Covering: Sutphin, Jamaica, Springfield Gardens, Rosedale, Cambria Heights, Corona, Rego Park and more
OUR WORLD ON SUTPHIN NEWS “Where your news reflects you and your community”
OUR WORLD ON SUTPHIN NEWS
Vol.1 No.1
FREE
Fall 2017
Gladys Knight performance at Queens College Kupferberg Center. see page 5
An Interview with Award-Winning Saxophonist, Ed Jackson at the Air Train Jazz Festival see page 9
Jamaica Avenue runs through the heart of our community’s bustling Jamaica commercial district see page 6
Sutphin Boulevard Harvest Festival VISIT OUR WEB SITE:
www.ourworldonsutphinnews.com
ourworldmedia1 @ourworldmedia
A Message From The Publisher Dr. George C. Onuorah –Publisher Our world On Sutphin is one way we are re-branding our magazine and renewing our commitment you. From inception and true to our core mission to better our community and our world by bringing content to help transform lives and create enabling environment to sustain hope for a better tomorrow. We are delighted our message has resonated and continues to resonate in a big way. Many of you reach to us by commenting on social media platforms our diligence and hard work. As you already know, we have presence on such social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, You Tube etc. Thousands read the awesome work our magazine coverage of local events in our community here at home, sees the beautiful and captivating photographs from events our seasoned celebrity photo-journalist Joseph Swift attends. We are going places and bringing the visuals to you to feed the insatiable appetite of you our audience. More importantly, we are happy to help shine light on the huge capital development around Jamaica Queens by the confluence of Sutphin Blvd Business district. As you can see for yourself, the entire area is undergoing serious revamping, construction overhaul and transformation. Certainly, such wholesale change translates to better improvement in quality of life, will promote inclusivity, and disavow hate, income re-generation. Revenues for upgrading decaying infrastructures around the commercial business district and creating sustainable jobs for local folks struggling to make it.
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Our World On Sutphin is how our magazine is building and partnering for a bold and ambitious community initiative which will pay dividends in the near future. The bold sustainable vision long embraced by Mr. Glenn Greenidge, the Executive Director of Sutphin BID when he stated “It’s the highlight of the diversity of the community, the culture, the fashion and being inclusive of those different cultures”. Our discordance and disarray we see this days is troubling. So we turn our back to hate and embrace love, appreciating diversity as our strength and strive for harmonious co-existence.
Brenda Jones Sales Director
(347) 580-0039 B.Jones@ourworldmedia.com
In this edition of Our World on Sutphin, we bring you Sutphin Blvd Harvest Festival that took place this September, which attracted many vendors, merchants who set up booths and tables along Sutphin Blvd –Jamaica Avenue selling their products, many folks strolling buying, and some enjoying other entertainment that was part of the festival.
MISSION STATEMENT Where your news reflects you and your community. We are a community based media outlet located in Baisley Garden on Sutphin Blvd. For a long time, we wanted to be a voice for the community in a positive reflection of changes that is happening with in our community. One of our missions is to bring the business owners together with the residents and other community based agencies. Together we can become a voice and a sounding board. Where your news reflects you and your community.
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We showcase interview with Award winning saxophonist Ed Jackson at the Air Train Jazz Festival, others were dazzled by the amazing beauty and brilliance of young Ms. Ashley Keiko, saxophonist and entertainer. Even Dr. Bob Lee WBLS radio personality was highly impressed. The musical group “Right Direction” brought nostalgia with their rendition of the oldies “Celebration by Cool and Gang, had some passersby dancing and reliving the nostalgia of 1980’s when the music was very popular. Read well written piece by Brandon Clarke on “Jamaica Avenue runs through the heart of our community’s bustling Jamaica Commercial district”. Follow up on press conference and details about such completed projects such as the Jamaica Avenue repaving a partnership Office of New York City Council member Hon. I Daneek Miller, DOT Department of Transportation, DDC Department of Design and Construction were all happy to celebrate.
