December 21, 2016 The Skanner Page 7
Arts & Entertainment
FILM REVIEW: ‘13th’ Indicts
Criminal Justice System as
Vestige of Slavery
John Legend: The ‘La La Land’ Interview
By Kam Williams
For The Skanner News
O
hio-born
John
Legend
is
an
award-winning,
platinum-selling
singer/songwriter. His
work has garnered him
ten Grammy Awards,
an Oscar and a Golden
Globe, among others. A
graduate of the Univer-
sity of Pennsylvania,
where he studied En-
glish and African Amer-
ican literature, John par-
ticipated in a wide range
of musical activities
while in college.
During that period,
he was introduced to
Lauryn Hill, who hired
him to play piano on her
track “Everything Is Ev-
erything.” Shortly there-
aft er, he began to play
shows around the Phila-
delphia area, eventually
expanding his audience
base to New York, Bos-
ton, Atlanta and Wash-
ington, D.C.
Aft er college, he was
introduced to an up-
and-coming hip hop art-
ist named Kanye West.
Kanye quickly signed
John to his G.O.O.D.
Music imprint and had
him sing vocal hooks on
some of his tunes.
John’s career start-
ed gaining momentum
through a series of
similar collaborations
with established art-
ists. He added vocals
to an impressive list of
chart-topping hits in-
Ava DuVernay's '13th' investigates the criminal justice sytem
John Legend and Ryan Gosling in ‘La La Land’
cluding Kanye’s “All of
the Lights,” Jay-Z’s “En-
core” and backup vocals
on Alicia Keys’ 2003
song, “You Don’t Know
My Name.”
John’s debut album,
Get Lift ed, was released
to critical acclaim in
December of 2004 by
Columbia Records. The
album landed multiple
Grammys,
including
Best R&B Album, Best
New Artist and Best
Male R&B Vocal Perfor-
mance. And earlier this
year, John won his fi rst
Academy Award for
“Glory,” a song he wrote
and performed with
Common for the fi lm
Selma.
Throughout his ca-
reer, John has worked to
make a diff erence in the
lives of others. In 2007,
he launched the Show
Me Campaign (Show-
MeCampaign.org), an
initiative that focuses
on education as a key
to breaking the cycle of
poverty.
He’s received the 2010
BET Humanitarian of
the Year Award, the
2009 CARE Humanitar-
ian Award for Global
Change, the 2009 Bishop
John T. Walker Distin-
guished Humanitarian
Service Award from Af-
ricare, and the 2011 Har-
vard Foundation Artist
of the Year Award.
Here, he shares his
thoughts about playing
his fi rst, major movie
role opposite Ryan Gos-
ling and Emma Stone
in La La Land, a picture
which he also executive
produced. And he talks
about his philanthrop-
ic work and his new
album, Darkness and
Light, too.
KW: Let me start by
asking what made you
decide to do this fi lm
with Damien [writer/
director Damien Cha-
zelle]?
JL: Well, it really start-
ed with meeting him as
a fi lmmaker in my ca-
pacity as a producer, be-
cause my company, Get
Lift ed Film Company,
has done a few movies
and a couple of televi-
sion shows now. We love
meeting with up-and-
coming directors who
are doing great things.
And, obviously, upon
the success of “Whip-
lash,” Damien was some-
See LEGEND on page 11
By Kam Williams
For The Skanner News
M
any felt that Ava
DuVernay was
snubbed
when
she wasn’t nom-
inated for an Oscar for
directing "Selma." Fur-
thermore, none of the
picture’s cast or crew
members were nominat-
ed, despite the fact that
it had been very well re-
ceived by audiences and
critics alike. But “Selma”
apparently wasn’t being
singled out, as African
Americans were entirely
overlooked by the Acade-
my for the second year in
a row.
Since then, the Acad-
emy has taken steps to
make the Oscars more in-
clusive, starting with in-
viting more minorities to
join its ranks. That bodes
well for Ava in terms
of her latest off ering,
“13th,”a searing indict-
ment of the criminal jus-
tice system as a shameful
vestige of chattel slavery.
The
documentary’s
title was inspired by
the 13th Amendment to
the Constitution which
ended the institution of
slavery “except as a pun-
See 13TH on page 11
50th Anniversary
2016 KWANZAA Festival Of Events
CELEBRATING FAMILY, COMMUNITY AND CULTURE
Theme: “Kwanzaa, The Nguzo Saba and Our Constant Striving:
Repairing, Renewing and Remaking Our World”
Thank You
PassinArt: A Theatre Company would like to
extend our appreciation for your attendance
and support of our 2015-2016 Season that
included Tommy J and Sally; Smoldering Fires
and our special holiday performances of
Black Nativity by Langston Hughes.
PassinArt: A Theatre Company mission is to
entertain, educate and inspire artists and
theatergoers while highlighting issues facing
our community; and celebrating our culture
and history; please go to www.passinart.net.
Wishing you hope, peace and unity among
your families, friends, and neighbors in the
New Year.
Featuring Okropong
Professional musicians and dancers from Ghana
Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Kwanzaa
Libation, Umoja Candle lighting Ceremony,
Poetry, Food, African Marketplace
Monday, December 26, 2016 • 1:00 pm-4:00 pm
Matt Dishman Community Center, 77 NE Knott St.
Dec 27: KUJICHAGULIA - Self Determination
N. Portland Library, 512 N Killingsworth St. • 6-7:30 pm
Dec. 28: UJIMA - Collective Work and Responsibility
Maranatha Church, Multi-Purpose Room
4222 NE 12th Ave (enter on Skidmore St.) • 6-8 pm
Dec 29: UJAMAA Cooperative Economics
Diverse and Empowered Employees of Portland
Billy Webb Elks Lodge, 6 N Tillamook • 5-7 pm
Dec 30: NIA Purpose
The REAL Program (Recovery, Empowerment, Achievement in Life
Umoja Center, 4941 NE 17th Ave. • 6:30-8:30 pm
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