Dear Reader
I don’t think I’ve ever seen as much snow in the ten years I’ve lived in New York than I have over the past couple of weeks. And yet, even through all the instances of experiencing snow over the decade, there are things I’ve always wanted to do in it but haven’t; things people who grow up in the southern hemisphere are only familiar with from the movies.
While on a walk in Fort Greene Park this past Sunday, just after we got a fresh dusting of the white stuff, I bumped into Coffey, a friend who is also a neighbour (although it took me a second to recognize him, with his mask and beanie and jacket all covering him up), his wife and their 3 gorgeous kids, who were playing in the snow. I joked with them that I’d thought about one day perhaps giving sledding a go but that I wasn’t much of an adrenaline junkie. His wife Annie declared that day was to be the day. So I got onto their kids’ sled and went down a (baby) hill. Moments later, as I thanked Annie, I joked yet again, saying that I just had making a snow angel left on my bucket list.
“Today’s the day!” she said.
“But I don’t want to get snow all over my coat,” I replied. “Won’t I be so cold with it all over me?”
“Probably,” she responded. “But it’s so much fun!”
And reader, I tell you, fun it was.
Grabbing these moments where possible is one way I’m making it through this time. Another thing that’s keep me afloat is, of course, movies and music.
From this weekend, Shaka King’s Judas and the Black Messiah is on HBOMax and in selected cinemas (if cinemas are open where you are). The film is a captivating look at who Black Panther Party deputy chairman Fred Hampton was, through the lens of the informant who spied on him, leading to the civil rights leader’s assassination at the hands of the Chicago police and FBI. It highlights Hampton’s oratory prowess, his charismatic command of a crowd and how he sought to bring people together from across the colour line. It’s told as a crime-thriller, so as to satisfy Hollywood parameters, but I think it still provides a gateway for anyone wanting to know more about Hampton, who was shot at the age of 21, over 50 years ago.
I was lucky enough to interview both Shaka King and Daniel Kaluuya, who plays Hampton, for Deadline. Daniel told me “the biggest version” of himself had to show up for the part.
I also spoke to another King, unrelated to Shaka. The day before her 50th birthday, on which day, One Night in Miami made its virtual premiere, Regina King hopped onto a phone-call with me for this piece. Regina really is a powerhouse and I could have listened to her talk for ages. As an aside, I know she used to run track at school, so I asked if she still runs (because, of course I did) and she told me she does but mostly sprints, because “they’re good for the abs.”
One Night in Miami ends with a beautiful track that Leslie Odom Jr, who plays Sam Cooke in the film, sings. “Speak Now” is one of the shortlisted original songs that has made it to the next stage of Oscar voting, along with 14 other songs. Another is “Hear My Voice,” which is sung and co-written by Celeste, the British-Jamaican singer who recently released her major-label debut, Not Your Muse. I spoke to her, beamed to me from London via Zoom, about making that song and the album for American Songwriter.
Thank you for reading.
I’ll leave you with Sir Anthony Hopkins — who is so terrific in the upcoming film The Father and will likely earn another Oscar nod for it — with his poem recital.
Stay safe, stay sane
Your neighbour
Nadia