CO-OWNERS Dr. George Onuorah , Joseph Swift & Pauline Swift
CHAIRWOMAN Tiffany Goode
EDITOR-IN CHIEF George Onuorah
ADVERTISING SALES Brenda Jones
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Malcolm Boyd Verity Rollins Johanna Bender Quentin V. Mezetin, O’Neil A. Reid Bill Joseph
CREATIVE ART DIRECTOR Joseph Swift
PHOTOGRAPHERS Kheron Sutherland, Verity Rollins Jeff Dormeus, Joseph Swift
PHONE: 917-674-2219 | 718-699-9706 | 917-300-5570 EMAIL: info@ourworldmedia.com WEBSITE: OurWorldonSutphinNews.com
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Gladys Knight returns to Queens
Gladys Knight at Queens College -Kupferberg Center. Photo by: @JswiftPhotos
By: Verity Rollins
November 9, 2017, Queens, NY - Seven-time Grammy winner Gladys Knight gave an unforgettable performance at the Kupferberg Center in Flushing Queens this past Thursday. This is the second time the singer performed at the venue. After such an outstanding performance the first time, it left many New York fans longing for her return.
elegance and class; like a fine wine, the singer just gets better with age. The “Empress of Soul” captivated the audience with her mesmerizing voice as she sang songs from her very extensive catalog of classics. In between tunes, Ms. Knight engaged the audience by telling funny stories about her life and band. Our World Media was honored to be in attendance for this phenomenal performance. If you had the misfortune of missKnight has been in the music and entertainment industry ing this event, you can check out photos and clips from this for seven decades, and at 73 years young the singer hasn’t event below. For a listing of upcoming concert dates, shows, missed a beat. The crowd was in amazement and awe as the and new music check out www.gladysknight.com. “Empress of Soul” took the stage. Knight, looked amazing with her eye-catching outfit floating across the stage with such
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“Jamaica Avenue runs through the heart of our community’s bustling Jamaica commercial district” By: Brandon Clarke
“J
amaica Avenue runs through the heart of our community’s bustling Jamaica commercial district,” said Council Member I. Daneek Miller. “Years of neglect forced consumers and suppliers to use this crucial artery under hazardous conditions that detracted from the economic growth of local businesses, and left pedestrians prone to injury. This repaving underscores the public recognition that Jamaica’s appeal extends beyond the boundaries of Southeast Queens to all of our City’s residents. I thank Mayor de Blasio, Department of Transportation Queens Borough Commissioner Nicole Garcia and her colleagues, and the Department of Design and Construction for responding to this longstanding concern of my constituents. Additionally, I wish to thank the members of Community Boards 12 and 13 for their legacy of advocacy on this issue.” “This resurfacing makes Jamaica Avenue safer and work better for everyone who lives, travels or does business in this community,” said DOT Queens Borough Commissioner Nicole Garcia. “While the fresh asphalt gives everyone a smoother surface, we also improved safety around schools by installing concrete islands to shorten crossing distances, adding new pedestrian signals and fixing and replacing sidewalks, curbs and pedestrian ramps.”
Pictured from L to C: CM Miller, DOT Queens Commissioner Nicole Garcia
COUNCIL MEMBER MILLER ANNOUNCES FINAL PHASE OF NYC DOT By: Brandon Clarke
JAMAICA AVENUE REPAVING COMPLETED October 20, 2017 – Jamaica, NY – Joined outside of P.S./I.S. 268 by New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) Queens Borough Commissioner Nicole Garcia, representatives of the Department of Design and Construction (DDC), elected officials and community leaders, Council Member I. Daneek Miller (D-Jamaica) declared the second and final phase of the resurfacing of Jamaica Avenue, between 168th Street and Francis Lewis Boulevard, has been completed. Street resurfacings, which are commonly described as repavings, eliminate various defects caused by routine wear-and-tear that both damage vehicles and risk pedestrians’ safety. The majority of this particular stretch along Jamaica Avenue was last repaved over 25 years ago. At a town hall meeting hosted last September by Councilman Miller, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced eighteen lane-miles along Jamaica Avenue would be resurfaced. The first phase of the project was completed later that year, and entailed repaving seven lane-miles along the thoroughfare between Francis Lewis Boulevard and 224th Street. The project’s second phase was recently finalized.
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Pictured from L to R: Michele Keller, QCB12; Yvonne Reddick, QCB12 District Manager; CM Miller, DOT Queens Commissioner Nicole Garcia
JFK AIR TRAIN JAZZ FESTIVAL Each and every Thursday from 5pm-7pm
Photos by: Joseph Swift
on the upper level of the Air Train terminal
An Interview with Award-Winning Saxophonist, Ed Jackson at the Air Train Jazz Festival By: Johanna Bender
Ed Jackson
The Air Train Jazz Festival continued this Thursday with Ed Jackson’s Quintet. The tables at the bar were filled with lovers of music and a few regulars who have been turning out to enjoy the sounds of the Jazz Festival every Thursday evening. Ed Jackson is a veteran of the Jazz Festival, having played the Saxophone with other ensembles previously for the even. He leads his own quintet and jazz lounge, The Jackson Room, and has received the Selmer Company Award for Outstanding Saxophonist. When you hear him play, you understand how he got that award. Our World on Sutphin was able to get an interview with him during the festival. Ed Jackson works his Saxophone with a skill he’s cultivated for nearly forty years. Being born right here in Jamaica, Queens, He recalls sitting on the steps of a two family home, where there was a porch, and on it: a piano. His brother played the bass and often invit-
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ed friends home; gifted musicians like pianist Donald Blackman and composer Weldon Irvine were performing in his presence. Ed Jackson says, “I was just sitting there, trying to figure out where I fit in as this eleven year-old kid. At that time James Brown used to say on his records: “Macio play your horn!” Macio was a Sax player. I realized they didn’t have a sax player, so that was my calling.” From there, he was sitting in with his brother, and they played jazz tunes. Ed would listen to his brother play LP records by Stanley Turpentine, Charlie Parker, and Train. His road to music was really paved in his teenage years. Every summer in his youth, his parents sent him to sports camp for two months. Athletics wasn’t for Ed—he knew music was his passion. Finally, one summer he felt confident and declared to his parents that he wasn’t going back to sports camp. “They said: Well, where are you going to go?” Ed Jackson reflects, “This is what changed my life. I told them, how about a music camp?” His parents approached him with a brochure for “A Lighthouse Art and Music Camp”. From there he was able to get away for a couple of months with great jazz teachers. Ed Jackson describes the impact music camp had on him explaining, “It turned my whole life around, because I really started to understand more about the jazz language.” He returned to the camp until graduating school and attending the New England Conservatory of Music with a Degree in Music. With all the experience he gained from his schooling, he was prepared when opportunity struck. Ed’s brother was playing with the established musician, Roy Haynes. Roy ended up asking Fall 2017
Ed Jackson to rehearse with his band, and Ed played numerous events with the band for two years. Many young musicians are trying to start their freelance career playing gigs and making music with friends. Ed Jackson has some suggestions for establishing yourself as a freelance artist. First, he suggests constantly putting yourself in situations where you get to play your music, even if it doesn’t pay—especially in the jazz genre. The chances of a jazz musician making a decent salary can be very slim. It’s crucial to not allow the lack of reward to discourage you from putting your talent out there. By being in the right environment, your biggest reward is in the networking opportunities. Second, it can be rough to freelance without steady income, so it’s wise to have another profession on the side. Find a niche that works for yourself and your schedule. For Ed, it’s a tax practice. He works his hardest during the spring tax season, and then he’s free to play all the jazz he likes. Taxes aren’t for everyone though, so discover options that best suit your strengths. If you’re looking to be blown away by a stellar Saxophone solo, Ed Jackson can be spotted at Ashford & Simpson’s Sugar Bar on the first Saturday of each month. On the last Saturday of the month, he plays at his very own venue, the Jackson Room in St. Albans. Anyone can go online to make a reservation. Don’t forget to catch the next Air Train Jazz Festival on Thursday, October 27th for another evening of smooth listening.
