While on tour in Japan. Instruments for the tour provided by Casio.
I hadn’t chimed in on this global conversation because it seemed frivolous and I don’t know who started the hotly contested Facebook debate. In truth, this smacks of church talk between services! In researching the topic though, I discovered a story from earlier this year that shared the “shady” practices of Sofar Sounds and its intimate concerts. Bands booked by Sofar Sounds report a total payout of merely $100. Remember, that’s per band and not per man. Depending on the band, each member leaves the 25 minute show with just enough for a #1 at any fast food restaurant, nearby. If the band is smaller, they can get gas and a meal after the show. While raking in a $25M , Sofar Sounds has done so on the backs of artists and bands who’ve received a minuscule portion of that. Before you light the torches in favor of bands, consider the hosts of these concerts who receive NOTHING.
Enter the American Federation of Musicians. No, they didn’t get involved, you’d know it if they did. No AFM member would sign up to be a part of a setup like this, nor could they! The union fights hard so that AFM members don’t have to accept $100 gigs and many musicians aren’t union to leave the wiggle room for the occasional $100 gig. About 10 years ago, the going rate for solo piano was above $100/hr and I think it precluded venues like churches.
In fact, many of the union musicians that come to mind are classical, studio, film, and award show musicians. You don’t really hear about them until a local symphony goes on strike and interrupts a theatre’s production season. The musicians are well qualified and well taken care of by the standards set by the American Federation of Musicians. The union is also home to many select job opportunities you don’t simply walk into. International tours, television appearances, house bands for shows and much more are part of union work and audition notices are sent out, monthly. These guys wouldn’t entertain a $100 gig because they simply can’t do it-it undermines the union, its standards and practices.
Those of us non-union musicians with families who can afford it opt to stay home but I think across the board, it comes down to just doing whatever you want to and for whatever reason. I know plenty people who will sit in church for a 3 hour service for a yard and cats who will do a three hour gig with breaks for the same. I’ve gotten great gigs because what was offered ($100 and more) wasn’t good enough for the first call.
2013 in Japan with the Glory Gospel Singers
It’s okay, and I have turned some down without even offering another option because of what’s been offered. I recall a few months ago, Dallas musicians were calling for some solidarity at these dinner venues, bars and clubs because they were constantly being low balled despite bringing in high profits and packing out the venue.
To date, I have seen really great responses to this viral conversation/argument. Let’s be fair though, there are musicians who scoff at $1K gigs just as easily as musicians are lambasting $100, today. It’s all about what you will accept and what you ultimately agree to! Some musicians would rather do an occasional gig (home church, former school, etc) for free rather than accept money that doesn’t cover their rate. To them it’s better to give than receive. I believe that in the end, whether or not $100 is enough, isn’t a determination of a musician’s value, but a determination of that musician’s value of money!
What’s your take on the $100 conversation? Share your thoughts in the comments section, below.
Kirk Franklin performs at the 50th GMA Dove Awards
Last night on the telecast of the 50th GMA Dove Awards, a portion of Kirk Franklin’s award acceptance was edited and omitted part of his speech, to the chagrin of many in the gospel community. Namely, RCA Inspiration SVP and GM, Phil Thornton took issue with the omission and called out GMA and TBN in a series of tweets. The controversy comes on the heels of what was an otherwise iconic night of celebration.
The Gospel Music Association replied with an explanation that many speeches were cut in the interest of time and that there was no malice behind the omission of a portion of Franklin’s speech. They also hoped to air the speech in its entirety, soon.
“A young girl by the name of Atatiana Jefferson was shot and killed in her home by a policeman and I am just asking that we send up prayers for her family and for his, and asking that we send up prayers for that 8-year-old little boy that saw that tragedy,”
As stated by Phil Thornton, the issue is not in the editing itself, rather it is the content chosen to be omitted. While it’s easy to be upset with the Gospel Music Association and the Trinity Broadcasting Network, there remains a more prevalent persistence that demands our attention and action. Black and white Christians have very different experiences in America. While many white Christians still enjoy the many, even unintentional benefits of white privilege, many blacks in America are still subject to the fact that America’s greatest sin is its unrepentant, native sin.
