Joyce E. Davis's Blog, page 6

Missing Talent: FAMU Drum Major & Whitney Houston

Getting the scoop from high school and college classmates of FAMU drummer Robert Champion

Thirty minutes after my mom told me that Whitney Houston had passed, I got a call from my editor at Jet Magazine. Late that night I began working on my assignment to chronicle the major moments in the life of the singer, who's vocal talent seemed boundless. From her spine-tingling rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner" to her cringe-worthy interview with Diane Sawyer, gathering together those highlights was surreal.



I didn't think I'd get emotional over her death because after an initial wow moment, her demise didn't shock me based on what I'd witnessed about her life mostly from afar. Maybe I interviewed her or we crossed paths during my stint at BET in the late nineties. Honestly, I don't remember.







What I do recall is tearing up sometimes as I belted out "The Greatest Love of All," while washing dishes, folding clothes, or doing other weekly teen chores. Surprisingly, those tears reappeared during some parts of Whitney's home going services. I was genuinely touched by the remembrances of Tyler Perry and Kevin Costner. I gained a lot of insight about the non-tabloid Whitney from the testimonies of her loved ones - and I appreciated their perspective. Even though I've interviewed tons of notables in the last 20 years, it's still hard sometimes to remember that celebrities are just people.



Through Whitney passing I learned something about myself - from my mother, who told me that in the early eighties she'd been wondering whether my brother or I would inherit my father's singing talent. Turns out that she realized it was me when she heard me singing "Saving All My Love For You" in the backseat of her car. While I sang solos in church and school choirs, singing went the way of dance and softball by the time I reached the 11th grade. Boys and college - specifically Howard University - took over.






While I was at Howard, my mother had an impact on my decision not to pledge a sorority. The thought of hazing frightened her and her threat to shut down the offending line and the chapter scared me - because I knew she. was. serious. College hazing became a thread in another article I recently wrote for Jet Magazine, as well as a video interview [filmed by fabulous Spelman College student Raynette Palmer] that I did with two Florida A&M University alumni, who were classmates of Robert Champion, the FAMU drum major who is alleged to have died from a hazing incident.



I was moved by the commitment of Cassius D. Kalb and B. Rossi to honor their friend through their stance against hazing and a song that they'll use to raise funds for a scholarship in his name. Having won a Grammy award and worked with all types of high profile artists, I am glad to see these brothers use their powers for good.





Superfantastic producer Raynette Palmer, Cassius D. Kalb, Me & B. Rossi. It was nice to connect with some brothers literally from my side of town - the Dec!

Connections matter. I didn't attend the suburban Atlanta Southwest Dekalb High School, like Cassius, Rossi and Champion - but I grew up nearby and hung out with a SWD crew. And my brother is a graduate of FAMU. I feel some kind of closeness to this young man with such promise who lost his life so young. While any song on Whitney's debut could drive me into an emotional frenzy as a teen, my closeness to her had waned somewhat over the years - only to be rejuvenated by a celebration of her life through sincere remembrances of those who truly knew her.



As I'm getting older and watching my daughter grow, I guess I'm getting
wiser - and appreciating just how much life means. I'm determined to
keep on Enjoyceinglife. I hope you are, too.






For more information visit, please visit Drum Major for Change! Robert Champion.

My 5-Year-Old Gets "The Message" in Hip Hop Music Class

Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five


"Don't push me 'cause I'm close to the edge / I'm trying not to lose my head," sang my kindergartner as she was preparing for bed tonight. I was in the other room. After I heard her sing it again, our conversation went like this:



"Baby, where did you hear that song?"



"In music class today. Have you heard it before?" she asked, and sang the part she knew.



"I'm trying not to lose my head ah ha ha ha," I chimed in. "It's like a jungle sometimes. It makes me wonder how to keep from going under huh huh huh huh huh...."



"Oh Mommy, Mommy, he didn't sing that part!" Her face lit up like it was Christmas.



"And we saw a picture of him!"



"Who, baby?"



"The boy who sings it."



"What did he look like?"



"He was sitting outside on a bench - resting."



"But what did he look like?"



"His hair was like mine."










