3/21/25 O&A NYC WITH WALESTYLEZ FOOTWEAR: Nike SB Dunk Low Tourmaline

Black History Month 2025 may have wrapped up, the Nike SB team still has a special pair on the way with its new Tourmaline take on the SB Dunk Low. Paying homage to Black cowboys, its mint green suede upper is joined by special heel embroidery, rope laces, sockliner art and more.  Continue reading

3/21/25 O&A NYC SHALL WE DANCE FRIDAY: They Called Her Moses

Shall We Dance Friday

They Called Her Moses is Donald McKayle‘s story of freedom fighter Harriet Tubman. The cast includes Jacqueline Walcott, Robert Powell, Sylvia Waters, Arthur Mitchell, Kathleen Stanford, Donald McKayle and Carmen DeLavallade. Continue reading

3/17/25 O&A NYC HOLLYWOOD MONDAY: Carmen Jones- Gypsy Song – Beat Out Dat Rhythm on a Drum

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In the groundbreaking black version of Carmen Jones there is a wonderful club scene Gypsy Song -Beat Out Dat Rhythm on a Drum featuring three sepia divas, Dorothy Dandridge, Pearl Bailey and Diahann Carroll. But there are at least three more present and future stars in the scene. As Carmen enters the club, the stunning woman with the pony-tail is famous beauty/dancer Carmen De Lavallade. Next two are fabled drummer Max Roach, and albeit just for a couple of seconds, Alvin Ailey! Continue reading

3/16/25 O&A NYC GOSPEL SUNDAY: The Caravans- Mary Don’t You Weep (Live)-Inez Andrews, Albertina Walker, Dorothy Norwood, James Cleveland

Gospel icons and trailblazers The Caravans featuring Inez Andrews, Albertina Walker, Dorothy Norwood and James Cleveland on piano perform Mary Don’t You Weep. Continue reading

3/15/25 O&A NYC ITS SATURDAY- ANYTHING GOES: Carmen DeLavallade- The Creation (TEDxEast 2012)

Dancer, actor and choreographer Carmen DeLavallade performs The Creation featuring choreography by her husband Geoffrey Holder. Holder also designed the costume and music. 
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3/13/25 O&A NYC THROWBACK THURSDAY: Shirley Ellis – The Name Game (1965)

The Name Game is a song co-written and performed by Shirley Ellis as a rhyming game that creates variations on a person’s name. She explains through speaking and singing how to play the game. Continue reading

3/7/25 O&A NYC SHALL WE DANCE FRIDAY: Stormy Weather- Lena Horne, Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, Cab Calloway, Nicholas Brothers, Katherine Dunham and dancers

Shall We Dance Friday

Stormy Weather is a 1943 film musical produced and released by 20th Century Fox. The movie is considered one of the best Hollywood musicals with an all African-American cast and serve to  showcase of some of the top African-American performers of the time. Continue reading

3/4/25 O&A NYC INSPIRATIONAL TUESDAY: Zoe Saldaña Best Supporting Actress Speech (97th Oscars 2025)

Zoe Saldaña won the Academy Award for best supporting actress on Sunday night for her role in the Netflix film Emilia Pérez. Saldaña plays Rita Mora Castro, a lawyer who helps the title character, a trans cartel boss, undergo gender-affirming surgery and start a new life as a woman. Continue reading

2/27/25 O&A NYC THROWBACK THURSDAY: Bobby McFerrin & The Kuumba Singers – Hold on

The Kuumba Singers of Harvard College & Bobby McFerrin perform Hold On in Leipzig, Germany. This gospel song was written by Rev. Cleophus Robinson Jr., and first recorded on his 1980 album Consolation.

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2/25/25 O&A NYC SONG OF THE DAY: Roberta Flack – Killing Me Softly With His Song

Roberta Flack performs Killing Me Softly With His Song from her 1974 album Killing Me Softly The song earned Flack the Record of The Year award at the 1974 Grammy Awards. Continue reading