Because we are monotheistic but not monolithic, we suffer chasms within the faith community. We can seemingly all agree on certain political points the bible supports, or do we? Entitlement benefits, morality in the white house and international diplomacy are all issues believers invoke scripture to support or refute. Police brutality is an issue many evangelicals don’t seem to feel the need to address. For this reason, a deep divide has persisted within our communities. But the DOVE Awards is not apolitical, not in the least. One of the show’s sponsors this year is My Faith Votes, an association committed to galvanizing the faith community to take part in each election. So, if police brutality is a political issue, it’s not a political issue the GMA cares to engage its base to take action against.
I’m not sure what the culprit is, whether it’s racism, apathy or a trivialization of the pain that persists in our community. Blacks today at large still face systemic racism and the fight for equality and equity in shared spaces rages on, even within the church. Black and white communities in the Kingdom still exist separate and apart from each other; and with that issue seemingly at the heart of the cutting room omission, I decided to share this essay.
The cacophony of cognitive dissonance is drowning out the sound of racial harmony in the Gospel/Christian music community
We don’t get to “shut up and sing gospel music…” when something affects our community, we are expected to say something. In fact, it’s a good idea that when you see something, you say something, right? In most cases, this is true. While we’re working vehemently to interpret scripture and its meaning for all members of Christ’s family, some issues are clear cut, er…black and white.
When Kirk Franklin graces the stage at Lipscomb University to speak during the LIVE taping of the Dove Awards, you can prepare to be amused and challenged. Franklin has mastered the art of universal communication and whether using self-deprecating humor or scripture, he reaches the listening audience in a way that only he can.
Over the years, his time at the microphone has matched his heart, sharing his hopes for racial unity and even taking a moment to pray. This year, at the 50th GMA Dove Awards was no different and Franklin took time to share what was on his heart about the tragic killing of Atatiana Jefferson here in our hometown of Fort Worth, Texas.
Miss Jefferson died at the hands of a police officer, Aaron Dean who has since resigned from the force and is now facing charges. Franklin has openly shared his heart about the shooting on his social media channel and for those closely following him, the speech at the DOVE Awards came as no surprise.
What was surprising, disappointing and even disparaging was the omission of a portion of Franklin’s speech on the edited, televised version of the awards show- to the dismay of many in the gospel community. This omission was seen as more than a cutting room floor decision, but part of a greater problem faced when the gospel and Christian music communities converge.
Instead of harmony and reconciliation, the cacophony of cognitive dissonance further widens the racial divide. When one side can’t see what is impacting the other side, we can never bond together and work to solve each other’s problems- together. In truth, the fact that there are other sides when we are supposedly on the same side (the Kingdom of God) is a problem, within itself. Franklin has called not only for racial unity, but for love to increase. Love from the law enforcement community that will reach citizens and love from citizens to reach and impact the law enforcement community. Because so much time is spent apart in their respective microcosms, many gospel and Christian music artists rarely interact apart from the DOVE Awards.
No Sleeping Allowed, Church. The “WOKE” Movement Should Be No Stranger to Sunday Morning
But when issues are raised in our shared spaces, don’t we then have the onus of at least trying to help? This again begs the question raised in Luke 10:29, “who is my neighbor?” For many, the issue of distance is the source of the dissonance. We often find ourselves pleading for help ad nauseam because our brothers and sisters in the Kingdom can’t feel our pain. “I can’t hear you because that’s not my experience!” Perhaps the source of the dissonance is distance to those in need, “I know nothing about that issue and don’t know how to help!” Sadly, the most painful source of the dissonance is the neighbor you tell about your problem. Because they don’t see you as their neighbor, they ascribe no ownership of the problem, nor can they see any potential for their investment in the solution.