 Check my baby's hair - mirror image of GMF's Melle Mel (far left in the top picture), who ripped it in the group's blazing 1982 single, "The Message." I was 11 years old when this dropped and since radio stations in Atlanta weren't playing hip hop at that time I probably heard it on a mixed tape - several years later.


"And we saw a man with a big Afro. And do you know who the first black person was to play baseball?"



Huh? I thought.



"I think Hank Aaron was the first to..."



"Yes! That's him. We saw a picture of him, too!"



"And all this was in music class?"



"Our music teacher was not there, so we had a substitute. And he played the accordion. And he made a drum sound with his hands!"



I'm totally confused now, but really engaged.



"How did he do that?"



She cups her hands around her mouth like a beat boxer and, of course, beat boxes.



The Fat Boys ran through my mind.



"He did this and then blew through his hands."






The Fat Boys are back / and you know they could never be wack....


It was a very enlightening conversation - especially because my daughter goes to a somewhat diverse school, which is more mainstream than anything else.



I feel some kind of way - not bad, not ecstatic. But definitely some kind of way.



I've been a lover of music (hip hop included) all my life, and have been an entertainment journalist for more than 15 years. Just today I was at a video shoot at a mega-producer's house interviewing a wildly successful 90s R&B group about their comeback. I get it.



But is "The Message" by Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five age appropriate for 5-year-olds? I've been trying to sing the song to myself, but I think I'm gonna have to YouTube the video to get all the lyrics.



Am I over thinking this? I can't front - I did smirk when I realized what she was singing. As the conversation went on I also sprang forward about a decade in my mind relishing when we'd be able to enjoy the exploration and discussion of all types of music. The way things are going, it'll probably be much sooner than that.



And just who was this substitute? Although he apparently only used two lines of the song, you know how kids are: They sniff out and latch on to the things that may not be appropriate for them. And it is an extremely catchy song anyway - for anyone from 5 to 75.



So it's late. I'm tired. I don't think any harm was done. Clever and intelligent hip hop is out there. And its not like she was listening to Lil' Wayne.





I'll probably just let it go - unless I bump into the actual music teacher in the hall one day soon, when a little clarification may be warranted.



Hope you're Enjoyceinglife....






Who knew this song was more than seven minutes long? That's a lot of pop locking....

Explaining Dr. King's Dream to My Kindergartener

I've been struggling a bit this week discussing the importance of Martin Luther King Jr. with my 5-year-old. She came home from kindergarten talking about how her class watched a film and read a book about him. After describing the picture she colored of Dr. King ("Mommy I made his eyes tan!), she told me that he was the president of the United States.



It wasn't until a few days later that I saw the posted picture of her Dr. King, which was directly opposite a posted picture of George Washington, which she'd also colored the same week. I'm sure the close proximity of the coloring of those images as well as the constant presence of President Barack Obama in her life led to the confusion.



That same week I read Patricia Pingry's "The Story of Rosa Parks" to her class as the mystery reader. I'd read the story to her numerous times at home. We've visited to the King Center and attended services at Ebenezer and we talk about Dr. King and his dream several times a year. But I've been wondering just how much she understands.



We've been watching the Martin Luther King Jr. Tribute Service at Ebenezer Baptist Church today and I just asked her what she knows about Dr. King:



"He was the president."



"No, baby," I say. "He was a civil..."



"A civil rights leader, that's right," she interrupts. "He was a civil rights leader and he told everybody to get off the bus because Blacks had to ride in the back of the bus. Only Whites could ride in the front of the bus. He tried to help people and they tried to kill him. So he died." And she went right back to beating herself at Connect 4.



She was so matter-of-fact and her thoughts about his death struck me as a little nonchalant, if not gruesome. But I guess I feel okay about what she understands at this point in her life.  Moving forward I'm going to focus more on teaching her about Dr. King's dream and his messages. Those teachings that I received from my parents are what I remember most in terms of learning about Dr. King.



Of course at my age, I also remember the hard fought campaign to make Dr. King's birthday a national holiday. I'm appreciative of how my parents educated me about not just Dr. King but also the many unsung activists (some they knew), as well as their own challenges with civil rights.





