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See slideshow of eventBy Tiffany Jackson
Lights, camera and lots of action took place at the Meyerson Symphony Center on Sunday during The Black Academy of Arts and Letters 25th Annual Black Music and Civil Rights Music Concert: A Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The entire show was dedicated in memory of TBAAL’s former concert choir organist, Jerry Miller who played for 23 years and to activist/writer/actress Yolanda King who remained as a National Advisory Board Member.
Eloquently produced by TBAAL’s Founder/Director, Curtis King, spiritual hymns were performed like “Eye is on the Prize,” "In the Mississippi River," "I Wanna be Ready," "Didn't My Lord Deliver Daniel," and "Fix Me, Jesus" to depict the struggle and hope during the Civil Rights Movement. In fact, music was the key to keeping people sane during much turmoil received from marches, sit-ins and protests. As CBS 11 personality, Iola Johnson puts it, “Music is and was an Important Thread to Holding Things Together (who was also the narrator for the program).”
The concert featured guest soloist Karen Clark Sheard and Roz Ryan and let’s just say that they truly rocked the house with the 200-plus choir assemble, conducted by John Mark Tatum and Pat Kessee. Dallas’s soloists Cathy Marshall, Tommy DeHorney and Althea Johnson also performed beautifully. Ms. Ryan says that she was almost in tears over the performances. During a one on one interview with DallasGospelConnection.com, Ms. Ryan shared her beliefs about how music paved the way through the Civil Rights Movement.
“The music we made tonight was good music but everything back then during the Civil Rights Movement from the gospel to the secular music was good music,” said Ms. Ryan. “I think nowadays we are being so cheated especially our youth because a lot of the music is packaged up and sold like it is real music when it’s really not. I just don’t think that there is a lot of good music out there.”
Ms. Roz contributes the music that she grew up listening to as real music.
“In my youth I was privileged to hear Motown and the Philly sound and that to me was real music,” Ms. Ryan recalls. “I think the Civil Rights Movement has had an affect on the heroes and the music and when we had heroes we had morals, we had lines of demarcation and we didn’t cross any lines; everything was so pure and honest.”
Today, Ms. Roz is pleased to say that Barack Obama is one of the present day heroes.
“Barack Obama is my big hero right now because he is in a position that we thought no other black man would get into,” said Ms. Roz.
With the possibility of voting in an African American man into the Oval Office, Ms. Ryan also predicts a brighter future for blacks and she encourages those who are interested in getting into the industry to learn everything they can.
“Have a back up, have some amount of college under your belt because you need English to read your contract,” said Ms. Roz. “You need to know what is going on in your business as well as the agents and lawyers. You need math to count your money so school is very important. I was blessed because my momma made me stay in school so I could read my contract and count my money.
Ms. Roz continued. “This is not an easy life but it is a wonderful life. We did not have American Idol back then and sometimes I feel that shows like these can be more of a curse then a blessing. These people are thrown into an industry that they are not prepared to handle and that is why it is important for them to have mentors, people who can keep them centered.”
Ms. Roz or might we say “The Diva” says that she is blessed to have had people like Lena Horne, Sarah Vaughn and Billie Holiday as her influences. These artists motivated her to start singing at the age of 17. And today she continues to perform in Broadway shows and singing in events like the tribute to Martin Luther King Jr. at TBAAL.
“I am truly blessed and I thank God for allowing me to be versatile and have the ability to do so many things,” she concluded.
Other performances included a dance company that delivered the message of true freedom through dance. They became the real show stoppers. The U.S. Army soldiers were honored and TBAAL received a check for $3,000 from the Sam & Ruth Bussey Foundation. If you missed the show you missed a treat. Martin Luther King Jr. legacy lives inside of the hearts and soul of TBAAL’s family and friends.
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