02/12/2019

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Indiana Statesman

Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2019

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The 61st Grammys marked the beginning of the end for a one-sided music industry

Generations celebrates Black History Month

Lorraine Ali

Los Angeles Times (TNS)

The 61st Annual Grammy Awards appeared to be an exemplary model of diversity and progress as an unprecedented number of female artists _ including Cardi B, making history as the first solo woman to win for rap album and Kacey Musgraves, who won the night’s album of the year prize _ dominated the evening’s live performances. Alicia Keys (not LL Cool J or James Corden) hosted. And a notable number of African-American artists were nominated in mainstream categories outside of rap and R&B.

Indiana Statesman

my’s fraught relationship with women and artists of color played a starring role during a ceremony that was as much an ode to diversity as it was a reparation effort. What were they making up for? More than a half a century of operating like most other entertainment mediums until movements such as #OscarsSoWhite, #MeToo and #TimesUp forced the first real signs of change in the TV and film industries. The music industry has been slow to catch up. Last year just one woman won a solo award during the telecast. And it didn’t seem the organization felt any pressure to change things up when the

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reers. It was the same year that Kendrick Lamar was passed over by the academy for an album that went on to win a Pulitzer. His Grammy snub followed a pattern of rappers such as Jay-Z being asked to perform, making the show look diverse, only to be passed over for wins in pop and mainstream categories. This year, the Grammys became the latest awards show to visibly struggle with the overwhelming calls for change. Childish Gambino, who won in three major categories including best record, wasn’t there to pick up his awards. Neither was Ariana Grande, who won in the pop category.

Robert Gauthier | Los Angeles Times | TNS

Derek Ali, left, and Ludwig Goransson accept the Record Of The Year award for ‘This Is America’ during the 61st Grammy Awards at Staples Center in Los Angeles on Sunday, Feb. 10, 2019.

But it was clear from who wasn’t at the Staples Center on Sunday that all was not well. The Recording Acade-

chief executive of the Recording Academy, Neil Portnow, said women in music should “step up” to advance their ca-

It was as if they were taunting academy voters when, during commercial breaks, emojis of both artists appeared in sep-

arate ads for Apple Memoji and Google Playmoji, singing the songs they probably would have performed on the Staples Center stage had they agreed to appear. Best album nominee Lamar, who led with eight nominations, also refused to attend. Drake, up for best album and six more awards, surprised everyone when he showed up to receive his award for rap song. But he took the opportunity to voice the frustration of a generation of artists locked out by a mainly white, mainly male voting body. “This is a business where it’s up to a bunch of people who might not understand what a mixed-race kid from Canada is saying, or a fly Spanish girl from New York ... The point is, you’ve already won if you have people who are singing your songs word for word, if you’re a hero in your hometown. Look, if there’s people who have regular jobs who are coming out in the rain and snow, spending their hardearned money to buy tickets to your shows, you don’t need this (Grammy award) right here. I promise you. You already won.” Grande tweeted that she had a dispute with producers over what she wanted to perform. “It was when my creativity & self expression was stifled by you, that i decided not to attend,” she posted. The Grammys did make changes after last year’s ceremony to be more inclusive and representative of today’s music industry. On Sunday, eight acts rather than five competed in the top four categories of album, record, song of the year and best new artist.

GRAMMY’S CONT ON PAGE 3

Alyssa Bosse Reporter

The Generations Restaurant in Hulman Memorial Student Union, Commons celebrated Black History Month by serving soul cuisine on Thursday, Feb 7. This event was open to anyone and is set to be hosted again in Sycamore Dining hall later this month. Sumalayo Jackson, African American Cultural Center director, explained some of the details of the event. “Soul food is a term used to describe traditional Southern African-American Food,” said Jackson. “True Soul Food tends to be well seasoned, sweeter and spicy. Once African-Americans moved from the south, they would try to recreate their experiences by offering special dishes for celebratory occasions. Soul food was originated in areas heavily populated by African Americans.” The meal featured several dishes from different regions like Memphis, Creole, Caribbean, Harlem Renaissance and plant based soul food. Plant based soul food was also served along with vegan soul food, to be inclusive for specific dietary needs of anyone attending. At the event there were several stations, each food station represented a region. The stations were decorated with colors, pictures, food origins and memorabilia of the region it was representing. At each setting there was a table tent with pictures of black historical figures and famous quotes. While eating soul food there was also a presentation showcasing important periods and people of African American history. Patrons got to listen to African American music that was being played in the background of the power point. This was the first time Sodexo honored Black History Month with Soul Cuisine.

