November 2019 – Page 2 – Codeblack – Welcome to the Revolution

By Hannah Yasharoff,

Kanye West took the stage at Houston megachurch pastor Joel Osteen’s serviceSunday, zigzagging through an interview about his shift to a much more religious ideology, his Sunday Service performances and new gospel album, “Jesus Is King.”

After claiming the “devil stole all the good producers, all the good musicians, all the good artists, all the good designers,” West told the packed crowd of Lakewood Church worshippers that he sees a major shift coming in the world because “now, the greatest artist that God has ever created is working for him,” referencing himself.

The rapper threw out handfuls of half-explained ideas throughout his talk, at one point calling strip clubs a form of sex trafficking and later claiming images are being fed to young children through “the media” with subliminal messaging to make them more inclined to join society’s “robotic, numeric system.” The latter was met with silence from the stadium audience, after which West told listeners they could rewind a video clip of what he had been saying and “do research” on the topic.

He also lamented things like alcohol, promiscuity and other pressures for rappers to look cool as “distractions” and “addictions” that “bring our Christian scorecard down.”

“They’ll hit you sometimes. Sometimes you’ll go ahead and just pour that drink and then repent for it,” West said. “We all fall short of the glory. … Christians are not going to be Christ. We are going to follow Christ and be Christ-like and repent for our sins. … We all have sins, it’s another thing to be selling drugs in a children’s parking lot.

Now 42 and the father of four children with wife Kim Kardashian, West’s public persona has switched gears from the provocative hitmaker he was once known as to a more clean-cut follower of the Bible.

What advice would West give to the old Kanye? The rapper told Osteen he didn’t have any verbal messages that would have helped his former self because music was his saving grace.

“This music don’t come every month,” West said. “We dropping that heat, we’re in the studio. God is strengthening our hands. We’re taking all the most fire producers and bringing them back to God.”

Tickets for West’s planned Sunday Service performance at Lakewood were distributed through Ticketmaster and gone within minutes, with resellers asking hundreds of dollars for them.

Osteen’s televised weekly TV program is viewed by more than 13 million households in the U.S. and millions more in more than 100 nations around the world.

Original article was published here.

Just a few decades ago, Black art was hard to come by in mainstream markets. Artists were largely only viewed at African American museums and at niche galleries. In 1995, two young African American males in South Los Angeles set out to bridge the gap between Black art collectors and the everyday consumer. Shades of Color fuses Black art into its product line to celebrate one of America’s most influential cultures on household products including home décor, shower curtains, floor mats and kitchen aprons.

As of 2017, the home decor industry was worth $582 billion, and is projected to increase to $741 billion by 2023, according to PR Newswire. There has been an increase in home ownership which has tremendously impacted the home décor market, as stated on the Allied Market Research website.

While the home décor market is constantly expanding, there are still seldom companies that honor African American art on their products. Shades of Color’s partnership with African American artists is proving to be a solution that brings art into the homes of the consumers that truly appreciate it.

“We work with artists to mass produce their art on products which exponentially increases exposure to their craft,” says President, Adrian Woods. “Our artists are an extension of our family and are relatable from the girlfriends of Cidne Wallace to the strong Black fathers by Frank Morrison to the more contemporary styles of Larry Poncho Brown. Our goal is to highlight these artists and be a driving force in ethnic home décor.”

Black art is a reflection of American culture, and Shades of Color’s community is making that art more accessible. All types of consumers have essentially become art collectors without even knowing it. The company’s direct to consumer website features African American artists, a vast catalog of products and global conversations around culture and current affairs. With its ties to community involvement the company is also supporting its greater network. Schools, churches and community groups have earned well over $2 million through the company’s fifteen year fundraising program that is open to everyone.

What began in the mid-90’s as strictly a calendar company is now a leader in an ethnic niche market selling through mass retailers, organizations, main street gift shops and quaint Afrocentric stores across the country. The flagship calendar line preserves history and brings facts, accomplishments and current milestones to light in a time when typical classrooms across the country are still neglecting to include Black history. The entire product line is infused with positive aspirations and imagery that embody this very important aspect of Americana.

“It is touching to hear the reactions,” says Production Manager and Marketing Director, Janine Robinson. “Across social media followers comment on what it feels like to walk into their bathroom, for example, and see a reflection of themselves on a 70” x 70” panel that fills the room. It’s not rare to get several comments saying, ‘That’s me!’ Not only does the product fill the room literally, the art and statements fill and ignite the spirit too. That is the part that makes it all worth it.” #UpliftandInspire

About Shades of Color
Founded in 1995, Shades of Color, LLC is a small Black-owned business producing high quality calendars, stationery, kitchenware, home décor, bags and gifts. It licenses and commissions Black art from renowned African American artists. The company manufactures and distributes its own collections to a global audience. Learn more about their products at www.ShadesGifts.com. Learn more about their Home Décor Collection at www.shadescalendars.com/product-category/homedecor

Also, follow the brand on social media:

Facebook – www.facebook.com/ShadesCalendars
Instagram – @ShadesofColorGifts

Original article was published here.

