Legends of Hip Hop
Doug E. Fresh by SIF
Musician-turned actor Ice-T gives a behind music view of the rap game in the new documentary “The Art of Rap.” He spoke in a recent interview about the changes in Hip Hop and the evolution of MCs.
Below listen to the unique flow of Big Daddy Kane. Kane came to Syracuse a few years ago and is included in the film.
Street Ball: The Love of the Game
Pass the rock.
Dribble, dribble, shoot.
Pick & Roll.
Give & Go.
Tighten-up on defense…
Pick-up basketball is part of a universal language that was well-chronicled by Alex Wielgus and Chuck Wolf in the early 80s. The game is always the game, whether you are in Syracuse, DC, Kansas or Seattle. But there are some places where the game borders on religion. One of those places is New York
Dave Cain, the Director: He’s got game
Syracuse’s David Cain, who grew up in Harlem and played at St. John’s, is excited about seeing the film. He says that there is a unique energy to basketball in New York. He talked about the allure of playing at Rucker Park, near where he grew up during a recent phone interview (listen below).
Doin’ It will also be screened later this summer at the ImageNation Outdoor Film Series, which was founded by Syracuse’s Moikgantsi Kama.
Crooked Arrows Premiere
Crooked Arrows, an independent film about a Native American lacrosse team, had it’s premiere in downtown Syracuse on Wednesday. Fans and student athletes lined along Montgomery Street to get a peek at the actors and VIPs in attendance.
The film was co-produced by SU professor Neal Powless (pictured above, lower right).
Actor, director, writer Lawrence Hilton Jacobs spoke at Syracuse University on Wednesday.
Lawrence Hilton Jacobs, aka Cochise, aka Papa Joe, aka Freddie “Boom Boom” Washington, aka Larry FORD (friend of Richard Dubin) was the latest celebrity to participate in the Conversation on Race and Entertainment Media at Syracuse University’s Newhouse School. During the more than 1 hour talk, Dubin and Jacobs reminisced about their days as actors in New York City, 70s sitcoms and blaxploitation flicks.
Jacobs has starred in film, television and on Broadway in his over 40-year career, from The Jacksons to Welcome Back Carter and Cooley High.
Both men dropped pearls of wisdom for the students.
“You have to have raw nerve. There is no easy road.” Jacobs said. “Acting is a business. It’s a craft, it’s work. ”
Dubin added that Hollywood is not a place where you go to apply for a job, but rather somewhere where you use entrepreneurial skills to create opportunity for yourself.
It’s hard to believe this series has been running for over a decade. The last Conversation I saw was with Chappelle Show Director Rusty Cundieff a few years ago.
Dr. Roscoe Brown and Merriette Chance Pollard
The Maars post-show interview was posted and can be seen/heard here.
Vigil for victims of Hurricane Katrina at Syracuse University
Members of the Syracuse University community held an impromptu program for the victims of Hurricane Katrina last night in Hendricks Chapel. Students and members shared experiences about evacuating or returning to clean up the Gulf Region. This week marks the five year anniversary of the storm.
Second only to the Spike Lee’s Katrina films (and interviews), I found the best testimony about the Hurricane and immediate aftermath was given by former Syracuse television executive Gary Wordlaw in 2006.
Members of Delta Sigma Theta discuss their sorority’s rebuilding efforts
Musician Byron Cage sent me this video he made in tribute to his father, Pastor J. Alfred Cage.
Coach (Ken) Carter
Motivational speaker and former high school basketball coach Ken Carter recently gave a presentation at Levy Middle School and encouraged students to be respectful and avoid negative peer pressure.
“Young people, you are one-third of our population, but one-hundred percent of our future,” he said.
Carter & Morgan, Rivals Reunited as Friends
Carter is best known for the character portrayed by Samuel L. Jackson in the film Coach Carter (2005). Carter, who was also a high school basketball star in Northern California as a youth, maintains that (even for players) education is more important than playing ball. During his visit he also found friend and former high school rival David Morgan, who now works at Syracuse University.
Filmmaker Haile Gerima (below) visited Syracuse to screen his film Teza last week during the Grassroots Media Convention.
I previously covered Chuck D when he spoke at the Convention a few years ago.
Haile Gerima
Teza is a very intimate portrait of a man who comes of age during the modernization of Ethiopia.
The deep exploration of character in Teza reminds me a lot of Charles Burnett’s films.
Gerima, who teaches at Howard University, says criticism and analysis are the bridge that joins the artist and the community.
“Cinema is not benign entertainment, but don’t confuse noise with culture,” he said.