Mark Anthony Neal's Blog, page 434

Book Trailer -- Lamonte Aidoo: 'Slavery Unseen: Sex, Power, and Violence in Brazilian History'

'Lamonte Aidoo, Andrew W. Mellon Assistant Professor of Romance Studies at Duke University, discusses his new book Slavery Unseen: Sex, Power, and Violence in Brazilian History. Aidoo upends the narrative of Brazil as a racial democracy and demonstrates how interracial and same-sex sexual violence operated as a key mechanism of the production and perpetuation of slavery as well as racial and gender inequality. At Duke, Aidoo is also the co-director of a lab in the Franklin Humanities Institute called "From Slavery to Freedom: Representations of Race and Freedom in the African Diaspora".'

Kandace Springs Is Nashville's Soulful Hidden Treasure

'When you think of Nashville, you probably think of country music. Soul and jazz? Not so much. But Kandace Springs is aiming to change that. In 2014, Springs was signed to Blue Note Records, which is known for recording the jazz greats like Herbie Hancock, Art Blakey and Thelonious Monk. Springs owned that warm classic jazz sound on her debut album, 2016's Soul Eyes. But with her latest album Indigo , out now, Springs is mixing it up and adding some lighter contemporary notes. Growing up in Nashville, Springs was surrounded by more than just country music from the very start.' -- All Things Considered

Issa Rae: We Need the 'Young Black Female Perspective' Now More Than Ever

'Issa Rae stars in the new film The Hate U Give, based on the bestselling book by Angie Thomas. The film centres around Starr Carter — a 16-year-old black girl, played by Amandla Stenberg — and the issues she grapples with after witnessing her best friend being shot by a police officer. Rae sat down with Tom Power while she was in Toronto for the world premiere of The Hate U Give at TIFF. "For me, what makes Starr relatable is that I went to high school in the hood, but I also had an experience going to a private school and having to balance those personalities to a degree," Rae told Power. "She has to be a certain way, or so she thinks, with white people and then gets to feel most comfortable in her skin with black people, but also has to front to a degree. And I think so many people of colour have been there".' -- Q CBC

Digable Planets: An Animated Look at "Reachin’ (A New Refutation of Time and Space)"

'Bursting onto the rap scene in 1993, Digable Planets arrived with an afrofuturist aesthetic, rooted in the art and philosophy of the Black Panthers. Reachin’ (A New Refutation of Time and Space) still remains a classic, channeling the moment in hip-hop before gangster was the norm.' -- Pitchfork

The Conversation: on African-American Women Dating Black Men Abroad with Bianca C. Williams

'It’s no secret that Black men across the diaspora have a unique appeal to women of all races and ethnicities, but how do African-American women fit into the conversation when it comes to Caribbean and African men? And what are the politics surrounding that attraction: Is it the natural allure of experiencing the breath of blackness or a fetishization of something different? The Conversation is joined by special guest Bianca C. Williams, author of The Pursuit of Happiness: Black Women, Diasporic Dreams, and the Politics of Emotional Transnationalism.'--MadameNoire

Trailer: James Baldwin's Little Man, Little Man

'Watch James Baldwin talk about writing for children in this charming trailer for his only children's book, Little Man, Little Man, now republished by Duke University after being out of print for nearly forty years.' -- Duke University Press

Black America: Looking at the Big Screen with Warrington Hudlin

'Warrington Hudlin, Filmmaker and Producer joins us to discuss some of the latest black films making history today. Hudlin, known for producing movies such as House Party, Boomerang and Bebe's Kids with brother Reginald Hudlin (known as the Hudlin Brothers) continues his work as Vice Chairman of the Museum of the Moving Image. Black America is hosted by Carol Jenkins, Emmy award winning New York City journalist, and founding president of The Women's Media Center.'

Spotlight Talk: Artist Amy Sherald at Crystal Bridges

'Amy Sherald celebrates the opening of her focus exhibition at Crystal Bridges with a Spotlight Talk. The artist behind the commissioned portrait of former First Lady Michelle Obama, Sherald paints staged narratives and constructed identities, creating portraits of African Americans. She deftly represents the features of each sitter with the masterful craftsmanship of American realism, and her work lends truth and reality to history. “My paintings hold up a mirror to the present and reflect real experiences of blackness today and historically,” she says, “in everyday life and within the historical art canon.” -- Crystal Bridges

Harmony: A Conversation with Chrissy Teigen & John Legend

'Rita Braver talks with supermodel and bestselling cookbook author Chrissy Teigen, and her husband, the award-winning singer-songwriter John Legend, who explains why "opposites attract." Teigen also discusses her relationship with her millions of social media fans, with whom she has shared every aspect of her life, including her struggle with postpartum depression following the birth of her first child.' -- CBS Sunday Morning

Coparenting: A Lifestyle Innovation from Our Broke Middle Class

'Alissa Quart: So part of why this is such a problem in America right now is the cost of childcare. Right now it can be up to 30 percent, even 38 percent of a middle class family’s salary. We’re talking in New York City or in New York, $10,000 to $30,000 per year. So if you thinking oh a middle class salary is between $42,000 and $125,000 that’s a huge chunk of anybody’s earnings, so how are we going to take care of our kids? How can we actually pay to have children?' - -Big Think