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https://blackgirlnerds.com/ledisi-on-remembering-mahalia-jackson/
There aren’t many vocalists whose voices embody a movement; their deeply rich tone can uplift and inspire. Mahalia Jackson had that effect on those who heard her sing. Now, Ericka Nicole Malone Entertainment is giving us the opportunity to learn more about her in Remember Me: The Mahalia Jackson Story. Written and executive produced by Ericka Nicole Malone and directed by Denise Dowe, the film takes “a poignant look into the life and rise” of an iconic gospel singer.
Grammy Award winner Ledisi stars as Mahalia Jackson. She is accompanied by Columbus Short, Janet Hubert, Wendy Raquel Robinson, Vanessa A. Williams, Keith David, Corbin Bleu, and Keith Robinson. This ensemble cast pieces together Jackson’s early childhood trauma with her devout belief that her gift was God’s and God’s alone. The film chronicles how through many adversities, Jackson never gave in to the pressures of a husband or a manager to sing any other music besides gospel.
BGN had a telephone conversation with Ledisi about playing Mahalia Jackson, the parallels between herself and the gospel singer, and whether she’d like to do more acting.
How did you get the role of Mahalia Jackson? What interested you in portraying her?
I was actually on set at Pose working in New York. I got an email asking me if I would read for this part of Mahalia from Erica Malone. I sent it to management and wasn’t really interested because I had already played Mahalia in Selma. Doing a feature … I wasn’t really sure.
My management convinced me to just go ahead and audition at least. When I did, they really wanted me for the part. I got an email from the casting director and Erica, then I was on the phone with Denise Dallas, a wonderful actress who’s now directing; I didn’t know she was connected to the film.
Talking to them reassured me that I should try. I was very nervous. On the second day, I didn’t know if I could do it because it was overwhelming, but I had a wonderful experience. I’m glad I did it. It worked out, but I didn’t look for this part. It found me.
Besides music, are there any parallels between the two of you that drew you in?
When I did Selma, I studied a lot about Mahalia, even just to sing that little part I sang. With this, I dove in deeper. It started with the music, but you have to understand the reason why she’s singing and her anointing.
It was really studying more of the Bible and particular songs and what she wanted people to be ignited from. Her purpose was to ignite, uplift, and spread the word of the gospel of the Lord. So all of that mattered. I couldn’t ignore that part. That part meant more than anything, and then when you look at her life, she never let anything get in the way of that.
It wasn’t just the words and not performing here or performing there. She had a purpose. Understanding her purpose helped me get into the part. It also taught me that’s why I do what I do. What’s my purpose? It’s always to leave a legacy that’s rich, but for her, it was to tell people about God and remind them you can win and persevere with knowing Jesus.
Was there anything that you learned about Mahalia during developing this role that surprised you or gave you a new understanding of who she was?
She was a strong businesswoman. In that era, she was about her business. She knew when she was being cheated, and she would say it. She was not hiding. She was very vocal about everything. She was a superstar.
She was huge in her presence, not just globally but also as a human. That’s why she could stand next to Martin, give advice, and be a sister-brother relationship in that whole movement. She was the great Mahalia Jackson, so that’s her power. She knew her power, and I love that part. I did understand it fully, then I got it. I love that a woman who wrote this, Erica Malone, and a woman director were very clear about making sure that other women saw this woman in that way. We didn’t focus just on her relationships. We focused on her business etiquette as well. It took women to make sure that was seen. I love that.
What was the most challenging part of filming this movie?
Filming during COVID and it turning from a short to a feature. All of that was challenging because it started one way and ended up being bigger. The forces against it were bigger, but it prevailed. We still finished our work, but it was a lot. It was a lot going on. I’m very proud of the cast and crew and Erica for believing in it in a bigger way.
You mentioned you weren’t sure about playing Mahalia. After completing your first feature, are you interested in doing more acting?
Oh, absolutely! I would love to. What I was uncomfortable with was the weight of it. I started to understand the weight. It had nothing to do with being a feature. It was the weight of a character. Who wants to play Mahalia? Yeah, go ahead. No joke. I’m R&B. Gospel is different, so you really have to understand what you are doing.
Remember Me: The Mahalia Jackson Story premiered Tuesday, April 19, 2022, at the 30th Annual Pan African Film & Arts Festival in Los Angeles, California. Tickets for the festival viewing are available here and make sure you keep your ear to the ground to find out when this film will come to a screen near you.
