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music

The Civil Rights Movement Through Music

sing_for_freedomThere are times when I think there’s nothing more powerful than music to convey the broad spectrum of human emotion and experience. When that music has words, whatever meaning is left out by the words is picked up by the melody, harmony, and rhythm. And the history and cultural depth and experience that’s brought with the music, either in the music itself or through it’s performers and their interpretation, tells so much more than just words or pictures alone.

Here’s a playlist from Smithsonian Folkways via Rdio with some powerful music from the Civil Rights Movement.

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general

Why Didn’t Anyone Warn Me About Big Freedia?!!!

Now that I’m an old man and dad, I’m pretty much always late to the game. Hence it’s not rare that some new-fangled shit hits me out of nowhere. Today’s? “Bounce” music and the rising Big Freedia. Um, yeaaaaaah. Why didn’t anyone warn me? Why do I have to find this out when I’m alone and unprotected? See and hear for yourself:

Categories
general

“Colored Me” (spoken word by Samantha Richards)

One of the benefits of my job is discovering the amazing things that teachers and students across the country are doing inside and outside of the classroom, with writing. Here’s an example from a poetry event at the Nuyorican Poet’s Cafe, hosted by the New York City Writing Project. Enjoy: