By David Wilfong, North Dallas Gazette Contributing Writer

Music has a history. Choose your favorite artist, and chances are you can find the subtle hints of their sound in the artists that they listened to growing up. American music is also one of the primary cultural exports given to the world. In addition to the artists who cultivated the sound, the history of American music is also shaped by the studios which recorded it.

And at an even more basic level, it was shaped by the venues where it was first presented to audiences. The U.S. map is dotted with music venues audiences flock to, and artists aspire to take the stage at, simply due to the legacy of that particular place.

And those venues have spread far beyond our borders.

Today, the ultimate venue for a rock artist has got to be River Plate Stadium in Buenos Aires. It is normally a sports facility but can pack up to 75,000 for a concert. The musicians who have performed there are simply stunned by the exuberance of Argentine fans. I recently watched a video of a concert there by the band U2 and remembered reading about the lead singer’s journey into the history of the American sound, and the African American influence on this music that had absolutely infected them as young men growing up in Ireland.

But the infection spread much further than that. Recently, in far-flung Indonesia, the all-female trio known as Voice of Baceprot excitedly informed their fans that they had been invited to play Wacken. The stages of the Wacken Outdoor Festival in Germany have become another legendary venue for musicians of the harder variety. A very young band, Voice of Baceprot earned the invite with the popularity of their first professionally produced music video “School Revolution.” In the video, the hijab-clad Muslim girls offer up a foundation of sped-up funk drums and bass, with heavy metal guitar added, and topped off with a layer of Sundanese rap.

Speaking of rap, the Hip-Hop act of TNMK in Ukraine is once again on tour. There are two interesting things about this act. The first is that there is a thriving Hip-Hop scene in Ukraine. The second is that the group itself is named after a music venue. TNMK is an abbreviation for “Tanok na Maidani Kongo.” Translated into English, their name is “Dance at the Congo Square.”

So, what is “the Congo Square?”

The short answer is, where the infection began.

Congo Square is a small patch of ground located in New Orleans, La., measuring less than three acres. It is just north of the French Quarter, across Rampart Street, and is one corner of the larger Louis Armstrong Park. It has none of the trappings of the multi-thousand-capacity concert halls and stadiums around the contemporary world, but at its heart it is a music venue. It is perhaps the most important venue in the development of what is American music today and in turn, of popular music around the globe.

Yet, I myself have walked right by it and never knew it was there.

The history of Congo Square goes back before the arrival of Columbus to the New World. In indigenous culture, it (along with parts of the surrounding area) was known as “Bulbancha.” In Choctaw the name means “place of many tongues.” Even then it was a trading center and gathering place along the river.

Then the Europeans came, and the area was settled by the French, who brought in large numbers of African slaves. In 1724 the Code Noir gave slaves the right to have Sundays off from work. A mayoral decree in 1817 restricted the congregating of the slaves to the area now known as Congo Square.

In this location the slaves were able to revive their music traditions from Africa. The rhythmic style known as Bamboula ruled the day. Eyewitness accounts detail musical movements and accompanying dance that began with a slow tempo and would steadily work its way into a crescendo of high-speed beats and frenetic dancing. These Sunday gatherings became a staple of life for slaves in New Orleans. Not long after, the white residents of New Orleans took notice and the Sunday gatherings began to draw large audiences, including visitors to the city.

But music evolves, and as the years passed, the slaves of Congo Square began picking up instruments which had been used by white musicians. Gourds, violins, marimbas and other tonal instruments were thrown into the mix. In an oven of creativity, the rhythmic traditions of Africa were baked in with the melodic scales of Europe, and Jazz came out the other side.

This steady flow of sounds would continue to combine with Blues and other styles to create Rhythm and Blues by the time the 1940s came around. In short order, Rock and Roll was born. Rock music has since blossomed into a wide variation of expressions all over the world, all owing their existence to the same origin.

To be sure, there were many different influences that injected themselves into this progression along the way. But the beat is the fundamental element, and there is a clear line of cause-and-effect that traces all this music back to one place: Congo Square.

By the time the American Civil War came around, the gatherings in Congo Square had quelled. After emancipation the former slaves were no longer relegated to gathering in one location. In fact, in 1893 the square was renamed in honor of Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard. The knowledge and awareness of its musical past continued through the local population in Treme (the oldest African American neighborhood in America by the way). The name has also popped up intermittently in music produced by noted Jazz musicians, an album by R&B singer Teena Marie, and even in one song by the 80s glam band Great White. However, outside “in-the-know” Jazz circles, the significance of Congo Square has remained largely unsung.

Then, three decades ago interest was sparked again. This legacy is now kept alive by the Congo Square Preservation Society. The organization began operating in 1989, when Luther Gray and other local musicians and activists sought to pay homage to the city’s percussive past.

“We had gotten a small grant for four weeks to do four Saturdays,” Gray said. “Over those four Saturdays children came, and women came and families came. It was just a really nice outpouring from the community, and they didn’t want to stop. So that’s how we decided, ‘OK, we need to just make this every Sunday.’ We moved it to Sunday because that is the day the slaves gathered in Congo Square.”

In 2011 local historian Freddi Williams Evans successfully lobbied the city to rescind the square’s Confederate dedication and officially revert the name back to Congo Square. There are numerous local events and music festivals held on the site, but most importantly the Sunday tradition has been revived (though usually smaller in scale).

Along the way there have been a few surprises.

“When we started playing in Congo Square, we had read about the Bamboula but no one knew what the rhythm was,” Gray recalled. “Then a master drummer called Chief Bey, he did an African drummer residency with us in the 1980s. He was at the contemporary arts center. And so, the first night he got here we asked him. He was an older man and had been to Africa many times. We said, ‘Do you know the Bamboula?’ He said, ‘Yeah, I know the Bamboula, I worked with Pearl Primus.”