There aren’t many vocalists whose voices embody a movement; their deeply rich tone can uplift and inspire. Mahalia Jackson had that effect on those who heard her sing. Now, Ericka Nicole Malone Entertainment is giving us the opportunity to learn more about her in Remember Me: The Mahalia Jackson Story. Written and executive produced by Ericka Nicole Malone and directed by Denise Dowe, the film takes “a poignant look into the life and rise” of an iconic gospel singer.
Grammy Award winner Ledisi stars as Mahalia Jackson. She is accompanied by Columbus Short, Janet Hubert, Wendy Raquel Robinson, Vanessa A. Williams, Keith David, Corbin Bleu, and Keith Robinson. This ensemble cast pieces together Jackson’s early childhood trauma with her devout belief that her gift was God’s and God’s alone. The film chronicles how through many adversities, Jackson never gave in to the pressures of a husband or a manager to sing any other music besides gospel.
BGN had a telephone conversation with Ledisi about playing Mahalia Jackson, the parallels between herself and the gospel singer, and whether she’d like to do more acting.
How did you get the role of Mahalia Jackson? What interested you in portraying her?
I was actually on set at Pose working in New York. I got an email asking me if I would read for this part of Mahalia from Erica Malone. I sent it to management and wasn’t really interested because I had already played Mahalia in Selma. Doing a feature … I wasn’t really sure.
My management convinced me to just go ahead and audition at least. When I did, they really wanted me for the part. I got an email from the casting director and Erica, then I was on the phone with Denise Dallas, a wonderful actress who’s now directing; I didn’t know she was connected to the film.
Talking to them reassured me that I should try. I was very nervous. On the second day, I didn’t know if I could do it because it was overwhelming, but I had a wonderful experience. I’m glad I did it. It worked out, but I didn’t look for this part. It found me.
Besides music, are there any parallels between the two of you that drew you in?
When I did Selma, I studied a lot about Mahalia, even just to sing that little part I sang. With this, I dove in deeper. It started with the music, but you have to understand the reason why she’s singing and her anointing.
It was really studying more of the Bible and particular songs and what she wanted people to be ignited from. Her purpose was to ignite, uplift, and spread the word of the gospel of the Lord. So all of that mattered. I couldn’t ignore that part. That part meant more than anything, and then when you look at her life, she never let anything get in the way of that.
It wasn’t just the words and not performing here or performing there. She had a purpose. Understanding her purpose helped me get into the part. It also taught me that’s why I do what I do. What’s my purpose? It’s always to leave a legacy that’s rich, but for her, it was to tell people about God and remind them you can win and persevere with knowing Jesus.
Was there anything that you learned about Mahalia during developing this role that surprised you or gave you a new understanding of who she was?
She was a strong businesswoman. In that era, she was about her business. She knew when she was being cheated, and she would say it. She was not hiding. She was very vocal about everything. She was a superstar.
She was huge in her presence, not just globally but also as a human. That’s why she could stand next to Martin, give advice, and be a sister-brother relationship in that whole movement. She was the great Mahalia Jackson, so that’s her power. She knew her power, and I love that part. I did understand it fully, then I got it. I love that a woman who wrote this, Erica Malone, and a woman director were very clear about making sure that other women saw this woman in that way. We didn’t focus just on her relationships. We focused on her business etiquette as well. It took women to make sure that was seen. I love that.
What was the most challenging part of filming this movie?
Filming during COVID and it turning from a short to a feature. All of that was challenging because it started one way and ended up being bigger. The forces against it were bigger, but it prevailed. We still finished our work, but it was a lot. It was a lot going on. I’m very proud of the cast and crew and Erica for believing in it in a bigger way.
You mentioned you weren’t sure about playing Mahalia. After completing your first feature, are you interested in doing more acting?
Oh, absolutely! I would love to. What I was uncomfortable with was the weight of it. I started to understand the weight. It had nothing to do with being a feature. It was the weight of a character. Who wants to play Mahalia? Yeah, go ahead. No joke. I’m R&B. Gospel is different, so you really have to understand what you are doing.
Remember Me: The Mahalia Jackson Story premiered Tuesday, April 19, 2022, at the 30th Annual Pan African Film & Arts Festival in Los Angeles, California. Tickets for the festival viewing are available here and make sure you keep your ear to the ground to find out when this film will come to a screen near you.
