Adia Victoria, who performed at The Yacht Club on Wednesday night, was born and raised in South Carolina and discussed the effects of growing up around white people. She explained that she creates art to “fight against the narrative pushed on me” and how she used to associated blackness with only shame. Growing up around white kids led her to constantly compare herself to them, which created a “deficit” in her mind.

She explained that after realizing this in her 20’s, she has spent a lot of time “unpacking my internalized racism” which is an issue that many people of color share when they grow up with the indoctrination of Eurocentric ideas.

Victoria describes her feelings about blackness now to be “a liberation” from her previous ideas. She hesitantly confessed to a crowd of mostly nonwhite people that she “feels blessed” she wasn’t born white, because of the vantage point that has helped her to understand the world better.

After her answer, the audience looked back at Martin, lead singer of PHOX, whose eyes brimmed with tears. Adigweme asked her about her feelings, and Martin disclosed an important moment in the decolonization process: “I feel behind in many ways.” She elaborated, saying that because she hadn’t critically examined her blackness the way that Victoria has, she feels that it’s not her place to comment on black experiences until she has “thoroughly educated” herself.

This represents a feeling that I have definitely experienced, earlier in the learning process. I felt like my friends had so much more knowledge than me, and they had read theoretical arguments and feminist literature that I hadn’t heard of, and I invalidated my own position as a brown woman living in a white space.

However, Adigweme responded with my exact thoughts. “It is your place, though.” As a black woman living in America, as a musician creating art in a white space–her experiences are just as valid and she deserves a voice.

The panel continued, as Martin brought up issues of colorism in the black community. Victoria spoke against the limiting definitions of blackness. Both artists discussed their frustrations with wanting to create art meaningful to them, but the white music industry expecting them to make pandering music that appealed to “the NPR crowd” (otherwise known as white hipsters).

Victoria explained how she has learned to deal with those people: learning to say no. When people try to change her creative process or her political activism, or tell her she isolates herself by creating a certain kind of art, she reminds them, “you work for me.” She finished her answer by defiantly declaring “I’m not going to take a position of subservience in my art.”

Black Art/White Space Pt. II was the most powerful Mission Creek event I have attended so far, and I applaud the organizers for including this in the festival.

Check out my review of Adia Victoria’s show here, and PHOX’s show here!

Keep updated on Mission Creek events at missionfreak.com.

The post Mission Creek: Black Art / White Space pt. 2 @ ICPL 4/7/16 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

He garnered, and to a large extent still does, a certain cult following to his films, which are also heaped with critical praise. Tarantino has followed a similar path, creating a certain kind of unique cinematic style that simultaneously enraptures college boys and impresses film critics. Scorsese’s films are often filled with coarse language, the glitz and glamour of the criminal underworld, hyper-masculine performances, excess, emotion-driven storytelling, and moments of extreme and cathartic violence.

However, Scorsese offered a rather different filmic experience with one of his lesser known works; 1982’s The King of Comedy. When it was first released, it was met with general confusion and dislike. People didn’t quite understand what the film was trying to do, especially considering its director, who had previously released films like Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, and Raging Bull.

This confusion is certainly understandable; The King of Comedy is a black comedy, but it elicits more cringe than laughter. It is not a particularly enjoyable viewing experience, and it is filled with moments of acutely painful awkwardness. That being said, it is still a masterfully-made film, and it remains one of Scorsese’s most under-appreciated works.

The King of Comedy follows Rupert Pupkin, played to perfection by Robert De Niro. Rupert is a lonely and potentially disturbed man who is fixated on the idea of “making it big” in the comedy world. The fact that he has never performed for an audience is no detriment to him, and when he annoys famous TV show host Jerry Langford to the point harassment, he sees it as his big break. Unfortunately, Rupert is unable to take the innumerable hints that are given to him that his dream is a bust, and when reality finally hits, he decides to take matters into his own hands.

Robert De Niro gives an incredible performance in this film. While Scorsese’s other collaborations (Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Casino, Goodfellas, Mean Streets) with the actor may receive more praise, I firmly believe this is some of the duo’s best work together. De Niro gives a brilliantly understated performance, and one that is so relatable at the beginning of the film. This room for identification is exactly what makes his break from reality so deeply unsettling for the audience to watch. At what point can they break away? At what point has Rupert finally gone too far, to the point where he is no longer a subject for identification for the audience?

This is another reason why The King of Comedy is so great, and so unique. It may technically be called a black comedy, but it doesn’t have the usual sense of laughing at something rather morbid. The laughs aren’t brought on from slapstick violence, one-liners, or clever word-play. In fact, there really aren’t many laughs to be had at all. Instead, the audience is forced to squirm in their chairs through long scenes of painful awkwardness. And these tense and languishing moments drag on and on without any release. This is a particularly interesting facet of a film directed by someone like Scorsese. Nothing every boils over, there is no moment of cathartic release. Instead, the film smolders and constricts on the audience, never allowing for a moment of true relief.

The King of Comedy is available for download here. Check out a trailer for the film below:

The post Cinema Spotlight: The King of Comedy appeared first on KRUI Radio.