But if it ails one, it ails all…this is our belief as Christians, isn’t it?! Isn’t this why we send money and missionaries to third world countries? Isn’t this why we setup ministries in impoverished communities? The question today isn’t about who our neighbor is, the question today is about who the neighbor we’re willing to help is. The issue of police brutality has suddenly become political, though for years, it has been an extension of the plight of black and brown people in America.
Blacks were infamously brutalized in the south during the Jim Crow era and though now decades removed from the horrors of Jim Crow laws and policy, blacks still face many of the derivatives of oppression in official capacity. This often materializes in police brutality in minority communities. What’s worse is that though citizens are brutalized in white communities as well, there’s not as much outrage. This blanket sentiment is applied when the black community, inclusive of its gospel music makers speak up to raise their voices. Victim blaming is acceptable and many have yet to see the problem minorities yet face with police in their community.
Why? You’d have to spend years peeling back the layers of society to even begin to try and understand this phenomenon. Blacks who speak out against police brutality are actually speaking out for a cause that benefits everyone in the room when spoken in mixed audiences. Political alignment has muted voices in what would otherwise be open and shut arguments for God’s idea of justice and as His children. It behooves us to re-consider the allegiances the don’t align with Kingdom principles.
As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.
Galatians 6:10
Amid all the backlash, there have been calls to boycott the DOVE Awards, TBN and any other entity that sides with any effort to silence any voice speaking truth to power. Trouble is, this ideology is so pervasive that it’s much bigger than the Gospel Music Association, Trinity Broadcasting, evangelicals, Southern Baptists, and our other neighbors who are content to turn a blind eye to the plight of their family in Christ.
Black Lives Matter, All Lives Matter, but what about gray matter?
A colloquialism I heard growing up says: “conversation rules the nation”. If that’s true, we’re a nation without rule and to our own demise! The United States of America is a peculiar place to be right now. Still boasting as a super power, the nation’s reputation is withering away with each moment of debate. Gun control, police brutality, building a wall, human rights and much more malign interpersonal relationships across the country. Many are forged and ended without even leaving home and at the hands of a mobile device. What I have noticed is that increasingly, Americans are turning away from intelligent debate in favor of the repetition of rhetoric heard on their favorite news outlet.
As a journalist, it’s my job to be objective. It’s a hard job but I do my best. When citizens are killed, I have to ask readers to be sensible in their evaluation of the news of the death at the hands of a police officer. When mass shootings happen, I have to ask readers to ask themselves if gun access is the problem or whether people and their evil thoughts are the problem.
Last week when Aaron Schlossberg was filmed berating spanish speaking New Yorkers in a deli, he became an instant viral sensation. Amidst the furor, was a call to evict him from his office and even disbar him. This seems to be the new norm. Insult a group of people and expect to lose it all! We removed Confederate monuments this year and no monument or confederate sentiment was safe. The danger in this mass removal of opposition en masse is the unintended result of creating a harbor for the offenders.
While I will never condone hate-speech, I want to remind you that even scripture has been defined as hate-speech to those offended by the holy scriptures. In California, it could soon be illegal to use the bible in gay conversion therapy. In a sketchy piece of legislation, the bible has come under fire as used by Christians in the practice of conversion therapy for homosexuals. It seems implausible now, but what if someone thought the bible was offensive and moved to further legislation and attempt to ban the bible as an article of hate speech? Gay conversion therapy is akin to rehabilitation for drug users. Despite increasing efforts globally to accept the homosexual lifestyle, many are making attempts to no longer be a part of that lifestyle, some are making the choice for them in the form of gay conversion therapy. The practice is good-hearted but like many other issues plaguing our neighbors, they’re fruitless without relation rapport and devolves instead into a war of hurtful words that crush the soul Jesus cares so much for!
Hate speech should be done away with, but how? I still have hope that intellectual debate can and will change the minds of those with hatred in their hearts. Dr. King in all his eloquence was hated even more when he presented irrefutable evidence to bolster his principles and leadership. What I believe is most important in these tense moments of disagreement that drives a deeper wedge between Americans, is that we think as much as we speak! Many times, we’re a simple conversation away from gaining the perspective and understanding we need to truly embrace our differences.
