talking to schools and community groups "about how to avoid the trouble he now finds himself in."

Mr. Harris was arrested in October 2007 in an Atlanta parking lot hours before he was to perform at the BET Hip Hop Awards. He was caught in a federal sting after his bodyguard-turned-informant delivered three machine guns and two silencers to him. The rapper had provided the bodyguard with $12,000 to buy the weapons. Harris was not permitted to own any guns, however, because he was convicted in 1998 on felony drug charges -- possession of crack cocaine with intent to distribute -- in suburban Atlanta.

Who Says the Game Is Not Fun Anymore?

You never know what to expect at an NBA game these days. Not only do you get to watch some of the best atheletes in the world. But you might see a king taking photos or a big ticket bowling.

And they say these guys are in it just for the money. Looks like a little fun is still in the game.

Jada Pinkett Smith Adds 'Schoolmaster' To Her Resume

Jada Pinkett Smith is adding another title to her resume: schoolmaster. The 37-year-old actress-producer-musician and her husband, Will Smith, opened the New Village Leadership Academy in Calabasas, California last fall. The private school is for pre-kindergarten through sixth grade. It currently has 60 students.

Jada said she decided to open the elementary school after creating a home-school program for her children, 10-year-old Jaden and 8-year-old Willow.

"More and more parents were like, 'Can we come?'" she said. "Then my house started to fill up. We had like 20 kids and I said, 'We might as well start a school.'"

The New Village Leadership Academy generated some controversy when it was first announced because it relies on instructional methods developed by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. But the school's director has said it isn't a Scientology facility. The school’s Web site states that Hubbard's "study technology" is a secular course akin to a Montessori approach.

Jada Pinkett Smith said the school stresses "100 percent mastery," encouraging students to retake exams until they score 100 percent. The student body is ethnically and economically diverse. She said that this is probably the hardest thing that she has ever done, but that it is really rewarding. She also plans to open a companion campus for upper grades

Jada is also set to star in a new television series, "HawthoRNe," premièring in June on TNT. She plays a widowed nurse struggling to overcome her grief while balancing her duties at the hospital with and being a single mom of a teenage daughter.

Stevie Wonder Awarded and Performs at the White House

President Barack Obama presented Stevie Wonder with the nation’s highest award for pop music last night at a concert and award ceremony hosted by the president and First Lady Michelle Obama in the East Room of the White House. He gave the superstar the Library of Congress’ Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. In presenting the award the president said that Stevie Wonder was a major part of the essence of the now first couple’s courtship.

Stevie Wonder cited Martin Luther King Jr., his faith and his mother during an acceptance speech that flowed into a set of President Obama’s favorite songs. The 25 Grammy Award-winning musician joked that he looked forward to writing more love songs — perhaps a soundtrack for “you know, maybe I’ll be a part of creating some more of those babies.”

President Obama told guests that Stevie Wonder's music was also the soundtrack to his youth and marriage. President Obama praised Stevie Wonder’s decades-long career and a style that has blended pop and funk, R&B and gospel. First lady Michelle Obama spoke in more personal terms, calling Stevie Wonder “one of the world’s greatest artists.” She recalled how she and her grandfather would listen to Wonder’s albums together. Michelle Obama told the crowd that Wonder's love song, "You and I," had been the couple's wedding song. "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours," was often played at then Senator Obama's campaign stops.

Although the president is a well-known fan — Stevie performed at his nominating convention in Denver last summer and at a Lincoln Memorial concert before his January inauguration — the Library of Congress had decided to honor Stevie Wonder before President Obama won the election.

The Gershwin Prize honors George and Ira Gershwin and is given for lifetime achievement in popular music. Stevie Wonder’s performance will be broadcast Thursday night on PBS stations as part of a White House series on the arts.

Gospel singers Mary Mary, hip-hop musician will.i.am and jazz singer Tony Bennett were among the other performers at the concert. The president said the event was part of he and the first lady’s effort to open the White House to a broader community.

Television Pioneer and Musical Chameleon

When movie producers offered Black actors only stereotypical roles and long before the civil rights movement made organized protest common for Black Americans to voice their desire for equal rights, Hazel Scott, defied racial stereotypes, portraying a positive screen and stage image, thus improving the opportunities for other Blacks in the entertainment industry. Hazel Dorothy Scott was the first Black woman to have her own television show; The Hazel Scott Show, premiered on July 3, 1950. Needless to say that during this Jim Crow era that it was not received well in some parts of the U.S. She publicly opposed racial segregation, and the show was canceled in when she was accused of being a Communist sympathizer. The last broadcast was 29 September 1950. And it didn’t help that she was married to controversial Congressman Adam Clayton Powell, Jr.

