Tag Archives: Morehouse

College Campuses Across the Nation Close Due to Coronavirus concerns

The coronavirus pandemic has reached the U.S. education system. As many students across the country prepare to come back from their spring break or are preparing to go on spring break, college officials have been sending out emails to the student body telling them to not return to the campus for the rest of the semester.

By late afternoon Wednesday (Mar 11), over 100 universities had canceled in-person classes and switched over to online classes at least for a couple of weeks or for the rest of the semester. A week or two prior, colleges had issued notices to students that abroad travel had been canceled due to the coronavirus.

Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) have also taken measures against the coronavirus, dispelling the myth that black people can’t get the coronavirus. Howard University in Washington D.C. shifted to online classes from March 23 to April 6.

The Atlanta University Center, which consists of Morehouse, Spelman and Clark Atlanta, has also taken measures ensuring the safety of its students. On Thursday, the AUC sent a notice to all students, saying that all in-person classes were canceled for the rest of the semester and professors were switching to online classes instead. You can read the full statement here.

The campus closures have created even more problems. Campus closures mean that students who live on campus will have to move off of campus and have to return home or find somewhere to live. This has caused problems especially for low-income students who relied on their institution for housing.

For the class of 2020, many students and parents of students are unsure about the fate of graduation activities. Institutions have been canceling events of more than 250 people for the remainder of the semester. While it is still too early to tell what will happen with the virus we hope that students are able to walk across that stage in May or June.

The post College Campuses Across the Nation Close Due to Coronavirus concerns appeared first on The Source.

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Rakim Stops at Morehouse College to Drop Jewels on Humility, Purpose and Being a Dope Lyricist

Words by Dylan Kemp

 

“… It wasn’t the records that made me Rakim. I was Rakim and I wanted to interpret that through my records”  ~Rakim Allah

Morehouse College is the premier institution for higher learning for Black men, and it only made sense that Hip-Hop’s most premier emcee stopped by the school to talk about his new recently released autobiography, Sweat The Technique: Revelations on Creativity From The Lyrical Genius.

The all-male historically Black college was on a roll. Earlier last week, Oprah donated $13 million dollars towards her Oprah Winfrey Scholarship Fund. Days later Rakim graced the campus, providing an attentive audience of students an opportunity to see the “god MC” engage in a provocative conversation-style talk back with Morehouse College professor of psychology, Dr. David Wall Rice. The two discussed anecdotes about his life, challenges that he had to overcome, and the inspiration behind his memoir/ writing manual.

Dr. Rice introduced Rakim to a warm crowd of about 100 students and faculty. Despite the artist having his emergence in the late 80s, gauging the thunderous applause the millennials and gen zs in the audience understood clearly Rakim’s impact on Hip-Hop.

While this may seem like a “duh” moment, consider that Rakim’s career defining debut album, Paid In Full, was released in 1987, almost released a decade before many of the students were born.

READ MORE: Exclusive: Here’s Your First Look at the Cover For Rakim’s New Memoir ‘Sweat The Technique’

Dr. Rice asked Rakim, “How would you define yourself?”

Rakim responded with a calm and laid-back demeanor,  “That’s a good question… you’re asking the wrong person. [I’m] Just a regular cat that grew up in Long Island. Loved sports; played football, basketball, baseball growing up. Played in a band, played sax… You know, I went through regular things that we go through. Just [had] an extra love for music and a deep understanding for it. And I think I was able to take that and convey it into what Rakim do… Just a regular person who grew up loving life. And a very humble person at the same time”

What makes you happy? What brings joy into your life?

What makes Rakim happy?… Being at peace. Being around my kids and my grandkids running around. Just being at peace. And for me you know it’s like, what do you do for fun? Nothing. You know what I mean? I tour a lot, move around a lot, move from state to state, city to city. When I get home, I like to do nothing. Just sit around and relax.

