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This Month’s Song on Heavy Rotation

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For the past month, and even longer, Maurice “Mobetta” Brown’s “Stand Up,” released on his 2017 album, THE MOOD, has dominated my playlist. The song, much like his title track “The Mood,” is an infectious piece of music that has burrowed into my consciousness like few songs in recent memory.

Brown, a New Orleans-based jazz trumpeter mentored by Wynton Marsalis and a sideman for John Legend and Santana, has crafted something that transcends traditional jazz trumpet songs and players. Featuring the legendary Brooklyn rapper Talib Kweli, as a vocalist, “Stand Up” demonstrates Brown’s range as an artist, his sophisticated music composition, powerful lyrical choices, and an unmistakable coolness that permeates every measure. The song comfortably blends jazz with the social consciousness of hip-hop.

The song is a politically charged anthem (especially the message of not standing up to false prophets) that resonates deeply for me and I suspect his fans too. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve played this track, and the live performances on YouTube only deepen my appreciation. Brown and his collaborators command the stage, and you see how the song’s energy is embraced by the musicians who are playing with him.

“Stand Up” is more than a catchy tune. Although the song is dated, it’s an iconic call for peaceful protest, delivering messages of hope and resistance. If you’re looking for something that sits comfortably between jazz tradition and conscious hip-hop, you should definitely check out this track.

How a Monthly Meet-Up of Scholars of Graffiti and Street Art Builds Community

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The academic study of graffiti and street art is interdisciplinary. Although two scholarly journals (i.e., Nuart Journal and Street Art & Urban Creativity) specialize in this subject, university-level classes are rare and scattered across different departments. No post-secondary institution has a dedicated program or department for this field.

What’s more, none of the major learned societies has a division that brings together scholars working on graffiti and street art. As a result, conducting research in this area can be a little lonely.

Since January 2023, however, John L. Lennon, PhD, a professor of English at the University of Southern Florida, has organized a monthly Zoom meetup (the “Graffiti and Street Art Group”) devoted to graffiti and street art. Except for the summer months, the hour-long sessions typically draw at least ten participants, ranging from graduate students to senior professors who have conducted and published research on graffiti and street art.

Each meeting focuses on a rotating set of topics: participants discuss ongoing research, share recent publications, and occasionally invite someone to present an article or book for group discussion. The conversations are lively and engaging, often leading to new insights and collaborations. Opportunities for publication and conferences that might be interested in papers and chapters about graffiti and street art are also discussed. For example, Lennon is now editing a forthcoming special issue of Visual Inquiry on graffiti/street art and pedagogy, with all articles contributed by members of the group.

The meetings are informal and interdisciplinary, attracting scholars from around the world, including the United States, the United Kingdom, and various parts of Europe. The group now boasts 90 individuals on the listserv.  Although attendance varies from month to month, a genuine sense of community has formed among the participants. The meetup now serves as a vital point of connection for researchers studying graffiti and street art across different academic and cultural contexts.

People interested in joining the group should reach out to John at jflennon@usf.edu

Image Credit:

Title: Community (Rusholme, England)

Photographer: Dunk

Fear and Kindness on the Road to Calgary

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I can’t remember what month it was, only that snow had begun to fall as we drove from Lethbridge to Calgary. The road wasn’t a highway, just a patchwork of farm grids: a few miles straight, a turn left, a curve right, and again. It was slow going, maybe 90 minutes through sleet and wind before you hit the main highway.

At one bend, we saw a man and a woman standing by the roadside. A First Nations couple. Maybe they were from the nearby Blood Reserve (Kainai Nation), where some of my students lived or came from. I don’t even recall if they had their thumbs out, but they looked desperate.

We pulled over. Natasha stepped out into the sleet to fold down the passenger seat of our two-door ’83 Cutlass. It was cold enough to give someone frostbite or worse

We asked where they were headed. It was somewhere along our route. They climbed into the back seat and sat quietly, never speaking to each other the whole time. Both of their jackets appeared too thin for the weather. The woman stared out the window, her face turned away from us.

Natasha and I spoke in French with each other, speculating about their situation. Maybe they had a gun or a knife. Perhaps they were high. I worried we were being rude, talking about them in a language they might not understand.

When we reached their stop, they thanked us and stepped into the snow. We watched them go, hoping they’d make it through the night. Some people might’ve driven on, afraid. But we couldn’t leave them there to freeze. Whatever their story, helping them felt like the only right thing to do.

Photo Credit:

Title: A Curve Ahead

Photographer: Paul Jerry