I love writing, but you wouldn’t know that from how infrequently I have been updating on this blog. WHOOPS! I could list any of the normal reasons as to why I am not keeping up with this (i’ve been busy, i’ve been sick, I had to fully recover after seeing Michael B. Jordan in the Creed II trailer, etc.), but the honest truth is, I didn’t know what I wanted to write about.
A lot has been going on y’all. In the world, of course, but specifically in the worlds of media and entertainment, where I spend most of my time. I spent a lot of time wondering what topic I wanted to try to “tackle” next. What big event, issue, movement, movie did I want to bring attention to? Did I want to keep it light and create a fun list of my favorite podcasts** or did I want to expound upon the intense conversations I have been having in real life about the representation of black people in mainstream media? Did I want to fashion a collage of all of Susan Kelechi Watson’s amazing natural hairstyles in Season 3 of This Is Us
Damn.
or discuss the lack of sufficient media coverage on the alarming murder rates of our transgender citizens? Did I want to share my “Top 10 FAV Fall Eyeshadow Colors” (spoiler alert: I don’t have any because eyeshadow is the Devil’s maquillage) or did I want to GO OFF on how ridiculous I think it is that the opinions of straight, white, and able-bodied theatre critics can still be so damaging to theatrical works that were intentionally created for people of color, the LGBTQ+ community, the disabled, and all intersections of these folks? Decisions, DECISIONS!!!!!
Anyway…I think I’m going to touch on just a few of the things that have been rambling around my media-centric mind lately. The following passages may not be cohesive. You may disagree with them. You may not have the ability to even pretend like you care about them. But I’m gunna write them down anyway so, LEGGO!
1. No matter who you are, you should feel emboldened to FOLLOW YOUR DREAM. Why? BECAUSE OLD WHITE DUDES HAVE BEEN DOING IT UNSUCCESFULLY FOR CENTURIES. Of course there is nothing wrong with anyone making mistakes (we are artists, we are in the business of mistakes), but if the mediocre work of white writers, directors, and actors is going to continue to be produced-let’s balance these scales with some more mediocre shows of color as well. Tyler Perry cannot carry this torch alone. Earlier this week, I attended a screening of a film that I cannot mention because everyone in the entertainment industry guards their work like it’s Fort Knox. It was helmed by a very well-known and respected artist who has been working on this project for almost a DECADE. You’d think that would be enough time to make it good right????? HAHAHA, WRONG! Even though the cast was stuffed with A-list actors, the script was finally “perfected,” and the majority of the film was all edited…………..Y’ALL…………….it was awful. The only thing I left with is inspiration to create whatever I wanted to, because if this guy could get millions upon millions of dollars to make this nonsense come to life, then I deserve to start making some nonsense too.
To give this even more context, I am watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on TV as I type this, and there are two white bros hopping around on a float (I think they are trying to dance??) called “Jack & Jack.” I mean…c’mon.
2. Nikki Giovanni is a great writer because she knows how to whip words around until they know how to serve her. She is not the kind of writer who “finds the right words” to explain what she means, she is the kind of writer who explains what she means and her words make damn sure that they are telling the story correctly. Does this make sense? If it doesn’t, check out a copy of Gemini: An Extended Autobiographical Statement on My First Twenty-Five Years of Being a Black Poet. It’s one of the best books I have read all year.
3. A lot of men do not take the #MeToo movement seriously. I mean, a lot of women don’t either, but I’m not coming for them right now. I cannot even count the number of times a grown man has said something sexually inappropriate to me, and followed it with a bellied laugh, and then something along the lines of “whoops, not tryna get #metoo-ed” or “you’re not gunna #metoo me, are you?” The ridicule of this movement has got to stop. More importantly, the predatory nature of grown (and usually ugly!!!) men has got to stop. Do not call me out in the street. Do not comment on any part of my body. Do not ask for my Instagram before asking for my name. What will that get you? From the normal me, it’ll probably get you a smart remark, a flip of the old bird, or an eye-roll of epic proportions. From my alter ego, the one that comes out approximately 5-6 days before I get my period, it’ll get you a full on expletive-filled mouthful and at least one abstract object chucked at your head. Don’t roll the dice as to which chick you’re gunna get. If a girl looks good, it is more than possible to tell her that without making her feel like a piece of meat. I know you can do it. And if you can’t, you don’t deserve us.
4. As if the cast of the Cats movie adaptation could not get any stranger…
So many questions…
…Jason Derulo (the worst) and Rebel Wilson (who is convinced that she is the only fat rom-com lead to ever exist, even though Queen Latifah, Jill Scott, and Mo’Nique have been doing the damn thing since I was in diapers) were just added. Who needs this? Literally, can you name ONE person who needs this? I can’t.
5. Let’s end on a positive note, shall we? Or, even better, let’s end on a note of gratitude since it is Thanksgiving time. Nevermind the fact that Thanksgiving is an extremely problematic holiday, thatessentiallyglorifiesthegenocideofanindegenoussocietyculturenationvaluesideals…………………..lemme stop 🙂
Aside from the usual blessings that I try to honor every day (peace of mind, family, health, friends-in that order), I am also grateful for:
Eucalyptus Candes
Women who feel genuinely called to lift each other up
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (see above)
Shake Shack’s vegan burger (at select locations)
The Hallmark Channel releasing its first set of Christmas movies with black leads
Rihanna
And this Tweet:
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
***This will probably happen…and it will probably be my next blog post.
BRITTANI WITH AN I 