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Culture Currents

Cultural happenings in SF and beyond.

‘Collect Call’: an interview wit’ spoken word artist Chas Jackson

On Oct. 9, Chas was featured on the TVOne show Verses and Flow with his poem “Collect Call” about his mother. It’s an emotional editorial on having his family split by the U.S. concentration camp system aka the prison industrial complex’s war on the domestic Black community. This poem is especially timely coming on the heels of the monumental California Prison Hunger Strike of ‘13.

‘The Art and Rhymes of Ghetto Girl Blue’: an interview wit’ Jessica Holter, founder...

Ghetto Girl Blue aka Jessica Holter, founder of the Punany Poets, is a legendary fixture in the pantheon of Bay Area adult edu-tainment. After 19 years, the internationally renowned Punany Poets are still pioneering in their technique of using explicit material to teach about self-love, AIDS awareness, safe sex etc. On Saturday, Oct. 26, at 5 p.m. at the Black Repertory Theater, Jessica Holter will be performing her one-woman show.

Wanda’s Picks for October 2013

The 18th Annual Maafa Commemoration Ritual is Sunday, Oct. 13, 2013, predawn. We meet at Ocean Beach, Fulton at the Great Highway. The ritual is for people of African Descent (Black people from throughout the globe). There are so many great events this month, but not enough space to list them all.

Reggae legend Rankin Scroo speaks on his life and his music

The founder of Jawaiian Reggae and Urban Reggae, Rankin Scroo, is one of the elders of the Bay’s current Reggae scene. He has been around for decades and worked with artists as diverse as Black Uhuru and Keak Da Sneak. He has a new album that has been driving people at KPFA radio station crazy called “Love Zone” where he continues to feature a lot of musical talent besides his own.

M1 of dead prez speaks on Young Malcolm Shabazz

When Malcolm Latif Shabazz was assassinated on May 9, 2013, in Mexico City, it was a devastating blow to people all over the world, but it was especially catastrophic to those of us who knew “Young Malcolm.” I thought that it would be important to bring the thoughts of Mutulu Olugbala aka M1 on the life and assassination of Malcolm Shabazz to our readers, because this chapter of Young Malcolm’s life has never been told.

Kev Choice produces Jennifer Johns’ ‘The Chronicles of the Aquarian Mind’

Since we last caught up with Kev Choice, he has been in the lab creating the soundscape for the new Jennifer Johns’ “Chronicles of the Aquarian Mind” album, which will see the light of day in mid-October. This is a very unique match of Oakland talent, be it that she is a strong vocalist and at times rapper and Kev is definitely production savvy. Check out Kev Choice in his own words ...

Internet radio is on the rise: an interview wit’ Streets Is Talking founder Leon...

Streets Is Talking Radio is one of the dope internet radio shows that is based out of Oakland’s Youth Radio building. It was founded a few years back by Leon Dynastee to be a part of the Allday.fm lineup of radio shows that were being produced as part of a new network. It has been one of the more popular shows on the network considering that it has had to compete with the shows of such legends as Davey D and Sake 1.

Split parenting: Making it work

Unresolved issues between adults can greatly affect the state of mind of the children in a “split parented” family. Children of all ages, including babies, are extremely perceptive and able to recognize feelings of love, comfort and safety as well as tension, frustration and anger. It is critical that both parents talk about these issues and think about how they will impact the children well before there is any visitation scheduled.

Deja Bryson will be at Yoshi’s in Oakland: an interview wit’ songstress Deja Bryson

This Sunday Yoshi’s in Oakland will be hosting Richmond songstress Deja Bryson to grace the stage. From the same Bay Area as colleagues Ledisi and Keisha Cole, this niece of the great ‘80s and ‘90s crooner Peabo Bryson is set to make a name for herself without standing in anyone’s shadow. Deja Bryson is sure to bring out a crowd to see this beautiful songbird electrify the stage.

Zaccho opens Center for Dance and Aerial Arts in Bayview

The Center for Dance and Aerial Arts is the brainchild of Zaccho founder and artistic director Joanna Haigood. The studio is hosting a week long grand opening celebration from Sept. 7 to 14, with teaching artists from the center offering sample classes to the public. A free family event is planned for Saturday, Sept. 7, where the studio will open its doors and offer free hourly sample classes to the public.