The Most Fun, but Most Challenging Genre in Music: An Interview with Lon Ivey at the AirTrain Jazz Festival By: Johanna Bender
L
ast Thursday, the Airbar at the JFK Air Train terminal offered an escape from the LIRR station’s typical chaos. Travelers and businessmen slowed their rushing steps to stop and listen to the sounds of Lon Ivey’s 4th Millennium Band. The third annual Air Train Jazz Festival hosts jazz artists on Thursday every week through May. Lon Ivey’s band is made up of musicians who have lead groups of their own and performed with top artists spanning the entire globe. Our World on Sutphin had the opportunity to interview the talented band leader Lon Ivey. Vocalist, drummer, and band leader, Lon Ivey, has been practicing his art for about thirty years, getting his start in music by singing and playing piano at a young age. His passion for percussion blossomed when his father took him to a concert where a man named Max Roach was banging the drums. The 13-year-old Lon Ivey was inspired by this fantastic drummer who was “one of the guys who changed the whole dialogue in music” according to Ivey. After the concert, Lon Ivey describes telling his father to “get rid of this piano and clarinet, and get me some drums!” He finds truth in the notion that “we stand on the shoulders of giants,” and Max Roach was one of them for Ivey. Other influential figures for Lon Ivey were his teachers like Tony Williams, Roy Brooks, Walter “Baby Sweets” Perkins. He says “you also have got to love Buddy Rich, Bobby Mason, Steve Gadd—there’s so many great musicians, and I’m considered one of the best in my field.” His
lively performance on the drums and vocals was evidence of his experience and standing in the world of music. Lon Ivey now has students of his own and teaches them about the deep roots of jazz music which stretch back into the blues rhythms that originated from West Africa. Though the Air Train Festival centers on Jazz, Lon Ivey takes pleasure in playing many different styles of music, including R&B, Hip Hop, Funk, Metal and Classic Rock. He’s also been playing contemporary gospel as a drummer at the First Baptist Church of Glen Cove (attended by Grammy award-winning singer, Ashanti) for five years. Despite his love for playing everything, his opinion on jazz is that it’s “the most fun, because it’s the most creative.” Apart from it being the most fun, he mentions that it’s the most difficult kind of music to master. His explanation is that “jazz is a discipline. There are some definite ensembles you play together in a group, but its variations on a theme. You take a core theme and you improvise around that core, central idea. That’s really what makes it so great, and so challenging. You almost have to sculpt air. When you play pop music, or heavy metal, you play a repetitive form. The difference in jazz is that it allows you to completely deconstruct and reconstruct the piece of music. No other style of music does that.” With hit movies like “La La Land” bringing up the discussion of jazz music’s relevance in our society, it spurs the question: Is jazz dying? Does it need to be saved? Lon Ivey’s response is “I don’t think so,” and continues to explain, “Jazz has always traditionally had a smaller
audience, but a very loyal audience. Most of the major universities have jazz pedagogies. I teach at a school called mind builders in the Bronx, affiliated with Julliard and JALC. So jazz is not dying—we would like to see more outlets for it, of course, and we play a lot of it.” Another factor that may contribute to the difficulty of being a jazz musician and the perception that the craft is dying is that it isn’t as easy to earn a living by playing jazz music. Even when a musician plays as much jazz as they do R&B, funk, or gospel, a greater reward is usually offered to those who play the latter. Lon Ivey’s 4th millennium band will be playing events all over the city. They often play festivals like the AirTrain Jazz Festival and the past eight Fort Green Jazz festivals in a row. He plays with four other groups as well, and you can catch him playing venues such as Cleopatra’s Needle in the city, and other locations in the outer boroughs. There’s an open mic Jazz series at Rustik on 478 Dekalb Avenue every first Tuesday of the month where Eric Fraizer, who was on the conga drums with Lon Ivey’s band at the Air Train Festival, has played with Eric Fraizer’s Trio for 12 years. These are only a few of the wonderful jazz events you can attend when you’re in need of a little relaxation after a long day. Mark your calendars, because the next Air Train Jazz Festival will take place from 6pm to 7pm on Thursday October, 19th, and it’s an event you won’t want to miss.