Like most other zeitgeist-driving cultural entities of the early aughts, the general premise of the book and subsequent film He’s Just Not That Into Youhasn’t aged well. Back then, however, the idea that women interested in romantic relationships with men were the only ones who needed to shift their behaviors—to understand men better or to make themselves more attractive—spawned an entire ecosystem of books, movies, TV shows, Nightlinespecials, newspaper profiles, packed-venue panels, and blogs (including, well, this one). Of course, there’s still contemporary content premised on that lie, but it mostly now exists on the outskirts of popular culture; in YouTube rabbit-holes and pick-me tweets instead of the New York Times bestseller list.

That said, if you are a person who happens to be dating, recognizing the behavior of someone who’s putting a half-assed effort into seeing you is vital, and just not that into you is a succinct and effective way of articulating that dynamic. And what the NFL is doing to Colin Kaepernick is akin to a 5 o’clock text ask for a 5:45 date.

“I’m free in 45 minutes if you want to meet me at the spot.”
“I already have plans. Can we move it to Monday?”
“Nah.”
“Saturday?
“Nope.”
“8pm tonight at least?”
“You said you wanted to hang out. Do you want to or not, cause I can do something else.”

Everything about this sham ask feels gross. There’s the fact that the workout is on a Saturday—the day most NFL teams are traveling to and preparing for games and can’t be bothered with anything other than who they’re playing the next day. Knowing this, Kaepernick’s reps asked for the workout to be moved to a Tuesday, which is the usual day things like this happen.

The NFL’s response, per ESPN.

But the NFL said the workout had to be on a Saturday, sources previously told ESPN. When the league was asked whether it could be the following Saturday — by making it this Saturday, the 32 teams had only about three days to decide whether to attend and whom to send—the NFL said no and didn’t provide a reason.

Kaepernick’s people also asked for a list of teams who planned on attending—literally the very least they could do to make this process feel less icky. The NFL’s official response? “Nah.” Holy shit.

Of course, there have been rumors that Jay-Z was somehow involved in having this workout arranged, which is actually a worse look for him if it’s actually true. This is the end result of y’all’s favorite billionaire’s seat at the table? Convincing the NFL to send Colin Kaepernick a 1 a.m. “wyd” text? That was Jigga’s master plan?

There’s little doubt that the NFL just wants Colin Kaepernick to go away, and inviting a 32-year-old man who hasn’t stepped on a field in three years to a last-minute workout is a way of alleviating blame. Now, they can always just say “You can’t say we didn’t ask him to hang out.”

Original article was published here.

21st-century platforms such as Instagram have made it easier than ever before for businesses to exercise direct-to-consumer advertising. With each swipe through the app’s algorithm, countless influencers and advertisers benefit from eyes on their products. But before technology made this kind of advertising practically omnipresent, brands relied on more traditional methods—such as product placement. In 1990, when Will Smith’s vibrant comedy (and wardrobe) appeared in living rooms across the country during the first season of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, the Los Angeles-based clothing brand worn by the lead actor was catapulted to stardom. Cross Colours, founded by designers Carl Jones and T.J. Walker just the year before, became an instant commercial success.

In celebration of the pioneering apparel line and its enduring legacy, the California African American Museum has mounted an exhibit that chronicles the brand’s 30-year history: Cross Colours: Black Fashion in the 20th Century. The show, jointly curated by Tyree Boyd-Pates, history curator and program manager, and Taylor Bythewood-Porter, assistant history curator, features original design sketches, vintage textiles, and unique ephemera that help contextualize the sociopolitical climate in which Jones and Walker were designing—and offers insights about the way fashion, politics, and activism are still intertwined.

“We look at the brand and all of the historical influences through a chronological lens,” says Boyd-Pates as we walk through the gallery space. “We start in the 1920s and ’30s because of Marcus Garvey, whose ideology—the Back to Africa movement and ultimately the [movement’s] dominant three colors, red, black, and green—were direct influences to what Cross Colours would attempt to evoke through its designs. You can see the evoking of this nationalistic idea of self-reliance, self-dependence, and self-defense.”

For a generation that was dealing with the reverberations of unjust Reagan-era policies, poverty, and racially motivated police brutality, these themes struck a chord. And Cross Colours’ bold brand identity, which promised “Clothing Without Prejudice” and on-trend streetwear aesthetics, made it the natural choice for America’s black urban youth. Dressing a young black influencer such as Will Smith in its clothes allowed Jones and Walker to speak directly to their intended audience—an audience who’d appreciate the graphic T-shirts, multicolored striped shorts, and branded bucket hats.

“They were just matching and modeling what black youth were saying was the pulse,” Boyd-Pates says. “Black African textiles were really dominant at the time. So were unapologetically black lyrics [from artists] like KRS-One, Queen Latifah, and Public Enemy.”

