(ThyBlackMan.com) There’s something about James Cleveland’s voice that feels like home. Maybe it’s the way he blends sermon with song, or maybe it’s the unshakable honesty in every word he sings. For me—and for so many others—his music isn’t just gospel; it’s therapy, it’s church, it’s family, it’s healing. This ...
(ThyBlackMan.com) One thing about us, we know our people when we see them. You can watch one Druski clip and before the skit even gets rolling good, somebody in the room will say, “That sound just like Ray Ray,” or “That’s Sister Johnson from church right there.” That is why ...
(ThyBlackMan.com) I have heard this debate in barbershops, at cookouts, around card tables, and in those long talks where somebody swears they are not arguing while clearly arguing. Put Michael Jackson and James Brown in the same sentence and you are going to wake up somebody’s opinion. One person will ...
(ThyBlackMan.com) The new Michael film has done more than sell tickets. It has opened up a fresh conversation between generations. Older folks who remember the moonwalk when it first shook living rooms are now sitting beside young people who only knew clips, memes, and short videos. That kind of passing ...
(ThyBlackMan.com) Peabo Bryson was one of those singers you did not have to explain too much to a certain generation. Just say his name around folks who came up on real R&B, and somebody in the room is going to nod before you even finish the sentence. That is how ...
(ThyBlackMan.com) How is it that the “Saxophone Colossus” Sonny Rollins lived to 95? Aren’t jazz musicians supposed to die at tragically early ages? Actually, that’s a myth that Rollins and others proved flawed. It’s true that Bix Beiderbecke, king of the cornet, was gone at 28, Charlie Parker at 34, ...
(ThyBlackMan.com) Sometimes a joke can tell you more about America than a serious speech ever could, and this whole Kevin Hart roast situation got a lot of Black folks sitting back wondering where comedy really ends once Black pain enters the room. Yeah, roasts are supposed to get disrespectful. Everybody ...
(ThyBlackMan.com) When the news broke that Sonny Rollins passed away at 95, it honestly felt like a piece of American music history slipped away quietly in the middle of the night. Some artists become famous. Some become respected. Then there are rare souls who reach a point where their name ...
(ThyBlackMan.com) A lot of brothers my age remember when a Spike Lee movie actually felt like something important was about to happen. You did not just walk into the theater looking for explosions or mindless entertainment. Nah, you knew Spike was bringing conversation with him. Folks were going to laugh, ...
(ThyBlackMan.com) For many brothers growing up through the late eighties and nineties, Denzel Washington felt familiar long before most of us ever saw him in person. He carries himself like somebody you might hear speaking wisdom at a cookout, sitting on a porch late in the evening, or giving game ...
(ThyBlackMan.com) When news broke that Rob Base had passed away after a private cancer battle, a whole era of Hip Hop memories came rushing back. Before social media. Before streaming numbers. Before rap became so polished and corporate. Back then, records had to move people physically. A DJ dropped the ...
(ThyBlackMan.com) When he ran to become president, the current occupant in the Oval Office stated, “We’re going to win so much, you may even get tired of winning. And you’ll say, ‘Please, please, it’s too much winning.” I don’t know about you, but I can truly say I need a ...