Short Essay
Celebrating Blackness on Juneteenth
Curatorial Note: This short essay was originally posted Friday, June 19, 2020 on Medium. The essay originated as a reflection on the life of music legend Andre Harrell, and his legacy of uplifting talent from music artists to executives to those hoping to break into an industry. The call to action is to normalize more celebratory traditions. The essay commits two annual Juneteenth traditions: an image capsule collection and the #blacklist100. The time to act is now.
Outside, it was a typical LA day — sunny and 70s. Inside, raucous. The kind that a family creates on game night. The kind that drifts throughout the house after an interception. The kind that happens on a clear, summer night at a BBQ. We all loved music and lived life on loud — every meeting was a passionate debate and a lesson to learn. An environment that Forbes described as, “a cross between grad school and some sort of pop-culture NASA.”
Sitting at a long table were 30 employees, a testament to a vision of #blackexcellence as we embarked on the journey of launching an independent, Black-owned media company, Revolt. In true fashion, cameras rolled non-stop for a show yet to be released called “Making the Brand,” the story of how culture-makers gave a platform to artists. At the other end of the long table sat Chairman Combs, and next to him Andre Harrell. All chatter quieted abruptly as the debate quickly turned to a stalemate. “Kai, what’s your opinion? People seem to like you,” Chairman Combs said. As the head of communications, it was expected that I’d have something meaningful to say…
My response was okay. Nothing memorable. Nothing earth-shattering. But the lesson I got from Andre Harrell afterward set me on an eventual new course. Pulling me to the side as everyone shuffled out at the end of the meeting, Andre said “always be ready to express your point of view, even if it isn’t popular. You’ll be more respected for having one to give, than being politically correct.” And that advice has taught me to value what I had to say as a Black person often discounted in mostly White spaces. It was the first time I met Andre; he didn’t care about who you were, what title you had, or how long you were in his life… he was generous with his advice and believed knowledge should be shared. He was a great teacher.
If it wasn’t for Mary J. Blige being “ghetto fabulous,” a phrase coined by Andre, then there wouldn’t be a “classy, bougie, ratchet” Megan thee Stallion. Andre’s thumbprint on Black culture is extensive and continues to reverberate today. He understood that culture comes from communities — and the unified struggle among Black Americans deserved a platform to be shared, recognized, and celebrated.
In this social age, Black culture consistently breaks the internet and is the predominant export of American culture abroad — music, sports, entertainment, fashion, food, and beyond. Consider the past year, Black culture drove some of the biggest moments in American culture from the Renegade dance sweeping TikTok to #verzuz & #clubquarantine on Instagram Live garnering millions of streams to all things Black Twitter such as the chicken sandwich wars. Andre believed in the power of community, and social media has become a town square for culture-moving storytelling… one image, tweet, and post at a time.
It started off as a foggy day, but by Noon, we could see clear across the city to the Pacific Ocean from West Hollywood. Atop the Soho House, no one knew that what we anticipated as a normal Grammy luncheon for industry executives and influencers would turn into a gentle nudge into the future. A nudge that almost divided the company.
Music conferences hadn’t been popular for over a decade. But, music festivals were surging. Experiential was starting to boom. And the travel industry was red hot. “We need to do a music conference,” Andre said to the full room, sitting alongside a panel of 10 network executives. We were barely three months old as a network, yet Andre’s vision pushed the whole network out the nest; ultimately becoming the first time someone in my career taught me how to fly.
There was a moment of silence. Andre was known for being an epic storyteller so everyone awaited more explanation of the drifting thought. But that was it, just a drifting thought at the moment, or maybe a prophecy. After the panel wrapped, I found my voice, and immediately told Andre, “I’ll help you with the conference.” When a living legend throws an idea out — you better catch it!
Long story short, we worked tirelessly together to envision and create the blueprint for the Revolt Music Conference. A blueprint that has stood the test of time as the event evolved into the Revolt Music Summit by year five. In under three months from greenlight to “go-time” with VIP arrivals, it was intense, non-stop, and the most rewarding period of my career. While working with Andre day-in-day-out taught me a lot — how to be a boss without being bossy, how to lead through motivation & positivity, and how to hustle in-the-moment — it was how Andre used his voice that taught me the most.
As Chairman Combs, Andre Harrell, and Jimmy Iovine closed the 1,000-person gala after a Neyo performance, Andre gave the last set of thank-yous. Pausing the joyous ceremony, he looked about from the stage across the room, and spotted & thanked his (incredible) assistant, a producer, and me. Andre taught me perseverance, humility, and the need to pause to celebrate life. From that experience, he gave me the nickname “Captain Kai.” I’ll cherish that forever. He shared his stage; and that has taught me to share mine.