Writer: Jeff Lemire / Artist: Dustin Nguyen / Image
Jeff Lemire is out here just forcing me to confront the fact that I actually love horror. I love the visceral viscera. I love the tension of humanity and monstrosity. I love how the genre is grounded in a more defined atmosphere, a very specific space with a very specific confrontation. Little Monsters #2 is perhaps the perfect embodiment of this exact atmospheric, adrenaline inducing world, and it’s incredible how much more invested I got into the survival of the last kids on earth (who happen to be vampires).
Little Monsters #2 opens with a flashback all the way back to 1763, where we actually get to witness the start of the vampire pack in the eerily named Black Forest. Given the snowy setting, the chopping of wood, and the eventual conclusion of events, I get a little bit of Nezuko from Demon Slayer vibes, and I mean that in the best way possible. The innocent being corrupted by the malevolent is a fascinating trope to view, and Lemire’s exposition gives it a decidedly unique tone and almost treats the curse as a type of kindness.
After that interlude, we return back to the present, where we get some vignettes with Romie and Billy before their actions incite the group to come together as a whole, and then the story just accelerates in an entirely different vector. The last page reveal changes the trajectory of the story dramatic, and Lemire pulls off the pivot perfectly.
Nguyen’s artwork is absolutely phenomenal. The black and white pages with very intentional use of color makes each a spectacle. It’s utterly enthralling how the various volumes of red change the intensity and tone of the moment, and the use of kinder blues, greens, and orange help indicate that these are still children at heart, even if their teeth indicate that they are capable of more violent actions. The somber moments of sadness and the scary moments of sadism stand out in different measures and makes for a thrilling second chapter.
Little Monsters #2 has officially sunk its teeth into me. It’s a brilliantly constructed, expertly illustrated comic that any horror fan deserves to be current on.
9.4 “Axes” out of 10
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Writer: Chip Zdarsky / Artist: Marco Checchetto / Marvel Comics
Vengeance has been the name of the game in Devil’s Reign, and this final issue ramps that bloodlust up to Stain levels in these Marvel streets. The big difference this time is that the hate filled motivation comes from our titular character, Daredevil himself.
This 6-issue mini-series contained a lot of fun plot threads surrounding Kingpin’s mission of memory altering vengeance. While I enjoyed this story, there seemed to be some missed opportunities on the part of Chip Zdarsky, who I absolutely love as a writer. Perhaps the scope was too small, which is rarely a critique for most modern superhero tales. Perhaps the scope was just right but didn’t include enough voices to make this feel like a genuine Marvel comic book “event.” And perhaps I’m just mad there was minimal X-Men action in Devil’s Reign #6, but I digress. Let’s jump into what went down.
Off the strength of Checchetto’s first couple of fire pages of Devil’s Reign #6, you know this issue is about to be a bloody affair. Captain America taking on an evil Wolverine Doc Oc from another universe, The Purple Man mind controlling hundreds of civilians right into harm’s way, and Daredevil with murderous intentions in his eyes after finding out that Wilson Fisk just murdered his brother in cold blood, after impersonating him this whole time.
As arguably the most pious high-profile Marvel character, it was very intriguing to see Matt Murdock fight his demons desire for revenge. As Daredevil and Kingpin went toe to toe, your mind really wondered if one of them was going to step over that line there’s no coming back from. A huge chunk of this book wound up a brutal slugfest reminiscent of an attitude era Big Show vs. Shawn Michaels type matchup and I was here for every bruise, busted lip, kick, and haymaker!
The results of the title match will divide fans on how a story like this should close out, and things were a tad too tidy by the turn of the last page; however, it was a fun ride to get there. Despite Marco Checchetto’s gorgeous artwork all throughout this 6-issue run, we won’t be calling Devil’s Reign the book that erased the bad taste Civil War II left in fan’s mouths like I once hoped, but it is one that will allow fans to keep saying Daredevil always has the best written stories in Marvel.
7 Convict Calvary’s out of 10
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Sarah Jones’s new film Sell/Buy/Date examines the sex work industry from the unique perspective of sex workers, which shouldn’t be revolutionary, but it is. The film is a part of the 2022 SanFrancisco Film Festival this month, and BGN spoke with Sara Jones on Zoom last week about the film and her creative process.
In the stage version of Sell/Buy/Date, you play, is it 19 Characters?
Yes. If you count the voices in the film, I want to say we’re probably rounding out more like ten.