Parkland families petition for 2020 ban on assault weapons David Smiley

Miami Herald (TNS)

Unlikely to convince a conservative state government to ban assault weapons, the families of slain Parkland students are turning to the voters. Relatives of the 17 people killed in the Feb. 14 massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High gathered with activists Monday in Fort Lauderdale to submit the first of what they hope will be more than 1 million petitions signed in a push to force a 2020 ballot question to prohibit the possession of what they called “military-grade” weapons. If it passes, the ban would be cemented as an amendment to the Florida Constitution. “If these politicians don’t take action on this, the voters can,” said David Hogg, a Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School alum who emerged last year as one of the leading figures in a student-led movement. The effort — which so far has netted just 88,000 of the required 766,200 signatures — began nearly a year ago amid a surprisingly successful push by activists and Parkland families to move a sweeping gun- and school-safety measure through the Republican-controlled Legislature. The Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act created a “red flag” law to remove guns from the hands of people believed by a judge to be unstable, raised the minimum age to buy

a rifle and banned the sale and possession of attachments capable of converting semiautomatic weapons into fully automatic. But attempts to amend the bill to completely ban “assault weapons” went nowhere. So in March, the Ban Assault Weapons Now political committee was formed in order to move a petition drive that would outlaw the civilian possession of any semi-automatic rifle or shotgun capable of holding more than 10 rounds at any time “either in fixed or detachable magazine, or any other ammunition-feeding device.” Assault weapons that were legally purchased before the ban kicks in will remain legal as long as they’re registered. A violation would bring a third-degree felony charge. “It’s time to ban the type of military-grade assault weapons in the state of Florida that are used by our military overseas on our enemies on the battlefield,” BAWN Chairwoman Gail Schwartz said Monday morning, straining to be heard over rain and the roar of cars splashing past the downtown Broward County government headquarters. Schwartz, the aunt of slain Parkland teen Alex Schachter, was flanked by a group of activists that included Hogg, the parents of slain 17-year-old Nick Dworet, and the widow of school athletic director Chris Hixon. They gathered under the umbrella of Do Something Florida!, a bipartisan organization created

Amy Beth Bennett | South Florida Sun Sentinel | TNS

Ban Assault Weapons Now Chairwoman Gail Schwartz, aunt of Parkland shooting victim Alex Schachter, signs paperwork as she submits 200 petitions to the Broward County Supervisor of Elections office for review as part of a ballot initiative to put on the 2020 election ballot a ban on the sale of military-grade weapons. With Schwartz are, from left; Parkland shooting survivor David Hogg, Debbie Hixon, Parkland shooting victim Chris Hixon’s widow, and Mitch Dworet, Parkland shooting victim Nick Dworet’s father at the Broward County Government Center in Fort Lauderdale on Monday, Feb. 11, 2019.

to push the assault weapons ban. The move is essentially an endaround the Florida Legislature, which Democrats have found to be the best course of action on big-ticket progressive issues in conservative Florida. It’s how environmentalists forced the state

to set aside hundreds of millions for land acquisition in 2014, and how personal injury attorney John Morgan forced a comprehensive medical marijuana market into existence two years later. So far, Schwartz’s political committee has reported raising

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$439,000 in just under a year. It will need to raise millions more to be successful. “This is a huge endeavor and it’s very costly to collect this many signatures all throughout

PARKLAND CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

For non-student tickets to the performance, please go online to Ticketmaster.com, call 1-800-745-3000, visit us at the Hulman Center Ticket Office or call 1-877-ISU-TIXS


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02/12/2019 by Indiana Statesman - Issuu