The Parker Edison Project: American Culture Through The Black Lens

Speaker 1: 00:00 KPBS launched a new podcast that takes a closer look at culture through the lens of black America. The Parker Edison project explores everything from food to fashion against the backdrop of music from San Diego artists. In the first episode, host and creator Parker Edison talks about the real world impacts of how film follows fashion and fashion follows film. Here's a bit of episode, one women on film Speaker 2: 00:35 Are starting to show good morning and welcome to the Parker Edison project where we explore tenets of American culture just might not be the America. You're thinking of. This is episode one women on film and despite his tongue and cheek title, this episode, isn't really about video fixes. It's about how film follows fashion, fashion follows film and the real-world impacts of that today. Resuming way in taking an extreme closeup shot of an important piece of fashion often seen on big screens when depicting a particular type cast who bearings? Speaker 3: 01:10 No, it's nothing but creativity that hasn't been stolen yet. Speaker 2: 01:14 That's Latanya Lockett. She's a school teacher and an accomplished singer and mother she's also incredibly stylish. It's summertime hot outright. Now coy too nice to be boxed in a little room doing interviews. So we're walking through San Diego's bird park and I'm starting by asking if she wore hoop earrings growing. Speaker 3: 01:32 I did. I wore a small little hoop earrings, little ones. They coops, man. You are fast. I know because my family says that, but for those who don't, what is fast me fast means just a little girl doing things she shouldn't or trying to be grown a little girl, trying to be a big girl. It's funny though, because if boys were that way, nobody would care and bring it up triple true. And my family says that they say fast tailed and they actually say manage. And for those who don't know what manage means, Siri, give us a definition. Having unbecoming characteristics that are stereotypically associated with men, you know what else the internet says about earrings? The internet says if the study is very small undecorated and unassuming, she's telling the world that she's either a shy woman or she is very confident and it has no need for ego feed. Speaker 3: 02:18 She has probably a rather smart and is not seeking romantic company. On the flip side, dangling hoops, demand, attention hoops, get their reputation as trashy because they're unsubtle, which is inappropriate and unladylike. The internet also says women that wear large hoop earrings have a reputation for being slutty. The bigger the hoops, the bigger the, Whoa, dang Siri, waterhole hoops, huge cubic zirconia, men, crusted hoop earrings, at least four inches in diameter in 1922, the discovery of King Tut's tomb, repopulate authorized who peer rings. They became a new symbol of power status, but nobody ever associates, Liz Taylor's Cleopatra with wearing Haute hoops. Now that's reserved for another group and dictionary. He says things Snooki or Rihanna. Speaker 4: 03:06 They do us bad. Speaker 3: 03:07 And although Rihanna says she's a Savage, she has that. She has that track where she's lied. Speaker 4: 03:12 I'll tell you that I was a Savage. Yeah, Speaker 3: 03:15 Yeah. Savage around just with anything. I don't have to be going somewhere. I'll have a t-shirt and jeans on and put some big old hoops on. I want it to be the statement of my outfit, but you know, they're trying to attain this us. That's kind of like whitewashing the savages though a little bit. They do it until nobody sticks out and being different. This visitor to bad thing. Hmm. You ever heard of Fahrenheit four 51 it's by Ray Bradbury or equilibrium with Christian bale, a more popular version is Footloose with Kevin bacon. The whole thing of outlawing music and dancing to limit expression and control emotions will Footloose works especially well because dancing is such a big part of the black culture, just like fashion. So it makes me wonder if hating on hoop earrings is a way of discouraging our pride and self-expression absolutely and works. Speaker 3: 04:06 We become ashamed of our fascia. We even put ourselves in, in groups, we call each other ghetto from our fashion. Girls want to straighten their hair to fit in. They want to get into the trends that they see on TV to fit in. Um, and I, as a teacher, can't tell a black child to wear clothing from their history because there'll be ridiculed, which is insane because 50 years ago is let's say the black Panther movement, which is Seminole for black culture. Absolutely. And it's, and it is. And, but there's so many other things that are too. But if I tell the kid they could wear gold chain and hoodie, people will get mad at me. Like, is she kidding? Oh my God. And at the same time, like a white character in a big movie, they can wear those garments. And it means the character is street smart, but this isn't a movie and it doesn't wrap up nice and neat. Speaker 3: 04:55 And in a bow there isn't an absolute answer, but Latanya's trying something. I mean, how many times have we heard like black pride, right? So I want to encourage my students to get into pride into themselves and what they love about themselves. Somebody asks me, what do I love about being black? And that was such a great question, considering everything that's been going on. And I think about it all the time. And so it just, I brought it down to like, you know, asked my students, what do you love about themselves, about you? There's so many examples of people trying to blend in and ask them to give me something individual that they like about themselves, him to highlight the quality in themselves. Yeah. We're not used to doing that. And if you do, it becomes your conceded or, you know, we are trained to be humble, which is fine. But believing in yourself and loving yourself is like a big part of being self-aware and mature. And you know, some more empathy. It's just that simple encouraging individuality. And self-expression in the micro to affect the macro sort of like Kevin bacon and Footloose. A low goes a long way. Speaker 2: 05:58 Do me a favor. Next time you're at work or running errands, look around for hoops. Who's wearing them. Are they people of color? Are they people in power? If you see a parent, an episode of SVU or CSI, who's wearing them, is it the cops or the criminals? I really am interested in your feedback semi or the gorgeous Latanya locket. Your thoughts on the subject hit me on Twitter. I'm at PRK, our EDI som with any insights or experiences you have on the topic. Also, if you'd like to donate money to