Chances are that if you attended a historically Black college or university, you are familiar with James Weldon Johnson’s “Lift Every Voice,” the proclaimed Negro national anthem. You sang it, recited it, and committed it to memory. Written as a
Opening a small local business has its pros and cons in the best of times. Opening a business during an unprecedented global pandemic and year of social unrest is risky — for some. However, entrepreneur and running enthusiast Ian Gonzalez
Tagged as a musical about depression, Nikki Lynette’s stage play, Get Out Alive, is an Afrogothic celebration of life, loss and the lessons learned along the way. A performer, writer, and visual artist, Lynette uses this autobiographical work to recount
Earth is the only home we have. If we don’t start now to turn around the environmental damage we have caused, we might not be around to save it and the plants and animals that we depend on. As a
Chef Latrice McArthur has a lot to be proud of. Her program, Wellness with Bella, recently was honored for its work with helping school-age children make better decisions about what they eat. Bella Cuisine began in 2010 as an afterschool
Not too long ago, Quilen Blackwell, founder of Chicago Eco House, was tutoring at a high school in Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood. He encountered the challenges of inner-city poverty and how it affects young people who live in that community. In
Sheri Sher is best known as a founding member of the all-female hip-hop group Mercedes Ladies that formed in the late 1970s. She is also one of several Black women associated with hip-hop music and entertainment who appear in the
Blacks and Hispanics are housed in U.S. prisons disproportionately to their racial counterparts. Once released, finding stable income, housing and acceptance back in society are just a few obstacles they face. Hector Guadalupe, the founder of A Second U Foundation,
R&B singer-songwriter Guordan Banks is planning something special as his way to give back to a community hurt by the COVID-19 pandemic. Banks will present an online live concert to benefit the Mirror Musicians Fund, which he established to provide
It started simple enough. Through her church, Chicago Housing Authority resident and retiree Jeliner Jordan was asked to make masks for a nursing home. Jordan’s masks became so popular, word spread and Jordan’s second career was born. For many years, the
For the busy female professional or vacationer who wants to travel with the least amount of effort, fashion designer Karyn Pettigrew might have just the solution for you. The Chicago native has created a fashion line called ZoeGoes, a six-piece
Roger Carter is an award-winning visual artist and event coordinator at Gallery Guichard in Chicago. He was introduced to street art as a teenager in the late 1980s, which seeded his dreams to follow in the footsteps of graffiti artists.
Acclaimed Philadelphia-based playwright James Ijames is readying himself for the Chicago premiere of his play Kill Move Paradise at the TimeLine Theatre. Directed by Wardell Julius Clark, the cast is set in purgatory, where four young Black men who have
Chicago playwright Messiah Equiano, the multitalented actor and director of the acclaimed stage play The Penis Monologues is excited and thrilled to present his latest work, When MARS Meets VENUS. Equiano’s story follows the lives of MARShall Jones and VENUS
Shakespeare has been getting some much-needed reimagining of its characters and plays thanks in part to national theatrical companies across the country. Under the guidance of artistic director Barbara Gaines, the Chicago Shakespeare Theater brings Romeo and Juliet to the stage
Playwright Donja Love makes the audience consider queer love among slaves. First Floor Theater launched its eighth season with the Chicago premiere of Sugar in Our Wounds by Love. Directed by Mikael Burke, the tale is set in the antebellum
Steppenwolf is unafraid to bring theater that makes you think about the world around us. With that being said, Steppenwolf for Young Adults presents The Brothers Size by ensemble member Tarell Alvin McCraney and directed by acclaimed director Monty Cole. A Chicago native,
OWN’s new coming-of-age drama television series from Academy Award winner Tarell Alvin McCraney, “David Makes Man,” tells the story of David becoming a man with all the hopes, dreams and disappointments that come along with that endeavor. David is an
Steppenwolf Theatre kicked off its 2019-2020 season with the theatrically acclaimed The Great Leap by playwright Lauren Yee. Born and raised in San Francisco, Yee wrote the play in honor of her father. Set against the backdrop of post-cultural revolution
The Gene Siskel Film Centers celebrates the 25th Anniversary of its Black Harvest Film Festival, which will showcase 17 feature films and over 40 shorts films by some of the most talented filmmakers in the business. Among the honorees, Sergio
