Royal Pair

THIS ROYAL PAIR STRIVES TO BE THE ‘BIGGER’ VOICE FOR FELLOW RATTLERS

BY [ Tanasia REED ]

On the field of Bragg Memorial Stadium, nothing could stop his school spirit: Not the sweltering Florida heat during football season, not the weight of the heavy snake head made of thick cardboard to hold its shape, and not the soreness of his throat as chants rang out cheering for his beloved FAMU.

Underneath the suit of Venom, the FAMU Rattler mascot, KIMANI JACKSON always had a voice to lead his school to victory. Little did he know that his start as Venom, masked and hidden from the world, would lead him to the forefront for everyone to see as the voice of the school he calls home.

Jackson is a self-described motivator, who hopes to encourage people around him to become the best versions of themselves. He said he has always had the desire to be a leader; his past experiences have pushed him to do more for FAMU students and young Black men. In Spring 2020, he was voted in by his fellow Rattlers to become Mister FAMU, an esteemed and highly competitive position.

“I decided to become Mister FAMU because there was something in myself to awaken,” Jackson said.

“Being involved on campus allowed me to see all the things Mister FAMU did for the school and I knew I had a voice to be him.”

Jackson’s path to becoming the 21st Mister FAMU started long before the campaign season. He used his voice as Venom to be a symbol of school spirit and encouragement for students around him. Born in New York, Jackson founded and served as Howie the Mascot for Howard High School. Before entering college, he mentored under the New York Liberty and the Nuggets mascot Rocky. He gained experience in drawing a crowd and hyping school spirit, which he applied to his Mister FAMU campaign.

Thoroughly invested and dedicated to his role, Jackson even wrote out a character analysis of who Venom was to him and to students on campus.

“I am an actor,” Jackson said, “and Venom is a friend, a brother, a sister, an uncle and so much more to students. He is also noble and regal, and someone to look up to which are all the characteristics that Mister FAMU possesses.”

Venom prepared him to take on the responsibility of Mister FAMU, said a friend, Shardai Sallye.

“He’s been involved in a lot of organizations and held a lot of roles on campus,” said Sallye. “He cares so much about being an advocate for this FAMU family. I think that’s what makes him such a great Mister FAMU.”

During the COVID-19 pandemic, students returned to a changed University: A novel kind of academic stress. Life and death worries and virus testing. No Set Fridays. No football season at Bragg Stadium. No Homecoming. They say during these times, they have needed Mister

FAMU’s motivation more than ever.

With spirits low, Jackson, along with Miss FAMU, ERIKA JOHNSON, devised a plan to uplift students, leading to the creation of “Bigger.” The royal students are both vocal performance scholars. They decided to use their melodic voices to relay a message that students could relate to. Their rendition of Beyonce’s Bigger reached tens of thousands of viewers on Instagram and was reposted by such popular pages as @hbcupulse and @hbcubuzz. The positive reception by viewers beyond FAMU’s campus surprised both Jackson and Johnson with how vast their influence has reached.

“As a freshman coming in, I was really looking forward to experiencing all of college life and was disappointed when I couldn’t,” said Jada Haywood, a food science scholar. “But after listening to ‘Bigger,’ I realized that this difficult moment is only temporary; we have to continue to look for-

ward to something better.”

Jackson said he has had a deep personal relationship with music since he was a child. He began singing with his grandmother, Beatrice Jackson, in Brooklyn when he was only three years old. At the age of 10, he was the youngest contestant to audition in Atlanta, for BET’s popular Sunday Best. From there, he worked with Tyler Perry on his stage play, Neighbors from Hell and the series, If Loving You is Wrong. It felt only right that he can now use his gift and talent for music as Mister FAMU.

“I believe that music heals and feeds the soul,” Jackson said. “I have been trying to stay true to who I am. It’s a gift that God gave me, and I want to use it to heal and go beyond FAMU and touch the world.”

Jackson’s participation in FAMU’s Concert Choir furthered his love for Gospel and R&B music. During his music career, he has released his single All of Your Worth on multiple streaming platforms.

