Way Black When
Music videos weren’t exactly a new phenomenon when MTV debuted in 1981. French musicians had been making short films to accompany their songs since the invention of the Scopitone visual jukebox in the late 1950s. However, MTV’s launch upped not only the quantity of music videos being produced, but the quality. We racked our brains […]
It goes without saying that Kanye West, who celebrated a birthday yesterday, is one of hip-hop’s greatest producers.
If “Boyz N The Hood” should be remembered for anything, let it be for its exposure to a side of Los Angeles few living outside of the area were aware. The streets of South Central, Los Angeles and Compton were already getting a soundtrack due to the success of rap groups like N.W.A, but in […]
In his seminal work, Race Matters, Dr. Cornel West questions matters of economics and politics, as well as addressing the crisis in Black leadership. The book was written in 1993, but many of its themes are salient today. His scholarship has come to be recognized globally and West, himself, is known for his combination of […]
Music videos weren’t exactly a new phenomenon when MTV debuted in 1981. French musicians had been making short films to accompany their songs since the invention of the Scopitone visual jukebox in the late 1950s. However, MTV’s launch upped not only the quantity of music videos being produced, but the quality. We racked our brains […]
Even if the song didn’t have words, we knew the melody. For all the talk of how great some of these sitcoms were, we mustn’t forget the very first reason we tuned in was to dance or sing or rap along to the song played during the opening credits. Here are nine of our favorite […]
One of the most astounding voices in African-American literature, Maya Angelou is heralded for her literary prowess and activism. Working alongside Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr., Angelou was a profound figure in the Civil Rights Movement, and was the first Black woman to have a screenplay produced. The Grammy Award-winning poet is an […]
It would be easy to say that a black man born in 1947, in the ghetto of uptown Manhattan, has the odds stacked against him. But Kareem Abdul-Jabbar stood tall—7 feet, 2 inches tall — in the midst of this troublesome time and place. In high school, he won three straight New York City Catholic […]
Naomi Campbell’s former modeling agent testified today that she believes the supermodel knew the alleged ‘blood diamonds’ she received from two men in the middle of the night were actually from dictator Charles Taylor, and that Campbell had been flirting with the warlord during dinner and was expecting the gift.