Over the years, Andre and I had talked and met several times. His impact on my career has been an invaluable driving force in what I’ve accomplished since creating a moment in culture together:
started volunteering with black youth at Harlem Children’s Zone;
created a program to bring youth into companies for job shadowing — Revolt, Spotify, Samsung, Ogilvy, and Complex Media, to name a few participants;
taught at Columbia University to raise my voice and represent “the culture” in an industry that’s less than 5% black because I am honored to have several HBCU students in my classes to build a pipeline through education of underrepresented groups;
wrote a book on brand building that is based on amplifying the culture of communities; and
persevered in a media industry that rarely values diverse representation in management.
Andre Harrell’s impact on the lives of executives and music artists, specifically, ripples throughout industries. He was an uniter, a champion of Black thought, and a catalyst for culture. He’ll forever be remembered; and thus, let’s make new traditions to honor him.
One of the pleasures of working in communication is accompanying executives & talent to interviews — and I enjoyed doing that with Andre. But there’s one interview that stands out most that he did with Lee Hawkins at WSJ. During one part, Andre leaves us all a blueprint to the future of our culture: pay attention to “...people who are culturally significant in our universe at that time.”
And today, what a moment in time. We stand at an inflection point of change, where any voice can topple the balance of power, and community means more now than ever. It is a time of new customs & habits, and a time when new leaders will be made. But most importantly, it is a time that we need to celebrate our culture most, and clear a path for an awaiting generation of people with “culturally significant” work.
Starting this Juneteenth — as companies across the nation close, millions of Americans take a moment to reflect, and billions around the world look-on — I am asking individuals to join me in honoring Andre Harell and his inspirational message for the Black community, entertainers, celebrities, and allies, by sharing positive, uplifting images of Black history & culture.
Starting this year, each year, Juneteenth will become a celebration of Blackness. There are two personal commitments that I will make in honor of preserving and propelling forward Black culture:
choosing one visual artist a year whose work should be magnified to spark thought & conversation and
releasing a digital book, “The Blacklist,” that contains 100 Black culture-makers & thought-leaders.
1. Annual Visual Artist Spotlight
In light of recent events that have created a global discourse on race, sparked dialogue among allies, and driven millions to action through protests in the streets & boardrooms, the theme for 2020 inaugural Juneteenth Image Capsule is “Have you ever considered, there’s another side
of history?"
The 2020 visual artist to be featured is Elizabeth Colomba, a Harlem-based painter. Her five selected works are intended to create a moment of recognition, education, and celebration for the accomplishments of hidden figures and stories. On Juneteenth, we hope individuals will reflect on the power of the imagery depicted in the Old Masters’ style paintings that depict two universal themes depicted through Blackness — leisure (i.e., attainment of success & security) and prominence (i.e., first-of-their-kind achievements).
Most recently, Ms. Colomba’s work has been featured in Vogue, The Cut, and the Met Opera Shorts; museums and collections with her work include the Studio Museum, JP Morgan, Princeton University, and PAFA (Pennsylvania Academy for the Art). Ms. Colomba has shown work at Swizz Beatz’ No Commission show at Art Basel, also.
For allies, I ask that you re-share the capsule of images, using #CelebrateBlack to reaffirm commitment to defending equality for & changing the imagery depicting the Black community.
For Black Americans, I ask that you share positive images from the image capsule and/or other creators to foster a new image of Blackness in America through positive imagery, using #CelebrateBlack to symbolize your commitment to working with allies for a better future.
For news media, we ask that there be more reflections on historical & current accomplishments of Black individuals added to media, and increased consciousness of the images and stories projected about the Black community.
2. Inaugural “Blacklist”
It is time to recognize and amplify emerging voices within the Black community — voices across industries that represent forward-thinking, culture-making thought-leadership.
Each year, paired with Juneteenth, a digital book of 100 Black thought-leaders will be released. These individuals should be invited to virtual & physical stages to share their research, work, and point of view that has influenced and will continue to impact culture.
In this inaugural year, the Blacklist will be released to news media outlets, conference organizers, and event producers prior to July 4th weekend.
While the categories and honorees are being finalized, individuals will be recognized in five areas:
Media, Arts, & Entertainment
Marketing, Communication, & Design
Retail, Culinary, Manufacturing, & Real Estate
STEM & Healthcare
Cause & Community
The list will be compiled based on invite-only recommendations from senior Black professionals, tastemakers, and thought-leaders plugged into who has a message made for this moment.
Thank you, Andre Harrell, for imparting the reminder to uplift and celebrate Blackness — rest in power. ✊🏽
*kai d. wright