This busy royal Rattler said he hopes to continue to reach students with restarting his Motivational Mondays during which he instills listeners with inspirational gems to get through the week. He also has a vision to start a men’s conference at FAMU to discuss many day-to-day issues that target Black men or problems men do not speak about regularly. He continues to pursue positions outside of his comfort zone, he said, living by the motto: “You can’t have a testimony without a test.”

This Legacy Continues... Decades and Decades Later

Florida A&M University’s 114th Miss FAMU has royal blood running through her veins. A fourth-year vocal performance scholar, Erika Johnson, is no stranger to the role of Miss FAMU, of which she is intimately familiar. The women in her family have held the esteemed position dating back years before her. It is a Johnson family tradition, and she is doing everything to continue the legacy.

It all started in 1981, when Johnson’s mother, Vivian Johnson, served as the 75th Miss FAMU. The royal history does not stop there. Following in their mother’s footsteps, Johnson’s only brother, Fred Johnson, served as the 11th Mister FAMU. Her only sister, Michelle Johnson, became the 111th Miss FAMU. It’s Erika’s turn now.

Coming from a long line of Rattlers, attending FAMU was a given for Johnson. But after watching her brother and sister fulfill the roles of Mister and Miss FAMU, she knew what it would take to continue the family tradition.

“[My family] was with me along the way,” Johnson said. “They helped me get out of my shyness and step into my purpose as a leader and someone who advocates for people. They really taught me the importance of speaking up and being the person who sees something that is not right and fixes it.”

As a part of her platform as Miss FAMU, Johnson is also dedicated to service and establishing monthly projects to help the community and Rattlers in need. For example, Johnson planned an event called “Black Men Speak” in recognition of Mental Health Month. At this event, she invited male students and members of the community to discuss issues afflicting Black men with mental-health ex-

perts. She also participated in a fundraiser for FAMU students directly impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. She embraces the need to be proactive instead of waiting on someone else to make a change.

Serving the community and fellow students is of the utmost importance to Johnson. Before taking on her royal duties, she was President of the Texas Club, Miss FAMU Concert Choir and Miss University Housing. One of the most influential positions she has held was Resident Assistant (RA) for FAMU Polkinghorne Village. As an RA, she witnessed the day-to-day struggles of students and sought to help them the best way she could.

“I feel like I’m in a position to help a lot of people and shed light on a lot of issues I have endured or seen others endure first-hand,” Johnson said. “There is so much going on in the world, and someone needs to step up and be the spokesperson or the voice for the voiceless.”

Students remembered Johnson as an RA they could always confide in; they said they knew she would listen and offer the best advice. Second-year student, Jeremiah Nichols, was a resident at Polkinghorne Village when she was an RA there.

“Erika [Johnson] always had a smile on her face and was one of the most welcoming RAs,” Nichols said. “Coming back to the Village after having a stressful day and having a conversation with her was something that really used to uplift my spirits.”

Johnson also wants to be a strong advocate for the arts programs at FAMU. Being a vocal performance student and member of the Concert Choir, she has a strong appreciation for musical and artistic talents. “Through my time at FAMU I have noticed that performing arts students have not always gotten the recognition they deserved,” Johnson said. “I want people to recognize that the amount of talent at FAMU is big.” She hopes that through her work to shine light on the performing arts programs that future students will choose FAMU over prominent arts conservatories. Over the course of her four years in the program, she has seen how FAMU’s arts programs offer a high standard with a welcoming community that sets it apart from other music schools.

Shardai Sallye, a political science scholar, said Johnson’s dedication to the arts programs and its students is clear.

“When I joined Concert Choir, Erika [Johnson] and Kimani [Jackson] were the first two people I met,” Sallye said. “I knew then the amount of talent they each had and their dedication to a task and seeing it through. If they said they were going to accomplish something, they definitely did.”

Johnson has many plans to continue to serve students using the values and beliefs instilled in her through her family. She started the initiative to get students to vote during the election season with a 10-day challenge called “Rattlers to the Polls.” Students were encouraged to post their pictures to social media after they voted for a chance to win FAMU apparel.

For Kimani Jackson and Erika Johnson — Mr. and Miss FAMU — their reign is already showing itself to be much more than being a face, but more than being a part of a legacy family. It is all about being a voice for the students at the school they love. For them, they say it is all about FAMUly and being a part of something bigger.

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