Glory

I had some pretty amazing experiences in Chicago. One of them, I got to meet Rhymefest. Not only did I get to meet him but I got to introduce him as a keynote speaker - which meant I got to hang out with him in the green room before showtime.

I'll be honest, I didn't know who Rhymefest was before I got to Chicago. But I learned and he immediately became someone I admire and respect.

Look him up. He's incredible! He writes 'movement music' (including 'Glory' from Selma. OMG) and believes that the true power is the kind of power that empowers other people. Man. Me too. The words he spoke landed on me and I knew they were true. Words of love for others, words of justice, words of 'we are all in this together so let's help each other.' I loved it. All of it.

When I was tasked to introduce him I was encouraged to talk about the intersection of art and activism. And then it dawned on me that we are all artists - if we know it or not. If we practice it or not. Art is getting finding ways of exposing and expressing our hearts - music, word, drawing, painting, the way you dress yourself, the way you treat others - it's all art. We are art. The way we live our lives is art.

The people I met in Chicago - all the participants from all over the country have desires of justice and freedom inside of them. I feel like it is our collective and individual obligation to the world to share those desires. Our world needs it, I need it, we all need it.

People are so much more complex and amazing then we sometimes remember. Living in the confines of societal norms is suffocating. Art breaks away form that. It helps allow us to be all of us at all times and normalize things and people that aren't 'normal.'

If your heart is screaming good - equality and justice for all - expose it. Our world needs more artists like that!