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The 1st Annual Sutphin Boulevard Harvest Festival Recap Photos by: Verity Rollins and Joseph Swift
Photos By: @JswiftPhotos
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By: Johanna Bender
S
ummer came to a close last weekend with the autumn equinox. Sutphin Boulevard was eager to celebrate the promise of cooler weather with its first annual Harvest Festival on September 23rd, hosted by Dr. Bob Lee of WBLS Radio. Scores of people from all walks of life, both young and old, turned out for food, entertainment and great music. Small business owners had the opportunity to set up their tables along the street between Hillside and Jamaica Avenue, joined by organizations supporting youth mentoring, public health, and senior services. Spirits were high, as this Saturday was blessed with cloudless, sunny weather. On the main stage, Dr. Bob Lee announced the R&B group of 40 years, The Right Direction, who performed their renditions of classic songs like “Celebration” by Kool & the Gang, setting an energetic tone for the entirety of the festival. Later in the day, Ashley Keiko Chambers took the stage and stopped attendees in their tracks—captivating all with her talents on the saxophone. Christian Hip-Hop artist Young Lyfe had the stage in the afternoon. With
expert flow, he wove together powerful rhymes about rising above struggle and finding faith. His passion and positivity made the perfect finale for the festival’s music performances. The food at the Harvest Festival catered to a diverse pallet. Vendors kept busy feeding a hungry crowd that couldn’t get enough of the cooking. There were lines for jerk chicken from Cecilia’s Kitchen, made by original home recipe. Entice, a family-operated restaurant on Jamaica Avenue, offered empanadas and Jerk Mac & Cheese for those who like it spicy. When the afternoon temperature reached its hottest, many guests opted for a Pina Colada or water from a freshly-cut coconut that they could sip through a straw. Every vendor provided food that satisfied both the stomach and the soul. Tables lined along the street featured uniquely-handmade accessories, home goods, and clothing. The festival market gave guests an opportunity to get great deals on wool hats and sweaters in preparation for the anticipated Fall season drop in temperatures, as well as a chance to stock up on holiday gifts.
This was a great place for families to spend quality time together on a beautiful day. Children played games and slid down inflatable-bounce slides; hardly a moment passed during the festival without hearing the sound of laughter. The Grace Episcopal Church also set up a booth representing the Interfaith Initiative which promotes wellness and health in minority communities. The Initiative provides information on making wise food choices and keeping mental health in balance. When the sun began to set, the first Harvest Festival on Sutphin Boulevard had to pack up. The results are in, and the event was a clear-cut success. Those who were fortunate enough to catch the festival agreed that they would come back again next year. Sutphin Boulevard is home to a rich diversity which, amongst the high-rise buildings shooting up throughout the borough, is getting much harder to find. It was incredible to have an event where people of all cultures and orientations can come together in the community to plant smiles, grow laughter and harvest love on Sutphin.
