72 Search results for "the blues"

by Donnie Moreland  This essay mentions domestic violence.  August Wilson once noted, “The blues are important primarily because they contain the cultural expression and the cultural response to blacks in America and to the situation that they find themselves in.” I believe this to be true, in so far as the Blues may no longer […]

The recent deaths of police officers have spurred a legal backlash in many states, with so called “Blue Lives Matter” legislation that would qualify negative interactions with police by civilians or protesters as a hate crime. This legislation has recently come to Chicago, with a proposed expansion to the Hate Crime Ordinance which would treat […]

A blues band claims their performance was cut short at a bar in Chicago because there were “too many black people” in the audience. The band performed at McNally’s Traditional Irish Pub in Beverly, and was told by Mike Cummings, who booked the band for the establishment they were done for the evening. 

Dear Robin #Thicke, Let me begin by congratulating you for having the song of the summer. “Blurred Lines.” Despite the many problems with the lyrics and accompanying video, “Blurred Lines” is a bona fide (Hello, Jon B.) hit. It’s catchy, it exhibits deft use of a sample and your falsetto. It’s being used to sell […]

by Charles Tremblay Black culture is everywhere, on runways, in music, even in the way people speak and move online. But the people who create it, especially Black women, are rarely protected when culture is copied, mocked, or commodified. This is especially apparent in K-pop, where Black aesthetics, from language to hairstyles, are often adopted […]

by Michael J. Ivory, Jr. The day I told my Pentecostal preacher parents I didn’t want to attend church with them anymore, I remember feeling a profound freedom. For once, I chose my Black queer body’s peace over witnessing my existence being raked over hellfire coals. No more shallowed breath at the altar. No more […]

by Juahl Ganaway In a scene ripped from The Sugar Shack, the character Pearline (played by the stunning Jayme Lawson) stalks across the stage purring the lyrics to “Pale, Pale, Moon,” the Brittany Howard-penned song that feels more like an invocation than a performance.  “I wanna sing Like I hear the crickets do I wanna […]

by Tayler Simon In the 2024-2025 school year, more than 4,000 unique titles were banned in the United States. Titles like All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson and The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison were among the most challenged books, reflecting a trend of targeting books by Black and/or LGBTQ+ authors. While all […]

by E’mon Lauren   Chicago, a crafty caucus, we cocooned in. a kid’s folded cot and cubby. we the poster childs. the classes, the pastels and pastillage. we be born here. we burn the bridges, the borders. the blues, crossing and cutting, our lines, a Van Gogh. our skyline, a Monet we walk through. we […]

*Please note that below this essay on colorism is a list of dark skinned Black folks’ GoFundMes you can contribute to today.* Adults, older girls, shops, magazines, newspapers, window signs – all the world had agreed that a blue-eyed, yellow-haired, pink-skinned doll was what every girl child treasured. – The Bluest Eye, Toni Morrison  The […]

Early Wednesday morning the National Book Awards committees cut down their long lists of forty works to the final twenty book selections across Poetry, Fiction, Non-Fiction and Young People’s Literature categories. According to NPR, two legacy winners have already been announced: Annie Proulx, who is being honored with the Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American […]

Not too long ago, depression was merely viewed as “the blues,” people with anxiety were just “high-strung,” and mental disorders were all lumped into insensitive categories. But people coming out to publicly discuss their personal battles with mental health has helped make mental health more important to the general public.