Rakim later revealed that he wasn’t originally interested in writing his autobiography, but then found a way to make it interesting by trying to inspire people rather than simply telling his life story.

Purpose was a common theme throughout the conversation. When asked how important his writing is to him, Rakim responded by saying: “It’s everything… It’s my way out”. He further shared that his purpose was to use his writing to “try to make everybody feel as if I [Rakim] was speaking to them directly.”

READ MORE: He Ain’t No Joke! Rakim Threathens To Knock MC Serch ‘The F*ck Out’

When asked a question from the audience about whether his purpose changed throughout the course of his career, Rakim responded:

“My purpose, I think, was instilled in me through my people and manifested itself in my work. I think who I am…that’s what makes me. I had a good sense of who I was before I started making music. My purpose, I think, was, from day one, to try to push the envelope, I wanted to make a statement in my work, I wanted to bring consciousness and awareness to music and the neighborhood… It wasn’t the records that made me or wanting to be Rakim. I was Rakim and I wanted to interpret that through my records.”

In addition to having students in the audience, he also had the adoring eyes of first grader Jack Streat watching him. Jack is a huge fan of the rap legend. His presence was a clear example of how Ra’s rhymes extend over generations. So it was appropriate that he shared something about character for the youngun’.

The highly regarded lyricist spoke about how he sees himself, attributing his awareness of self and humility to his upbringing within his family. He stated that his parents were no nonsense people.  Doting on his parents, he let the audience know that they were good and decent people who were respected in the community and taught him good values.  These values has carried him throughout his career. They have also afforded him the humility and grace that distinguishes him from other entertainers.

READ MORE: Before Gaining Knowledge Of Self, Rakim Caught His First Gun Charge at 12 Years Old

Young Jack is there with his father, a Morehouse man, and is squirming in his seat. He is nervous about asking a question. Finally he does. Jack pries, “Are you and Eric B still friends?” He said “yes,” but went into how complicated their relationship has been over the years. It was refreshing. It made the god MC more like a man. The conversation was no longer only about how great his life has been. It shifted into a peek into the challenges he has faced over the years. He placed a particular highlight on getting caught with his first gun charge at the age of 12, and his father’s passing. After his father passed, Rakim stated that he did not want to do music anymore. He felt as if rapping would keep him away from his father. He returned to his life-giving craft after six months after hearing the beat for classic song, “The Ghetto.”

“Long story short I went into his [Paul C] house and the first thing he played was “The Ghetto,” the beat. And when I heard that beat, everything came back to me. It was like, that track made me feel like alright, it’s alright to write a rhyme. That track just fit how I was feeling to a tee. I felt that I could talk to my father and at the same time it made sense to want to write again”

The last question to Rakim was “How do you want to be remembered?” Rakim kept his answer short and sweet.

“I want to be remembered as someone that had an idea… someone that did it his way… someone that loved music and pushed a genre…    and a good person and dope lyricist.”

He will be remembered as a dope lyricist indeed, at least Jack believes so.

Backstage, after the students poured out. Jack inched his way up to talk one-on-one to Rakim and to get his book signed. What did he say to him once he was face-to-face with this star that he only knew to pump from his dad’s speakers? Ra was just as personable and careful with this young fan, as he has been throughout his career (as detailed in his book) as writing his rhymes. The question came up in the room about Jack actually knowing Rakim’s rhymes. The room hushed as the future Morehouse man told the “Mahogany” rapper his favorite lyric of all time. “Thought I was a donut, you tried to glaze me,” he said.

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Every day is a proud Dad moment, but today was extra special. My lil pup got to meet one of my idols, @officialrakimallah aka @rakimgodmc I was so proud of how he embraced the moment and asked Rakim a question during the Q&A session. He even made the God MC laugh when he told him what his favorite lyric was – “Thought I was a donut, you tried to glaze me.” Definitely was a day to remember. Big up my man @dwallrice for looking out👊🏾. #thejackattack #lilpup #lilstreat #myminime #fatherandsonmoments #fatherandsontime #fatherandsonlove #fallbreak #hiphopenthusiast #trainupachildinthewayheshouldgo #rakim #rakimallah #sweatthetechnique #iaintnojokeishisfavoriterakimsong #mineisericbforpresident #morehousecollege

A post shared by G. Streat (@lifentimesofgstreat) on

That would sum it up for real, for real. Just like this line, genius in all its simplicity, Rakim can take what might seem common and change someone’s life. Yeah… he is not just a good person… but a dope lyricist too.

The post Rakim Stops at Morehouse College to Drop Jewels on Humility, Purpose and Being a Dope Lyricist appeared first on The Source.

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Samuel L. Jackson’s Interview Is Real & Unfiltered…Just Like His Best Characters

On screen, Samuel L. Jackson often plays characters that speak their minds with little compromise. Away from the film, set, the Chattanooga, Tennessee native is no a stranger to voicing his opinions with a similar approach. The unfiltered, often uncensored actor is now 70 years old and is still working within the same industry he broke into during the 1980s.

Jackson has dozens of critically acclaimed roles under his belt and shows no signs of stopping anytime soon. While he’s currently enjoying his praise for playing a young (by way of C.G.I.) Nick Fury in Captain Marvel, Jackson was shadowed and interviewed by Esquire‘s Carvell Wallace. Sam spoke at length about his upbringing, his views on Donald Trump, working with Quentin Tarantino, and overcoming addiction at the exact point his career soared.

Samuel Jackson Joins KRS-One, Talib Kweli & More In The Fight Against Police Violence (Audio)

The versatile actor recalls a diverse set of influences and experiences in his coming of age and collegiate period. “My class, ’66, was famously the first class of sort of street ni**as that they let in. It had to do with folks like Stokely Carmichael, who was in and out of there speaking. And I was radicalized from both ends. From the Black end with Stokely, [H. Rap Brown], and those guys, and the Vietnam vets, and I had an English professor who was driven to Morehouse on the magic bus with [One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest writer] Ken Kesey. And then that was when I started dropping acid, and hanging out with him, and finding out what was happening in Berkeley, and then the white parts of the world,” recalls Jackson. “My whole existence had been Black. I didn’t have a white teacher ’til I got to Morehouse.”

Notably, he pulled from his experience in Atlanta, Georgia for Spike Lee’s School Daze. Of the character “Leeds,” he says he witnessed real-life inspiration during his advanced education. “Those were the dudes that I hung out with when I got to Morehouse,” he recalls. “My mom dropped me off, and I saw a basketball court up the street. So I stopped in the beer store, bought a quart of beer, walked across, asked who was up next. And I balled with them, hung out with them that night, to the point that they didn’t know I went to Morehouse until they saw me at a dance.”

The Academy Awards Finally Do The Right Thing. Spike Lee Wins His 1st Oscar.

The actor admits that the first film where he was clean from drugs was Spike’s Jungle Fever. Released in 1991, the film marked a turning point for Jackson. “All those motherf*ckers at rehab were like, ‘You don’t need to do this movie, because you’re going to have triggers.’ . . . I was like, “Well, sh*t, if for no other reasons, first of all, where the f*ck are you going to get $40,000 in the next six weeks? And second of all, I will never pick up another drug, because I don’t want to see any one of you motherf*ckers ever again.’ I hated them. But that was their job. And I made it through that. So significantly, when ‘Gator’ gets killed at the end of that movie, I always look at it as the death of my…active addiction.”

Jackson’s filmography includes films and casts that have taken home Oscar gold (he was nominated for “Best Supporting Actor” in Pulp Fiction). That same resume includes films that in the eyes of some are not so decorated. When Jackson is told about actors who are picky about taking specific roles for “quality movies,” the actor snaps back, asking, “What’s a quality movie? What the f*ck is that?” He continues, “Quality movies are movies that make me happy, a movie I would’ve gone to see. I’m not trying to make people cry. I’m not trying to do the profound-storytelling thing. I was entertaining. I used to go to movies to forget my f*cking troubles. I used to go to movies to enjoy myself, to get out of my segregated f*cking life, to see what the world was like, to travel. I want people to come, smile, laugh, leave that movie going, ‘Man, that was awesome.’”

