Black History Month

Smooth Jazz News salutes the accomplishments and sacrifi ces made by African American citizens

By Melanie Maxwell

Black History Month is celebrated each February in the United States with concerts, rallies, parades, parties and other festivities to commemorate the contributions of African Americans who changed the world. Much progress has been made toward equality and against racial discrimination since Dr. Carter G. Woodson launched “Negro History Week” in 1926: We elected our fi rst black president, Barack H. Obama, to two terms in offi ce. Oprah Winfrey became the fi rst black woman to launch a television network; and, last year, Tyler Perry was the fi rst African American man to own a major movie studio. Still, there is much more work to do.

Tyler Perry

»Perry, a writer, actor, producer, director and philanthropist, is doing his part. He made history when he opened Tyler Perry Studios last year. In honor of people who have inspired and helped him along the way to his success, the New Orleans native dedicated 12 new sound stages to Denzel Washington, Oprah Winfrey, Halle Berry, Sidney Poitier, Della Reese, Spike Lee, Harry Belafonte, Cicely Tyson, Whoopi Goldberg, Diahann Carroll, Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis, and Will Smith. Acquired by Perry in 2015, the 330-acre studio lot is located in Atlanta on the historic grounds of Fort McPherson Army base, which was used as a confederate Army installation during the American Civil War. One day while he was driving to work, the once homeless 50-year-old teared up when he noticed that a sign on Georgia State Route 166 had changed from “Fort McPherson” to “Tyler Perry Studios.” It was next to the exit sign for “Sylvan Road,” the street where he lived in his car in the late ’90s.

Tyler Perry is honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Oct. 1, 2019, in Hollywood, California Perry, now a multimillionaire, is the creator of 17 feature fi lms, 20 stage plays and seven television shows, and is also a New York Times best-selling author. During a broadcast of “The View” on Jan. 20, 2020, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Perry said: “I’m defi nitely part of his [Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.] dream. I’m in his backyard where he grew up there in Atlanta. Atlanta always felt like the promised land for me. For me to be able to go in there, build the studio, not only open a door, but take that door and lay it down and let it become a ramp for other people to come through and come up on, I love having that moment, for sure.”

Photo: Featureflash

Kobe Bryant

Aug. 23, 1978—Jan. 26, 2020

In memoriam for a life lost too soon. Kobe Bean Bryant was born in Philadelphia and grew up to achieve the following accomplishments and more: » 20 seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers (1996-2016); helped lead team to fi ve world titles

»18-time NBA All-Star; NBA’s Most Valuable Player in 2008; three-time All-Star Game MVP; and two-time NBA Finals MVP

»Member of two gold medal-winning U.S. Olympic men’s basketball teams (2008 in Beijing and 2012 in London)

»Author of “The Mamba Mentality: How I Play”

»Winner of the 2018 best Animated Short Film Academy Award for “Dear Basketball,” which also earned him a Sports Emmy and an Annie Award

»Founder of Granity Studios, a multimedia content company

Bryant—who is survived by his wife, Vanessa Laine Bryant, and daughters Natalia Diamante Bryant, Bianka Bella Bryant and Capri Kobe Bryant––died in a helicopter crash on Jan. 26, 2020, along with his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna Maria-Onore Bryant. Also killed were the pilot, Ara Zobayan; college baseball coach John Altobelli, his wife, Keri, and daughter Alyssa; Christina Mauser, a basketball coach; and Sarah Chester and her daughter, Payton Chester.

Photo: Rick Braun

On his 14th birthday, Kyle Braun meets his idol Kobe Bryant on court at the Staples Center in Los Angeles in 2016. The son of trumpeter Rick Braun (and wife Christiane) is a high school basketball star with an offer to attend the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, next year.