Audio installations placed throughout the exhibit emphasize the impact that 1990s hip-hop culture—from the birth of DJ scratching in the Bronx to the laid-back style of Los Angeles rappers in their lowriders—had on black fashion during the period as well. “What you have is black responses to backlash, and oftentimes it’ll come by ways of music and fashion. . . . That’s what the exhibition is chronicling,” Boyd-Pates says.

The quintessential ’90s apparel line also drew inspiration from Malcolm X’s promotion of black nationalism and the Black Panther Party. “The X as a symbol directly influences Cross Colours in the use of the X almost 60 to 70 years later,” Boyd-Pates notes, pointing to a bodysuit with the brand’s X-centric logo on it. The mannequins in CAAM’s gallery space are decked out in generous amounts of black and denim, similar to the Black Panther Party’s uniform, “as a form of allyship with workers and black workers,” Boyd-Pates explains.

Despite these Afrocentric design influences, Cross Colours enjoyed much mainstream success in America’s predominantly white, suburban communities too. These adjacent demographic groups were major consumers of clothes and were inspired by the golden age of hip-hop in the 1990s as well. “[It was] seen as a subculture that was controversial and rebellious to the status quo,” Boyd-Pates says. “Subcultures tend to rise and bubble to the top.”

CAAM’s retrospective illustrates the cord that tethers clothing and culture; through Cross Colours, we see how political black fashion is. For the marginalized, controlling one’s identity through personal style is a visual statement when voice is not enough.

“We have realized that everything happens in cycles . . . so what was relevant 20 to 30 years ago, because of the shelf life of these eras, will make a resurgence,” Boyd-Pates says. “If ’90s clothing was dope in 1989, 30 years later it’s right around the time [for it to be relevant again], because the social climates that created the things 30 years ago are actually nearly identical.”

Case in point: The cyclical struggle of black men trapped in the carceral system persists today, just as it did when the war on drugs began in the ’70s. Prison uniforms, ill-fitting and saggy, became associated with black culture, and Cross Colours designed fashionable clothes with that prevailing aesthetic in mind.

“They were actually making baggy clothes intentionally because they were reclaiming the narrative that you may racially profile us, but we don’t care about your gaze, we care about our own. That’s why they designed men’s trousers to debunk the racial profiling that was happening in urban areas,” Boyd-Pates says. These sentiments are eerily familiar today, a time when the criminal justice system continues to operate lopsidedly on bias, and when police forces make examples out of civilians of color.

Today, Cross Colours’ appeal is global; the brand is experiencing a renaissance thanks to the popularity of eco-friendly vintage shopping, and a nostalgic interest in the ’90s too. Ever the entrepreneurs, Jones and Walker are running limited reissues of some of the company’s biggest hits and pursuing collaborations. Bruno Mars even teamed up with Jones and Walker to make specialized Cross Colours merchandise for his 24K Magic tour.

“They are overwhelmingly excited about the resurgence [and] about the ownership that this generation is taking of the brand,” Boyd-Pates says of the founder-designers. “They’re also really proud of the way they were able to stake a claim early on and trail-blaze in the way they did, changing the trajectory of fashion as we know it.”

Original article was published here.

Hart has been on the road to recovery since he suffered three spinal fractures when his car, driven by friend Jared Black, veered off a highway in Los Angeles and into a ditch in the early hours of Sept. 1. Hart underwent spinal surgery and was hospitalized for 10 days. He shared dramatic footage on Instagram of the accident’s aftermath and his intense rehabilitation process.

In a statement last month, attorney Andrew Brettler said Hart was committed to physical therapy and “getting stronger every day.” He also said Hart was doing “a little work here and there” on his upcoming film “Jumanji: The Next Level,” but did not anticipate being fully back to work until 2020.

Full speech here.

Original article was published here.

The drama will tell the story of a Nigerian family that escaped terrorism in their home country, sought and received asylum in America and — against all odds — found a welcoming new home in New York. It’s a story of love, peace, community and faith and the lengths parents will go to bring their family to safety and provide them a better life. Tani’s accomplishment went viral and the family’s story became an inspiration to many. The books will publish in spring 2020.

Noah, host, exec producer and writer of the Emmy and Peabody-winning The Daily Show, and his Day Zero partner Haroon Saleem are already in business with Aladjem’s Mainstay on an adaptation of Noah’s bestselling memoir Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood. That one is set at Paramount Players, and Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o is attached to star. Day Zero and Mainstay are in prep for Noah’s untitled series for Quibi, which he will star in and produce.

State Street’s Teitel and Tillman most recently produced the acclaimed drama The Hate U Give, which Tillman directed. Jay Marcus will be exec producer and will oversee the project for State Street Pictures.

Noah, Tillman Jr, Teitel and the Adewumi family are repped by CAA. Noah’s also Mainstay Entertainment and Hansen, Jacobson; Tillman is manager Lindsay Williams and attorney Steve Burkow of Ziffren Brittenham, latter of whom also reps Teitel. The Adewumis are repped by CAA for both film and publishing along with attorney Marc H. Simon at Fox Rothschild.

Original article was published here.