How did you choose which characters to bring with you to the film?
My goal was how many contrasting opinions can we have. People who can be in the debate, just like I think a lot of us are, as Black girls and women and femmes. I grew up with aunties who were like, [in an NYC Queens accent] “Keep your knees together! Don’t you know, feet on the floor.”
Then some aunties were like, (in a West Indian accent) “Girl life is too short and you don’t let these men know-” it’s like, I want to hear the full range of how Black women are not a monolith. Women are not a monolith. Part of how we evolve and grow is by listening to each other.
I loved the nuanced nature of the film. As you brought the story to life, you traveled across the country and spoke with a diverse group of sex workers to learn about their relationship to their work. How did experiencing their stories firsthand impact you?
I get very emotional thinking about this topic. I just noticed myself on the Zoom messing with my hair. I’m doing my little tics when I get in my feels. The best way to describe it is that it really got in my bones and nervous system.
I spoke with women in “the life,” who are formerly in “the life,” and who choose whatever they choose. I listen to them rather than prescribing for them how they should live. That is my sacred opportunity and obligation as somebody with the opportunity to make this film. I need to make sure that their voice is what you come away with, not mine.
You succeeded. Big time. What was the most challenging part about taking Sell/Buy/Date from the stage to the screen?
One of my goals was to preserve the conversation that exists in the play while not doing an adaptation of it. This is not a play if you’re coming to the movie thinking you’re gonna see the thing that I did see, you know, we’re doing it in the Bay Area, and I performed workshops of it at you know, why BCA there and Berkeley Rep and it was wonderful to do the play. The play is the play. The film is definitely inspired by the play and the concepts from the play. After that. It’s its own movie. It’s its own entity and it tries to take up some of the same threads that the play starts with and weave something new. That’s the idea. If the play is a sweater, the movie is, you know, a jumpsuit. The material is there, but it’s two different garments.
I definitely see that. That must have been challenging, or did that make it easier?
Well, here’s the thing. I know what the experience of writing something that feels true, I know what that feels like. And I know that when I listen to women say, “This is how old I was when I made this decision.” Or, “ This is the experience I had with this man or this person or this police officer.” When I hear that and I hear that truth, it’s easy.
I just take these stories that are being offered to me that maybe are not being heard anyplace else. That’s my job. And my goal, just like it was for the play, was to get mainstream people who came and saw me do Bridge and Tunnel to think a little bit more outside the parameters of this is what theater is. And theater is also about the complexities of our lives.
Yes, we want to have a good time, but we know how to think. We do! We actually have a richer, better time when we get to think together and ask deep questions. If you want to really get deep with a topic, ask a Black woman, you know what I mean? So I think my goal was to not worry about whether it was easy but to trust that it’ll be true. And if it’s true, then it’ll just flow.
Talk to me about how the film explores the different impacts of sex work on sex workers depending on their location to power and privilege?
Well, now here’s the fun part, right? I wish I had some of the people in the film sitting with me because I want you to hear from them. I don’t want to translate. What I will say is I appreciate getting to sit and listen. When we announced the film, the questions around the industry and who’s judging and making decisions about women, sex, and power conversation are so fraught, that it has women pitted against each other. Right?
The goal of the film was to say, wait a minute, if we listen to all the women and all of their opinions, instead of attacking each other or making this a binary debate, we can actually follow the power to guess what? Where it always is. If you come to see this movie, hopefully, you will have the experience I had, which is the same nonsense.
We just watched around the confirmation of Ketanji Brown Jackson, which is the debate we’re having about sex and the sex industry. Black women’s power is the same, just the difference is, it ain’t no judge robes in my movie, but it’s the same idea that white men, for the most part, are the arbiters of how we get to live. That’s what I wanted to learn more about. And I did. I discovered incredible nuances that I hope people will appreciate when they come to see the film.
What right now is bringing you the most joy?
Part of my joy right now is getting present and realizing we (Black women) are more powerful than we’ve ever been. We get to lift each other up like we never have. And there’s still so much to do, but when I get very present I’m here with you. I’m here with all my fellow Black Girl Nerds. These spaces didn’t exist, you know, until fairly recently. So my present joy is knowing that we’re all in this together.
Sell/Buy/Date is showing at the 2022 SanFrancisco Film Festival at the Vogue Theater on Sunday, April 24, 2022, at 5:30 pm.