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July 13, 2016 The Skanner Page 7 Arts & Entertainment Mark Obama Ndesandjo: First Brother Raps about His Autobiography and Barack By Kam Williams For The Skanner News B orn in Kenya in 1965 to Ruth Baker and Barack Obama, Sr., Mark Obama Ndesandjo is an accom- plished musician, author, artist and businessman. Prior to settling in Shen- zhen, China, he earned a BS in Physics from Brown University, an MS in Physics from Stanford, and an MBA from Emory. A half-brother of Pres- ident Obama, Mark con- sults worldwide, em- ploying his considerable t el e c o m mu n i c a t i o n s , international marketing and branding experi- ence gained as a senior manager at Lucent, Nor- tel and other companies. He is also fluent in Man- darin, both as a speaker “ ano CDs, “The Untimely Ones,” “Night Moods” and his own composition “Reflections on William Blake.” He regularly gives pi- ano lessons to orphans in and around the city of Shenzhen, and he was ap- pointed Volunteer Image Ambassador and Special Olympics Image Ambas- sador by China. Further- more, he founded the Mark Obama Ndesandjo Foundation, Ltd for cul- tural exchange, whose goal is to bring art to dis- advantaged youth. Kam Williams: Hi, Mark. Thanks for the in- terview. Mark Obama Ndesand- jo: No, I am actually very honored, and I’m glad we finally linked up. It’s been months, hasn’t it? son in many ways. I’ve read your interviews. You’ve touched base with so many interesting peo- ple from all over. KW: Including your sis- ter, Maya, who touched me at the end of my inter- view with her, when she said, “I won’t forget you and I would love to meet you someday.” MON: That’s great! The art of the interview includes understanding yourself, and if one is try- ing to be thoughtful, it’s a way in which one can see parts of yourself that perhaps weren’t so clear before. So, you have a very important tool, and I can understand what Maya meant. KW: Did you know that I also went to Brown and When he said that he’d only met me for the first time a couple of years before, when he really hadn’t, it was very surprising and disappoint- ing to me, because it seemed like politics were taking precedence over family and as a writer, and he’s an avid brush calligra- pher, too. As an author, he has published the novel, “Nairobi to Shenzhen,” as well as an intrigu- ing autobiography, “An Obama’s Journey.” Musi- cally, he’s released 3 pi- [Laughs] KW: Yeah, the 12-hour time difference can make it a little hard to connect by phone. I already know that from writing for some Asian outlets. MON: That’s right. You’re truly a global per- Lear cont’d from pg 6 the Top 10 TV shows in the country. Despite the unparal- leled achievement, Nor- man occasionally found himself facing discon- tent in the ranks, such as a rebellion on the set of “Good Times.” It seems that some of its cast mem- bers had become upset about the series’ portray- al of African Americans. Esther Rolle, who played Florida, com- plained about the buf- foonery, while John Amos, who played her husband, James, became so disillusioned that he left the program after three seasons at the peak of the program’s popu- larity. Matters came to a head when the Black Panthers stormed Lear’s office, demanding that he present some positive African American char- acters. That prompted Norman to give Archie Bunker’s irascible neigh- bor George Jefferson his own spinoff as a wealthy businessman “movin’ on up” on Manhattan’s ex- clusive Upper East Side. Co-directed by Os- car-nominees Heidi Ew- ing and Rachel Grady (for Jesus Camp), “Nor- man Lear: Just Another Version of You” is an intriguing retrospec- tive offering a revealing peek inside the mind of a pivotal figure in the evo- lution of American cul- ture. For, Lear, now 93, appears prominently in the documentary, along with luminaries like George Clooney, Jay Leno and Russell Simmons, to name a few. An alternately pen- etrating and poignant portrait of a true trail- blazer! Excellent HHHH Unrated Running time: 91 min. Studio: Loki Films Distributor: Music Box Films To see a trailer for Nor- man Lear: Just Anoth- er Version of You, visit: TheSkanner.com. lived in the Grad Towers while I was there. MON: Omigosh! Anoth- er Thayer Street refugee. [Laughs] What a small world it is, Kam. KW: I found “An Obama’s Journey” fasci- nating. MON: Thank you. It was a very difficult book Mark Obama Ndesandjo to write. KW: I can imagine. It’s so revealing emotional- ly. Plus, you had to deal with the burden of your brother’s being in the public eye. MON: I’m so glad you liked it. Writing a book, you have to reach very deep inside of yourself to share a message that will touch the readers. Other- wise, people will know, and it won’t connect. KW: Some of what you wrote about Barack, like how, for political rea- sons, he lied to the press about when he first met you, was very revealing. MON: One of the fo- cuses was just to share some of the important facts that have shaped lives in our country and in individuals in my family. Hopefully, peo- ple can take positive les- sons from that, and use it to make a change or do something positive. I don’t speak for Barack. I speak for myself, as you know. There are many things about him that are difficult and almost inscrutable. That’s part of the mystery and also part of the reason for his success. When he said that he’d only met me for the first time a couple of years before, when he really hadn’t, it was very surprising and disap- pointing to me, because it seemed like politics were taking precedence over family. Having been through the excesses and the extreme emotional politics of family dynam- ics had already made me very sensitive. But that being said, I support my brother. He’s a remark- able person, and he’s changed my life in many ways. KW: I have asked for permission to interview him many times, but the White House has repeat- edly declined. Should I give up at this point? MON: I hope that you get a chance to interview him one day. It’ll prob- ably happen. So, don’t worry too much about it. [Laughs] See IINTERVIEW on page 11
