Elephant in the Room, Summer of Soul, and The Farm
Featuring an interview with RP Boo
Welcome to the seventy-second installation of The Q : your one-stop weekly newsletter of culture recommendations.
Album
Elephant in the Room by Mick Jenkins
Elephant In The Room is a sobering reflection of where Mick stands not only in his professional career, but also in his personal life. Some songs demonstrate a current state of happiness and feeling of being unbothered and some iterate a harsh outlook on the social status of his community.
Film
Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) directed by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson
“It was like nothing I had ever heard in my life,” a Harlem Culture Festival attendant said of the pivotal series of concerts that took place in Harlem during the summer of 1969. “Before that, the world was black and white. The concert took my life into color.” He pauses, “But then the festival was forgotten.”
Book
The Farm by Joanne Ramos
I picked up The Farm by Joanne Ramos after hearing about how similar it was to The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. Both books wrestle with concepts of surrogacy and socio-economic class, and both books follow young women who try to succeed within or attempt to challenge the status quo.
Playlist
Fafa’s “Here You Come Again” features Rayland Baxter, Fortuno, and Field Medic
Fafa’s favorite track: “Back to Oz” by Sufjan Stevens
Description: “For when it gets cold….”
Podcast
Episode #67: Cherry Soda and an Interview with RP Boo
On this week's episode, Sam and Teresa interview RP Boo over a glass of cherry soda. RP Boo (Kavain Wayne Space) is a Chicago-based musician who is cited as one of the originators of Footwork — the fast, rhythmically syncopated music & dance style often referred to as the offshoot of Chicago house. In September, RP Boo released Established!, his fourth full-length for Planet Mu. RP Boo talks to Teresa and Sam about performing at Pitchfork, continuously innovating with his music, and the origins of Footwork.