I implore you to not be so quick to dispose of what you oppose or who/what opposes you and instead think as much as you speak! The only “Matter” that matters is gray…think about it!
Pastor Michael R. Jordan of the New Era Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama has some strong words for Church of the Highlands and its Pastor Chris Hodges which plans to build a location near the inner city. WVTM first reported the story on Monday and the story and one Pastor’s response has since gone semi-viral on social media. Pastor Jordan’s words were harsh, direct and focused. On the front part of his church marquee a message: “White Folks Refused to Be Our Neighbor”. His stance is strong, implying that the church is coming into the inner city to take from residents there and ultimately erode local church membership under the false guise of fighting crime.
I am a black man and have experienced both overt and covert racism inside the four walls of the church. It has not been pleasant and I have vowed to never be silenced in my fight to expose the social ill of racism in America. I have also enjoyed robust relationships with non-blacks at church. Nothing makes my heart more glad than racial unity! In fact, we don’t have to wait to get to Heaven to experience it-it’s part of the church’s mission!
There are points of agreement with Pastor Jordan, but there are points he makes that are outlandishly unproven. There are multi-racial churches in the south getting it done the right way! Instances of multi-generational, multi-racial churches getting it done are Transformation Church in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Gateway Church in Southlake, Texas, Relentless Church in Greenville, South Carolina and The Potter’s House in Dallas, Texas. It can be done and it is being done. With yielded hearts, Pastor Woodfin, Pastor Hodge and inner city faith leadership can come to a workable solution that acknowledges the past and commits to a better future.
First, allow me to distance myself from conjecture: Pastor Jordan’s passion is infectious. It’s also riotous and falls just short of an educated opinion. Calling the yet to be determined black Pastor of the satellite location “token” and declaring that the Pastor’s sermons would be monitored in some way are to date without credibility. While I do applaud Pastor Jordan’s boldness, I do believe that our ultimate goal should always be fellowship within the confines of the Kingdom of Christ as laid out in Galatians 6:10 and Hebrews 12:18.
Buried deep In Pastor Jordan’s diatribe is years and years of the heartbreak of segregation. Those dismissing Pastor Jordan as a hatemonger are probably unaware of the trauma the black church experienced when many congregations were bombed. Remember the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing that claimed the lives of those four little girls? Birmingham has come a long way but still quite a way to go in the process of racial reconciliation and repairing the breach between its citizens. Mayor Woodfin’s plan is commendable, but is dangerously making a bigger statement that churches in the community can’t or aren’t getting the job done. This is sure to alienate him from many of the supporters that helped him win the mayoral election.
I was going to share this yesterday but I needed more time to process it. He’s got very valid points and I must admit that he’s probably the only person I’ve seen go this far! Pastor T. L. Lewis voiced his disapproval of Mayor Randall Woodfin’s plan to work with Pastor Hodges as: “a slap in the face“. While I don’t fully discourage the proposed church plant, I would advise Church of the Highlands to start with a street team, first. Get to know the neighborhood and people you will welcome into your congregation so you won’t be shocked when they show up!! Perhaps the ministry wouldn’t even need to use their resources in that way over there. Maybe a food bank or resource center…doesn’t ways have to be a church!
I’m starting to think that we “church” in lieu of the hard work 21st century ministry requires. Many ministries have invested more in church services, accommodations and accoutrements and have all but abandoned the time tested act of outreach. I’ve seen people in church almost do away with the concept of inviting visitors and adding new members. They just expect people to want to join or even visit because the doors are open, the choir is good or the preacher can preach.
One constant in the gripe against church leadership and a main excuse for not attending church is the shape of the community. Why is there a demand on the church, but not city leaders? Pastors aren’t civic leaders and evangelism isn’t always a crime deterrent or economic boon. It baffles me that people in communities are so hard on churches and not city leaders or police. Pastor Jordan’s complaints merits a sit down meeting with the Pastor Hodge, Mayor Woodfin and other faith leaders in the area. That to me, would be the biggest and greatest victory in this situation.