Donald Glover Reveals How He’s Hacked The Real Life Matrix

Throughout his career, Jackson has worked closely with Quentin Tarantino. That writer/director, who is white, has received criticism for the dialogue he has written and its use of the n-word. One of Tarantino’s critics has been Spike Lee, another director who Jackson has worked with closely. After defending Tarantino’s use of the n-word in the feature story, elaborating on his roles in banking commercials as of late, and commenting on Donald Trump, Sam Jackson ultimately airs out his entire character. When asked about his opinions alienating or antagonizing fans, Jackson enacts full-transparency.

“I know how many motherf*ckers hate me,” he says to the publication. “‘I’m never going to see a Sam Jackson movie again.’ F*ck I care? If you never went to another movie I did in my life, I’m not going to lose any money. I already cashed that check. F*ck you. Burn up my videotapes. I don’t give a f*ck. ‘You’re an actor. Stick to acting.’ ‘No, motherf*cker. I’m a human being that feels a certain way.’ And some of this sh*t does affect me, because if we don’t have health care, sh*t, and my relatives get sick, they’re going to call my rich ass. I want them to have healthcare. I want them to be able to take care of themselves. This is how I feel. And I count to one 100 some days before I hit ‘send,’ because I know how that sh*t is.”

Dave Chappelle Refuses To Apologize After Calling Singer Daniel Caesar Gay (Video)

As far as Sam’s retirement plans? He’s acting until he can’t do it any longer. “Michael Caine’s still acting, right?,” he tells Esquire. “It’s acting. It’s not like I’m digging a ditch. I go on set, do some sh*t. I go back and sit in my trailer for two hours watching TV, eat a sandwich, read. And I go back and do 10 more minutes and go sit down some more.”

Elsewhere in the Esquire feature, Sam Jackson explains why he refuses to do more than three takes of a scene. He discusses some of the impactful films of his youth, and why he feels greater anger with today’s Conservatism than the segregation he experienced as a child of the South.

On screen, Samuel L. Jackson often plays characters that speak their minds with little compromise. Away from the film, set, the Chattanooga, Tennessee native is no a stranger to voicing his opinions with a similar approach. The unfiltered, often uncensored actor is now 70 years old and is still working within the same industry he broke into during the 1980s.

Jackson has dozens of critically acclaimed roles under his belt and shows no signs of stopping anytime soon. While he’s currently enjoying his praise for playing a young (by way of C.G.I.) Nick Fury in Captain Marvel, Jackson was shadowed and interviewed by Esquire‘s Carvell Wallace. Sam spoke at length about his upbringing, his views on Donald Trump, working with Quentin Tarantino, and overcoming addiction at the exact point his career soared.

Samuel Jackson Joins KRS-One, Talib Kweli & More In The Fight Against Police Violence (Audio)

The versatile actor recalls a diverse set of influences and experiences in his coming of age and collegiate period. “My class, ’66, was famously the first class of sort of street ni**as that they let in. It had to do with folks like Stokely Carmichael, who was in and out of there speaking. And I was radicalized from both ends. From the Black end with Stokely, [H. Rap Brown], and those guys, and the Vietnam vets, and I had an English professor who was driven to Morehouse on the magic bus with [One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest writer] Ken Kesey. And then that was when I started dropping acid, and hanging out with him, and finding out what was happening in Berkeley, and then the white parts of the world,” recalls Jackson. “My whole existence had been Black. I didn’t have a white teacher ’til I got to Morehouse.”