In reflecting on my family's legacy of civil rights, I remember fondly my grandfather, Detroit Lee, who just didn't take no for an answer very often.  He brought a lawsuit in the name of his children (Lee v. Macon County, 1963), which profoundly changed the state of education in Alabama. Below are the outcomes of my family's bravery, according to Fred Gray, the attorney who filed the suit.



"Lee v. Macon started as a simple desegregation case against the public schools in
Macon County, Alabama. It has resulted in the following:



1. A statewide order requesting that all of the public elementary and secondary
schools in the state of Alabama be desegregated.



2. The desegregation of all
trade and junior colleges.



3. The desegregation of all institutions of higher
learning.



4. The merger of the Alabama Athletic Association (Caucasian) and the
Alabama Interscholastic Athletic Association (African-American).



5. The integration
of faculty and staff members of the public schools of the State of Alabama."



Now that is change for you. Detroit Lee was a change agent. I can only hope to instill the vision and fortitude of my grandfather and Dr. King in my daughter.



I hope whatever you are doing on this day, you are appreciating the freedoms won by many who fought hard battles on your behalf. I'm doing my best to live in honor of those freedom fighters and keep their legacies alive.



Keep on Enjoyceinglife!

Word Love - Intrinsic or Organic?

I just had an interesting discussion in the office about the difference between the words "organic" and "intrinsic." Oddly enough in the last three days, I've heard the word "intrinsic" used in three different conversations when I was in totally different environments. And each time it was used, I always wondered why they didn't use "organic."



It actually bothered me enough to ask the question aloud in my office, which propelled my equally-interested co-workers to the dictionary and to their memories of college English classes. The conversation was stimulating even if I was not satisfied with the outcome.



Thoughts ranged from "organic" becoming played out (even the citing of a New York Times editorial about "organic" being misused) to "intrinsic" being more closely linked to "inherent."



So I haven't decided if I want to start using "intrinsic" more than the pop culture-oriented "organic" because it just sounds weird to me. But don't all words used less frequently initially feel that way?



I'll probably end up on Team Intrinsic because I have so few other outlets in my life now to indulge my natural rebellious nature. If you're striving to parent to the best of your ability, raising another person keeps you in touch with the characteristics in yourself that are the most beneficial for your offspring. That responsibility also makes you temper those personality traits - like rebellion - that might not always work in parenting situations.



Okay, so I'm getting too deep for myself. Back to work.



One more thing: I have to acknowledge that living as a life-long learner may be the best gift - outside of being a parent - that God and my parents ever gave me. Thanks y'all!



Keep on Enjoyceinglife!

Hobby Jones....

When you're a writer, why is it SO hard to develop a hobby that has nothing to do with your paid occupation? I want to do something that doesn't involve media, reading, writing or the Internet. So I exercise (necessity) and I'm a parent (all consuming), but I can't let any of the writer stuff go when I do happen to find some fake-spare-time. Anyone got any suggestions?



Honestly, I'm a wanna be scrapbooker. I lurk around scrap-booking websites and even belong to a scrap-booking e-group. But I've never posted an example of any of my creations - because I don't have any that aren't on yellowed pages! I just lurk and yearn and lurk and yearn. I used to scrapbook my writing journals - years ago. Maybe I'll get back to it one day...sigh....



I've got a few important goals on tap for 2012, but I'm still finalizing my short list. Clearly I should focus some time on a non-media hobby. How do y'all do it? I'm wide open to all suggestions. Thanks and keep Enjoyceinglife!

Peace peace peace peace peace....

My Creative Little Scientist: Why Aren't More Black Women Pursuing Careers in STEM?

Looking at the insides of a bean with a magnifying glass 

and then planting it in a Dixie cup of dirt. Because this was the first station, it   

meant transporting that dirt through the entire science fair - fun for Mommy!




Science and math are swirling around me these days. I took my kindergarten age daughter to her first school science fair last night and we had a blast learning how plants grow, experimenting with the power of light, and even making ice cream. When I was a kid, I wasn't particularly enamored with science, but I was quite good in math - until about the fourth or fifth grade. Words and the love of reading and writing just surpassed my interest in developing my mathematics abilities. And it appears I am not alone losing interest in science and math around the middle school age. 