If it broke the internet, we weren’t keeping watch! The news that Bill Cosby was convicted on three counts of aggravated indecent assault made all the rounds and was met with different waves of elation, shock and anger. For people like me, I had to quickly come to grips with what the verdict means for “America’s Dad“. For many others, they asked why Bill Cosby and not the countless other offenders in the #MeToo movement.
This meme is circulating today on social media. To date, only Bill Cosby has been convicted, let’s make sure he’s not the only one!
Bill Cosby is guilty, as hard as it is for me to say that, it’s true! What is also true is that he should not be the only celebrity to face jail time for his transgressions! Harvey Weinstein‘s name is almost always brought up in the conversation, and rightfully so. His company fell swiftly from grace when he was named as one of the most vile perverts in Hollywood. Countless others have been named and rightfully shamed in the wake of not just accusations, but confessions. Women are breaking their silence and as Oprah Winfrey punctuated during her acceptance speech of this year’s Cecil B. Demille award at the Golden Globe Awards: “Time’s Up”!
So while our formerly beloved comedian and actor now faces his demons, we need to make sure that he is only the first! We need to make sure that the justice system pursues the much more recent transgressions of Hollywood elite and legendary and bring them to the same end as Bill Cosby. I grew up in the hood and one thing I never truly understood was the mantra: “snitches get stitches”. Sure, nobody appreciates the threat of bodily harm but what was more confusing was how far that went. A black man convicted of selling drugs would never flip on his much richer supplier. He certainly wouldn’t “snitch” on a white guy across town brought up on the same charges. For this reason, many in the criminal justice system have seen disproportionate sentences and time served. But, time’s up on that as well!
Who can forget now President Donald Trump’s off the record comments to Billy Bush about his rampant sexual assaults on women, most infamously gloating about being able to “grab them by the *****“. Not to be outdone by a hot mic on a tour bus, Trump remains embroiled in litigation with his former paramour, one Stormy Daniels. As with Daniels, the issue in some cases isn’t consent, but the aftermath of the interaction. For instance, actresses complied with Harvey Weinstein’s vile advances on the premise of future acclaim which he almost always delivered. Want that Oscar…? It was found somewhere between a sordid affair with Harvey Weinstein. Props to the actresses that rebuffed Weinstein like Lupita Nyong’o and Salma Hayek. Last week, the curtain finally fell as another allegation was levied against R-Kelly, this time from Dallas, Texas. Living up to his moniker of “Pied Piper of R&B”, he has found a way to keep the hits coming on pace to drown out earlier accusations, but it seems that his time too has run out!
If a jury can convict Bill Cosby, they can convict everyone else…and we need to make it our business that they do- plain and simple! If you’re torn over the Cosby verdict, that’s fine. Do yourself a favor and look at the trial and evidence presented, then ask yourself if he was given a fair trial. Now, look at these other offenders and ask yourself if you think there’s a chance they are indicted? You’re probably saying to yourself, “probably not”, but why?
I’m not naive. I’m not out of touch with reality, I just want us to get in touch with it! Only sharing memes won’t get the job done! Sharing articles full of conjecture won’t get the job done, either! What can we do? Put pressure on the #MeToo and #TimesUp movement to get justice, you know the kind in the Bill Cosby case!
Can we do that?!? It remains to be seen, but Bill Cosby shouldn’t shoulder the weight of this movement alone! Time is not only up, it’s time for the women who have been victimized to see their offenders brought to justice!
Disclaimer: I want to as best I can fully disclose my thoughts: There is shared grief in this process. Not just for the victims who have grieved since the encounter, but the Cosby family who are still actively grieving the loss of his daughter and also the people who esteemed the man who otherwise matched his television persona.
So today, is a day of reckoning of sorts. Burying what we knew in order to soberly let live what we now know about somebody that meant (and still means) so much to us. In my piece, I address the dichotomy of who Bill Cosby is and the compounded grief of laying to rest who we thought he was.