Hazel Scott, one of America's foremost pianists, was born in Trinidad, June 11th 1920 and raised in New York City from the age of four. She performed extensively on piano as a child. By 1929 Scott had acquired six scholarships to Julliard School of Music in New York City. Unfortunately she, at fourteen, was under age (the school admitted at the age of sixteen only). In the meantime she joined her mothers All-Woman Orchestra, playing piano and trumpet. By the time she was sixteen, in 1936, Hazel Scott was a radio star on the Mutual Broadcasting System and playing at the Roseland Dance Hall with the Count Basie Orchestra. In the late thirties, she appeared in the Broadway musical Singing Out the News and after that, Priorities of 1942. Her training in classical music was received at Juilliard School of Music in New York and her jazz technique, she says, she owes to Art Tatum and Teddy Wilson. She performed numerous times at the famed Carnegie Hall. Her motion picture career included the films Something To Shout About, I Dood It, Broadway Rhythm, The Heat's On, and Rhapsody in Blue.

Even for a celebrity of her caliber, Hazel Scott, like most Blacks during the 1950's, was no stranger to Jim Crow segregation. She, however, acted with dignity while promoting American patriotism and racial integration, and denouncing communism. She was known for her skill in combining jazz improvisations with a classical piece. She was a consummate performer and her nightclub performances were well patronized and acclaimed. Called a "musical chameleon" for her ability to shift from jazz to classical to blues, Scott continued to perform until her death. In 1978, she was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame. Hazel Scott continued to perform until her death in 1981.

The Great Lady of Soul: Bettye LaVette

Bettye LaVette received universal praise for her outstanding rendition of Sam Cooke’s “A Change is Gonna Come” in a duet with Jon Bon Jovi on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial at the Inaugural Celebration on January 18th. This marks the second time in the past two months she has been in the capitol making an unforgettable impression with anyone lucky enough to have the chance to hear her. The first was at the Kennedy Center Honors when she amazed the audience with her own very unique version of the Who's "Love Reign O'er Me." Not many people can say that they song for two presidents in six weeks (George W. Bush at the Kennedy Center Honors and Barack Obama at the Inaugural Celebration). And like me, most of you probably never even heard of Bettye LaVette. And I like to think of myself as well versed in music.

Bettye LaVette stole the show at the Kennedy Center Honors. She gave the powerhouse performance of the evening when she sang her unparalleled version of “Love Reign O’er Me” as part of the Who tribute. She wasn't the biggest name on stage, but her performance provided the evening's most spectacular moment. She was so phenomenal. The room was pin-drop silent when she sang. "The Kennedy Center Honors was the most exciting thing I have every done in my life, because there were so many of my favorite politicians there," says Bettye. "And this year has been the greatest year of my life. Who would have ever imagined both Barack and I going to the White House?” said Ms. LaVette.

Of singing for then President Obama, Ms LaVette said: "In the middle of the song I turned and looked and Obama was on the stage, the whole group of them, and my eyes were just fixed on him for a moment. I was singing the line 'I always believed that a change would come,' and just as I turned, our eyes locked and he was mouthing the words along."

Utne Reader had the best headline of the event: "Bettye LaVette and the Soul of Barack Obama." And even the sports world took notice. Roger Craig, former NFL running back for the San Francisco 49ers confessed to the San Francisco Chronicle: "Oh…when Bon Jovi and Bettye LaVette sang Sam Cooke's stirring civil-rights song, 'A Change Is Gonna Come,' on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on Sunday? I cried like a baby."

Bettye LaVette did not disappoint. Revered for her ability to take other's compositions and make them her own, LaVette performed brilliantly. Ms. LaVette, the reigning "Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year," is once again nominated in that category for the Blues Foundation's 2009 Blues Music Awards.

Ms. LaVette has been on a roll since her 2005 release on Anti- Records, My Own Hell to Raise which brought her back into the national spotlight, 43 years after her first single "My Man is a Loving Man," was released in 1962 when she was a teen. This roll only gathered more strength and critical acclaim when Anti- issued her second CD for the label in 2007, the Grammy nominated, The Scene of the Crime.

A partial list of musical performers at the Inaugural Celebration includes, Beyonce, Mary J. Blige, Sheryl Crow, Heather Hedley, Herbie Hancock, John Legend, Usher Raymond IV, Pete Seeger, Bruce Springsteen, James Taylor, U2 and Stevie Wonder. Among those reading historical passages will be Jack Black, Steve Carrell, Rosario Dawson, Jamie Foxx, Tom Hanks, Martin Luther King III, Queen Latifah, Laura Linney and Denzel Washington.

- "LaVette... isn't just an engaging performer, she's a musical force of nature, a hurricane in heels that whips up a fiery mix of soul, jazz, country and blues." -The Houston Chronicle.