 Checking out the effects of a black light shone for one minute on a key on paper. 

Submerged in water for another minute and voila! We've got a cool experiment. 

Added counting bonus: We counted to 100 for each one of the minutes needed 

to wait for a development stage at this station.





Middle school is when girls start to lose confidence in their science and math abilities, according an article about robotics in the November 2011 issue of Inside Spelman, the digital publication I edit at Spelman College. The lack of interest in science and math beginning as early as primary school  was also mentioned in a recent article I read by AP's Jesse Washington on the declining numbers of African Americans in the fields of STEM - science, technology, engineering and math. Washington's piece cited only two percent - 176 - of Ph.D.s awarded in biological and biomedical sciences that went to Black women in 2009. Why is that? 







Loved the illuminating effects of looking at the different colors of light 

reflected at the end of prisms made by holding different shaped pieces of glass 

up to lights of various strengths in the dark.




The thought of my daughter being interested in science and math is only a bit foreboding because I still have to give myself that quick pep talk before trying to understand what may seem like complex theories or problems that I occasionally encounter in my work at Spelman. And of course I'd love for her to choose a career in a creative field. But having been exposed to the amazing STEM accomplishments of Spelman students - from creating iPhone apps to being leaders in the field of robotics - I'm realizing that if my baby chooses a life of exploration and problem-solving in STEM, creativity will most certainly be involved. 







 For an extra special treat, there were even two very big rodents 

showcased by visitors from the Atlanta Zoo. This particular species is found 

on every continent. Glad we just caught the end of this session.

 I have to admit, I did get the willies looking at those long tails....




 

And last but not least: homemade ice cream 

we made by shaking it up in a bag of ice and salt.












 Four minutes of vigorous shaking required a joint effort. 

I had to get into the act. 




 

And the reward was sweet! 

Homemade chocolate ice cream - Yummy!




Why aren't more young Black women pursuing careers in STEM fields? I'll be hosting an Inside Spelman tweet chat exploring Black women and STEM - TODAY - Wednesday, November 16 from noon to 1 pm if you'd like to share your thoughts. Even if you miss the chat, the conversation will keep going. Follow Spelman College on Twitter and use #InsideSpelman to join the dialogue. 




And keep Enjoyceinglife!

Heavy D & MJ: Gone Too Soon

This morning I was totally caught by surprise when I heard Heavy D's voice on Micheal Jackson's "Jam," while writing a magazine review of the new soundtrack to Cirque Du Soleil's "Immortal," their MJ-inspired show. I forgot Heavy was on that track. For some reason I'm having quite an emotional reaction to hearing their collaboration. I guess with the news filled with Conrad Murray's conviction and Heavy's passing, I'm just sensitive. I'm enamored with creative souls. And these are two talents who are just, in the words of MJ, "Gone Too Soon."

Join Me Now @SpelmanCollege Tweet Chat - From Civil Rights to Occupy Wall Street

Join the Conversation at Noon & Win! - Please Join Me at Noon on Twitter: From Civil Rights to Occupy Wall Street: @SpelmanCollege Tweet Chat, TODAY, Wed, 11/9, 12-1 pm.




In the November issue of Inside Spelman, Dr. Gwendolyn Middlebrooks, C'61, Spelman associate professor emeritus and an original member of the Atlanta Student Sit-In Movement, explores the Civil Rights and Occupy Wall Street movements. Have you been involved in any movements? What are your thoughts on how these and other activist movements have evolved to affect change? We'd like to know your story. 



Please follow @SpelmanCollege on Twitter and share with us during this tweet chat.  Be sure to use the hashtag: #insidespelman. The best tweet wins!

King of the Evening

There is something really touching about Glynn Turman's performance in the little known film, Kings of the Evening . While Tyson Beckford's acting left a lot to be desired, I was quite moved by the complex relationship between Lynn Whitfield's character and Glynn Turman's. He was able to give his character depth, the layers of which he deftly revealed as the story unfolded. The talent of Turman, Whitfield and even the newcomer Linara Washington made you understand how hard it must have been in the 1930s Depression era for black people just trying to make their way. While a little rough around the edges, I find this film to be a gem - one I hope many will get a chance to see.