Latanya lockets, as the glee club camp hit her on IgE at Ms. Latanya's class, the links in the show description. That's also her music playing in the background, click on that and the description as well and Togo anywhere. I have my good French Shanteel web Candler coming in for a quick game of six degrees of separate wanes. You stay tuned. Speaker 1: 06:53 I love you. I think I always will. Even now I'm reeling from the effect that can have on the rest of my life. I'm different now as badly as I want to feel the heat between us. I know exactly how this is going to end Speaker 2: 07:09 Now streaming@platformcollection.com is the new film short run. Rick who's who San Diego talent brought to you by the good people at platform collection. Speaker 2: 07:23 Welcome back. You're listening to the park Radison project. My roommate and I used to play this game in my house. It's called six degrees of separate weigh-ins. At one time, Kevin bacon was the peak of popularity in Hollywood, and that may still be the case, but the almighty Wayne's family has been given him a run for his money. They've been making mad connections and to show that I do this thing called six degrees of separate wanes. I have a competition where somebody tries to stump me by giving me names of people. They don't think I can connect to the Wayne's family. And I do it almost every time today trying to stump me. I have Shanteel web Candler who's co-owner of the Guardian's basketball team. The only black owned sports team in San Diego County and a founder of the HBC U alumni, San Diego. Shanteel what is it? Speaker 3: 08:06 HBC alumni, San Diego. So HBCU stands for historically black colleges and universities. Um, these were institutions that were founded shortly before the civil war ended, but then they took a boom after the civil war ended any, you know, of course the proclamation emancipation, excuse me, proclamation was signed and slaves were free. Then we had a boom in HBCUs being founded. So HBC alumni, San Diego is the only nonprofit and San Diego County that specializes in the HBC advocacy, heavy resume right there. Okay. Okay. She's going to try and stump me. She's going to give you three names and see if I can connect them to the almighty Wayne's family within six connections. You just heard an excerpt from Speaker 1: 08:51 The Parker Edison project, a new podcast here on KPBS and Parker. Edison is joining us now. Parker. Welcome. Hey, Hey there. So yeah, we just heard a bit of the first episode of your podcast episode. One is about women on film. Tell me about that. And what do you hope listeners find when they tune into your podcast? Speaker 2: 09:12 I hope people can, can feel like they, they know someone that they haven't actually met yet. I feel like the people I know all have really, really interesting lives and there's something very relatable about them. And so I'm kind of introducing you to them and if you can relate to them, then you know, there's a similarity there. And, uh, I think the, on a wider scale, I hope that just makes people feel a little bit closer to their neighbor. So that's like, uh, yeah, that's sort of a goal of the whole episode of the show in general. Speaker 1: 09:45 Yeah. And speaking of the show in general, I mean, what types of topics will you be tackling? Speaker 2: 09:50 We are looking at culture, primarily American culture, and specifically you've seen it from my point of view. I'm breaking down culture into 10 segments and it covers the core tenants of culture, which are fashion art, sex, uh, wardrobe, you know, neighborhood. These are the things that really shape who we are, even though we don't notice them. They really are. Uh they're they create signatures. And so, yeah, we're breaking down American culture. Speaker 1: 10:22 Right. And, and I mean, tell me, why is it important to explore these issues and to do so through the black lens Speaker 2: 10:29 One that's, that's the lens I'm looking through. And that just happens to be kind of a coincidence. That's a secondary thing, but it plays a big part in it. So I want people to, to be able to relate wherever they're from, but I do have to be black. And so hopefully that widens their ideas of maybe what black people are like or what anyone that's not like them is. Like, I think that's, that's what the whole, the show, hopefully just widens people's, uh, ideas of what normal is and what American is and makes people see that it all is American. Like everything that we're doing all goes together and it all plays parts in this puzzle. Speaker 1: 11:17 And, you know, as you look at these, these issues and, and have these discussions, are these issues unique to San Diego or are you exploring them? Um, from a broader perspective, Speaker 2: 11:28 I am telling very specific San Diego stories because I'm so proud of, of our history and of my city, but I feel like that's relatable. I feel like, uh, the second episode is a good example where we're looking at San Diego's underground, rap improv, and I feel like that very much parallels, um, new York's Apollo. I think there's a similarity there and clearly there's a connection to Las project blowed. So there's a relate-ability in all of them, even though I'm specifically talking about this place that I'm from. Speaker 1: 12:04 And speaking of being from San Diego, tell me a bit about yourself. Speaker 2: 12:09 I am, I was pretty much raised in, in Meadowbrook apartments over in paradise Hills. And then, uh, my, well, my parents were split up, so I was lucky enough to go stay with my father and other cities and other States cause he was in the military. So I would go to school in San Diego and then I would go visit, uh, another place like every other summer. And my family is out of the South. And so a lot of my life is about bouncing between the West coast, the East coast and the South. And so I really got used to seeing similarities in people and it's fascinating to me. It's super fascinating to me. So, uh, here I am telling these stories, I'm a rap artist and a multimedia artists and a lecture, and this is just kind of a, an extension of all of those things. Speaker 1: 13:01 Wow. So how can people find the podcast? Speaker 2: 13:04 Oh, it's available now. It's own it's on all streaming platforms so people can go wherever they get their podcasts normally. So go to Spotify, Apple, iTunes, Stitcher, wherever people normally stream their favorite podcasts and look up the partner of some project. Speaker 1: 13:24 And I've been speaking with Parker Edison host of the new KPBS podcast, the Parker Edison project. You can also find it at kpbs.org/parker, Edison Parker. Thanks so much for joining us. Speaker 5: 13:42 [inaudible].