Oakland’s Indie Film Night: an interview wit’ director and organizer Diaunte Thompson

Diaunte Thompson is an up and coming name in the Bay Area film world, not just because of his cinema and television directorial work, but also because of Indie Film Night, which he organized, where the work of independent filmmakers can be profiled and appreciated. The first Indie Film Night will be Thursday, Sept. 5, at Leige Spirits Lounge, 481 Ninth St., Oakland, from 6-9 p.m. Check this brotha out in his own words ...

Wanda’s Picks for September 2013

On the 20th anniversary of the demise of my father, Fred Ali Batin Sr., the 18th anniversary of the Maafa Commemoration San Francisco Bay Area – the Ritual Sunday is Oct. 13, 2013; see http://maafasfbayarea.com/ – and approximately the 60th day of the hunger strike to end the inhuman conditions in California’s Security Housing Units or SHUs, I just want to pause and reflect.

2nd annual Hiero Day: an interview wit’ Tajai of Souls of Mischief and Hieroglyphics

Undoubtedly, one of the most financially successful independent rap groups in Hip Hop is Hieroglyphics, and now the City of Oakland has honored them with Hiero Day, every Sept. 3. This year’s festivities will be hosted by Mistah F.A.B., Chuy Gomez and Sway, with Mystic, Kev Choice, CMG of the Conscious Daughters and Holly Saucey, among others scheduled to rock the mic.

Lyric Performing Arts Academy is set to open in September ‘13: an interview wit’...

With the U.S. economy turning a blind eye to unemployment in the Black community, it is on us to create business and employment opportunities for our community, and Taiwo Kujichagulia-Seitu and her collective of dedicated women, known as the Lyric Dance and Vocal Ensemble, have answered the call by opening the Lyric Performing Arts Academy in downtown Oakland.

‘Vigilante on the Loose’: Black filmmakers put Overtown back on Front Street

“Vigilante on the Loose” is based on a true story about a community plagued with past injustice. This time they chose to stand their ground. Filmed on location in Miami, Florida, the film was produced by Vision Entertainment Group and directed by Timothy Hodges. The once thriving Black section of Miami known as Overtown is virtually destroyed after so-called urban renewal.

Wanda Johnson, mother of Oscar Grant, reflects on reliving his murder in ‘Fruitvale Station’

Who could forget the murder of Oscar Grant by BART policeman Johannes Mehserle on a platform on Jan. 1, 2009. That murder, caught by other BART passengers on video that quickly went viral, sparked a movement for justice that led to the first conviction of a killer cop in California history. Because of the work of the Oscar Grant Foundation, an award-winning movie is telling Oscar’s story. It’s called “Fruitvale Station.”

McClymonds girls championship basketball team stars in ‘I Just Wanna Ball’

During the year 2013, the McClymonds High School girls basketball team became a powerhouse. Within a two-year period, they went from a program known for decades as a loser to winners of Oakland’s athletic league, the first since 1976. What they accomplished on the court was definitely staggering, but the bigger breakthrough was off the court.

Getting the ‘System Out of our System’: an interview wit’ AshEl Seasunz

Looking good, feeling good and making good decisions has a lot to do with what you put into your body. Health and green activist and musician AshEl Seasunz has been on the frontline of educating Black, Brown and low income neighborhoods in the Bay Area about the benefits of healthy eating, with SOS non-profit, which sells freshly squeezed organic juices and offers presentations from leading experts nationally.

Oaksterdam professor gives the science on cannabis: an interview wit’ Paul Armentano

Paul Armentano is one of the many interesting professors at Oaksterdam University who is on the front lines of the re-legalization and de-criminalization of marijuana movement in the United States. He is a scientist and has been for about two decades an activist with the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, so he is definitely not new to this.

Memories of Damu

Damu’s idea of revolutionary change meant, first, seeing the need for a radical transformation of the world and then having confidence that ordinary people, working people, are capable of making it happen. When they do rise up and try to fashion a new world, with all the mistakes humans are capable of making, he believed you have to support them.