As a young black man, I aspired to become a dad like Heathcliff Huxtable, while I do still aspire to achieve what was fictitious in Dr. Huxtable, I am battling through the difficult process of accepting the troubling truth of Dr. Bill Cosby. I am submitting this piece entitled: “Bill Cosby: America’s Dad and As An Absentee Father” for your consideration.
Today sitting at my desk, I exhaled a breath of acceptance. The Cosby saga has been draining. It has pit friend against friend, male against female and even family member against family member. While it remains unclear whether the court of justice or the court of public opinion rendered the guilty verdict on all three counts, one thing is clear: Bill Cosby isn’t who we thought he was.
He was “Heathcliff Huxtable”, “Fat Albert”, Sidney Poitier’s sidekick on “Let’s Do It Again” and for what’s it worth: “America’s Dad”. Was there a dark side to our model citizen and family man? Yes and what this means is still up for debate. For years, Dr. Cosby used his platform to encourage America to be its best self. It wasn’t lost on black Americans that he was a lot harsher when addressing certain segmentations of the black community. A fact that today, brings me to this sobering point.
As a black boy growing up in a fatherless home, I watched The Cosby Show wanting a family and the success of the Huxtables. I knew it was fictitious, but the human element spoke to me and the father I would become. I wanted a successful wife and children that no matter the difficulty they faced or found themselves in, they would come to me and listen to my advice. Conversely, I wanted to be a man my children could trust. A learned man, esteemed by his colleagues and contemporaries…that’s who I wanted to become.
While I feel that I am yet on my way to accomplishing many of the fatherly intangibles of Dr. Heathcliff Huxtable, I am juxtaposed by the realization that Dr. Bill Cosby is not. I feel sorrow today, not as I should and that makes me feel even worse. I feel bad that my heart questions the motives of the victims, ensuing trial and the guilty verdict. I feel so bad that my disbelief hasn’t been settled by the preponderance of the evidence presented. I feel awful that during the trial and media circus surrounding the charges that I not once thought of my sisters or my mother who as a single mother had to face misogyny as normal ‘business practices’. I feel bad.
I am not a victim and will not assume the role. I am disappointed, yet graceful. Because as a man in America, you get a pass. Well you used to but hey #Time’sUp for that, too! Today, I am coming face to face with the reality that what we see on television is seldom crafted from real life- it comes many times from the imagination of the writers on the team. Now, I’m a skeptic! In real life, you don’t have to be a shimmery star or have a glowing personality. In real life, what you do is as much a part of you as who and what you want to be. That makes it hurt even worse. Are all men bad? Are there any men out there without secrets? Do we all have a dark side that is waiting to overtake us and destroy us? Another layer to this sobering conversation.
For years, Bill Cosby showed us the man he wanted to be without ever seemingly addressing the man he was. Now with his future as a free man in jeopardy, I am restricted to this overwhelming sadness that one of my heroes is a villain. We all have the propensity to be or become villainous and to chose better is the message I always got from ‘The Cos’. Well, it’s time to turn the television off! Real life has a much deeper lesson than the many gifted writers on The Cosby Show could have ever written. It’s a line from Spider Man 3 and it says: “It’s the choices that make us who we are, and we can always choose to do what’s right.”
I as a man have made my share of bad choices and I’m not judging Mr. Cosby. I am coping with the harsh reality that what we see on television is seldom crafted from real life. Standing with Mr. Cosby during this trial is akin to waiting for an absentee father to finally show up! We just know he’s coming, but he won’t. No matter how many times he calls and says he’s around the corner, working late, or simply “forgot”. To a generation of Americans who grew up with the Cosby Kids, “America’s Dad” won’t be coming home!
We’re his creation…kids and parents who could escape to the oasis under the roof of that brownstone in Brooklyn Heights, now left as orphans parsing together his “Fatherhood” with his future as a “Ghost Dad”.