Three days of amazement from start to finish Photo By: @ JswiftPhotos By: Verity Rollins
September 15 - 17, 2017, Queens, NY- Three days of amazement from start to finish; if you’re a music lover you were in attendance for the 2017 Meadows Music Festival. Words can not describe this year’s festival. The Meadows featured an array of amazing performers JayZ, Nas, LL Cool J, Q-Tip, Busta Rhymes, Nicki Minaj, Gorillaz, Big Boi and The Red Hot Chili Peppers to name a few. With so many top artists in one place over three days its hard to pick your favorite moment of the show every performance was amazing and entertaining. On day one Jay-Z gave an amazing opening day headlining performance. For nearly two hours JAY went in on stage, going through hit after hit of his very extensive catalog, giving a flawless performance. If the festival ended that day you would have gotten more than your money’s worth. Throughout Jay’s performance, there were a lot of key memorable moments but in my opinion none more memorable that when he brought out Damian Marley, the set’s only guest performer for the song “Bam” their collaboration on Jay-Z’s recently released 4:44 LP. Jay-Z not only a true artist but also a true music fan switched it up going into the role of Hype Man and allowing Damian Marley to perform his signature track “ Welcome to Jamrock”. Jay-Z ended his set with one of his most inspiring tracks “Forever Young”, which was the perfect song to end the day. As always Jay-Z’s performance was nothing short of perfect.
After such an awesome opening day you didn’t think that day two would have been able to compare especially with Jay-Z closing out the first day, but day two was just as good as day one. The second day of the festival featured many great performances and a host of guest appearances, such as Nicki Minaj, Young Thug, and A Tribe Called Quest to name a few. All the performances on day two were amazing, and it’s very hard to choose one performance over another, but I can’t help but highlight the performance of a music legend such as LL Cool J. The Rap icon gave the audience a history lesson bring out other legends of the Rap game, Q-Tip and Jarobi White of A Tribe Called Quest, D.M.C of Run D.M.C and none other than Grand Master Flash and the Furious Five. LL’s performance was filled with high energy giving the audience classic LL; he hasn’t lost a step. He embodied the meaning of timeless preforming now just as good as he did in his prime. The Queens M.C. ended his set with one of his most notable signature tracks” Rock the Bells”. Day two featured other amazing performances from De La Soul, Erykah Badu, A-Trak, Big Gigantic, Future, M.I.A., Tv on the Radio, Gorillaz, Mos Def, and Del Tha Funkee Homosapien. The final day of the festival brought a change of pace, where the first two days were dominated mostly by
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Hip Hop acts, day three was filled with rock and dance artists. Fantastic Negrito kicked off the day with his passionate soulful music. As it drew you in, you got lost in the crowd forgetting that soon the epic event would come to an end. The rest of the day featured performances from the Dreamers, Wild Belle, GTA, Broods, St. Paul & the Broken Bones, Foster the People, Action Bronson, Broken Social Scene, NAS, Weezer, Lido, Sleigh Bells, Bassnectar, and the legendary Red Hot Chili Peppers. Day three was just as exciting as the previous two days, so much so you didn’t want it to end. Unfortunately, the festival had to come to an end and there was no better choice than to end with the world famous Red Hot Chili Peppers. One of the most successful rock acts in history, the Red Hot Chili Peppers came out and gave a mind-blowing performance to end the day; despite some minor technical difficulties. Delivering 90 minutes of straight hits the Peppers had you in music heaven, there was no doubt why they were chosen to end the festival. The Meadows has been one of the most exciting events so far this year in the NYC Tristate area. If you had the misfortune of not making it this year make sure you get your tickets early for next year’s festival. Check out some of the shots from this amazing three-day event below.
LL Cool J performing onstage during day 2 at The Meadows Music & Arts Festival at wCiti Field.
Darry McDaniels of the legendary hip hop group RUN DMC comes out on stage to perform with LL Cool J.
Nicki Minaj performing with Future on The Meadows Stage.
Nas pointing to the fans in the crowd during day 2 of The Meadows Music & Arts Festival at Citi Field. w w w. o u r w o r l d o n s u t p h i n n e w s . c o m
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