Notably, he pulled from his experience in Atlanta, Georgia for Spike Lee’s School Daze. Of the character “Leeds,” he says he witnessed real-life inspiration during his advanced education. “Those were the dudes that I hung out with when I got to Morehouse,” he recalls. “My mom dropped me off, and I saw a basketball court up the street. So I stopped in the beer store, bought a quart of beer, walked across, asked who was up next. And I balled with them, hung out with them that night, to the point that they didn’t know I went to Morehouse until they saw me at a dance.”

The Academy Awards Finally Do The Right Thing. Spike Lee Wins His 1st Oscar.

The actor admits that the first film where he was clean from drugs was Spike’s Jungle Fever. Released in 1991, the film marked a turning point for Jackson. “All those motherf*ckers at rehab were like, ‘You don’t need to do this movie, because you’re going to have triggers.’ . . . I was like, “Well, sh*t, if for no other reasons, first of all, where the f*ck are you going to get $40,000 in the next six weeks? And second of all, I will never pick up another drug, because I don’t want to see any one of you motherf*ckers ever again.’ I hated them. But that was their job. And I made it through that. So significantly, when ‘Gator’ gets killed at the end of that movie, I always look at it as the death of my…active addiction.”

Jackson’s filmography includes films and casts that have taken home Oscar gold (he was nominated for “Best Supporting Actor” in Pulp Fiction). That same resume includes films that in the eyes of some are not so decorated. When Jackson is told about actors who are picky about taking specific roles for “quality movies,” the actor snaps back, asking, “What’s a quality movie? What the f*ck is that?” He continues, “Quality movies are movies that make me happy, a movie I would’ve gone to see. I’m not trying to make people cry. I’m not trying to do the profound-storytelling thing. I was entertaining. I used to go to movies to forget my f*cking troubles. I used to go to movies to enjoy myself, to get out of my segregated f*cking life, to see what the world was like, to travel. I want people to come, smile, laugh, leave that movie going, ‘Man, that was awesome.’”

Donald Glover Reveals How He’s Hacked The Real Life Matrix

Throughout his career, Jackson has worked closely with Quentin Tarantino. That writer/director, who is white, has received criticism for the dialogue he has written and its use of the n-word. One of Tarantino’s critics has been Spike Lee, another director who Jackson has worked with closely. After defending Tarantino’s use of the n-word in the feature story, elaborating on his roles in banking commercials as of late, and commenting on Donald Trump, Sam Jackson ultimately airs out his entire character. When asked about his opinions alienating or antagonizing fans, Jackson enacts full-transparency.

“I know how many motherf*ckers hate me,” he says to the publication. “‘I’m never going to see a Sam Jackson movie again.’ F*ck I care? If you never went to another movie I did in my life, I’m not going to lose any money. I already cashed that check. F*ck you. Burn up my videotapes. I don’t give a f*ck. ‘You’re an actor. Stick to acting.’ ‘No, motherf*cker. I’m a human being that feels a certain way.’ And some of this sh*t does affect me, because if we don’t have health care, sh*t, and my relatives get sick, they’re going to call my rich ass. I want them to have healthcare. I want them to be able to take care of themselves. This is how I feel. And I count to one 100 some days before I hit ‘send,’ because I know how that sh*t is.”

Dave Chappelle Refuses To Apologize After Calling Singer Daniel Caesar Gay (Video)

As far as Sam’s retirement plans? He’s acting until he can’t do it any longer. “Michael Caine’s still acting, right?,” he tells Esquire. “It’s acting. It’s not like I’m digging a ditch. I go on set, do some sh*t. I go back and sit in my trailer for two hours watching TV, eat a sandwich, read. And I go back and do 10 more minutes and go sit down some more.”

Elsewhere in the Esquire feature, Sam Jackson explains why he refuses to do more than three takes of a scene. He discusses some of the impactful films of his youth, and why he feels greater anger with today’s Conservatism than the segregation he experienced as a child of the South.

Source: AmbrosiaForHeads.com

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