(EdwardWinsorKemblePublicDOmain.jpg)
An early artist’s rendering depicts the massive gatherings of slaves held at Congo Square on Sunday afternoons in New Orleans. (Edward Winsor Kemble / Wikimedia, public domain)

Bey then gave a demonstration of the beat to the Congo Square drummers.

“Man … all of us, our jaws dropped wide open,” Gray said. “We were like, ‘What?’ You know why we were so surprised? Because it was the rhythm of the Second Line! The rhythm of New Orleans is that rhythm, but no one called it the Bamboula. We call it the Second Line.”

Second Line is the basis for the funeral processions New Orleans is known for, with a slow mournful meter to the cemetery, and a jubilant celebratory sound on the way back.

“In other words, we never lost the rhythm for hundreds of years,” Gray said. “So, the whole New Orleans way of playing Hip-Hop, Second Line, Jazz; it was all based on the Bamboula.”

In a cursory online search of iconic and historic American music venues, I found no reference to Congo Square (though New Orleans’ Tipitina’s Uptown did get a mention on one of the lists). I find this to be a travesty of musical justice. Congo Square gave birth to Jazz. She is the grandmother of R&B, and the great-grandmother of Rock. Taking all the sub-genres of those into account, can anyone name another venue through which so much current music flowed?

U2, Voice of Baceprot and TNMK are all sonic descendants of Congo Square, as are just about every artist we all listened to growing up. For a music enthusiast, Congo Square is sacred ground.

So, if you find yourself in New Orleans on a Sunday afternoon, you can generally bank on a gathering in Congo Square at 3 p.m. There, you can experience the rhythms that shaped the future of music in the very place where it all began. Sometimes you may be able to catch a larger music festival.

If you are there any other day and the square is empty, you can simply put on your headphones and load up the playlist of your own life story. Take the moment to reflect on the continuum running from the days of displaced slaves all the way to the day when you first discovered the power of music yourself.

And if the spirit moves you … you too can dance at the Congo Square.

(It’s New Orleans. No one will judge.)

By: Dr. Sarah E. Laibstain

Did you know that according to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, 1 in 6 children in the United States is obese? With over 12 million obese children in the U.S., obesity increases the risk of having chronic health conditions, such as type 2 diabetes and asthma. As September is National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month, it provides a chance to learn ways to prevent obesity and support healthy growth in children. While there is not always a simple solution, there are many opportunities to support a child’s healthy lifestyle.

A healthy lifestyle can begin at home with active family activities and a balanced nutrition plan. Obesity may be influenced by a combination of a lack of sleep, too much time being inactive, easy access to high-calorie foods, and sugary beverages. Making small changes throughout your household can create a positive impact on your child’s health and energy levels. Providing nutritious, lower-calorie foods such as fruits and vegetables in place of sugary foods is a great way to ensure a healthy diet for your children. For school lunches, try switching out a bag of chips for a side of veggies!

Meal prepping on the weekends is an opportunity to save time and money while making grocery shopping much easier. Also, making a list of all the ingredients needed for the week decreases the likeliness that you will stray from your healthy grocery shopping agenda and make unhealthy decisions. There are many quick and healthy meal prep recipes that can help you and your family enjoy a stress-free week.

Activity level is just as important as a healthy diet. Help your children get the recommended amount of physical activity by encouraging family outings such as bike riding or walking around the neighborhood or nearby park. North Dallas offers a variety of low-cost physical activities such as community pools, parks, and trails. Since children tend to pick up on their parents’ habits, staying active, and making healthy meal choices can help encourage your children to live the same healthy lifestyle.

As the school year continues and schedules become busier, finding time to stay active with your family can become harder. Fortunately, the community and education system offers great physical activities to help children stay active. From elementary school to high school, children are offered a variety of ways to stay active with opportunities varying from recess to organized sports teams. Also, many North Dallas communities offer youth sporting organizations for an even wider variety of activities. Researching opportunities to stay active in your community could help your children find new hobbies or interests they may really enjoy.

National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month is a great reminder of the importance of planning healthy meal options and staying active. These efforts can help not just children but the whole family live a healthier lifestyle.

Dr. Sarah E. Laibstain is a general family medicine practitioner at Family Medicine Associates of Texas in Carrollton. She thoroughly enjoys improving the health and lives of individuals ranging from young children to adulthood.

This article originally appeared in The North Dallas Gazette.

By Ed Gray, North Dallas Gazette Senior Columnist

Last week we began the new decade the same way that we finished the old decade. Last year in Dallas, more than 200 people were murdered, sadly most were African Americans. Though we march for justice and claim “Black Lives Matter,” they clearly don’t matter to us in Dallas, as most of the killings are committed by black members of our society.

Our nation is at war with itself. If you are young, gifted and black, chances are you will not get to be old enough to brag about it. Rory Norman, a one-year-old, was killed last week. His family apparently was targeted in an ambush at their home.

How many children, how many babies, must die at our own hands before we realize we are our biggest enemy.

The City of Dallas and its Dallas Police Department are under political fire. This criticism is warranted as its leadership has the moral responsibility to provide security to its citizens. Whatever it takes to restore safety, sanctity, and sanity, the City must act.

The City of Dallas acting means it must not police and occupy because of crime stats. This was done earlier in a ham-fisted manner resulting in a Dallas citizen, Schaston Hodge, being shot sixteen times by the Texas Rangers.

The Mayor and the city manager are wringing their collective hands because this type of crime is bad for business. How can business interests bring corporate dollars to enrich Dallas further?

Now before we blame the Dallas Police Department on increased crimes of murders and assaults, let’s be real! These are often not random killings, but crimes which reflect our social ills. This crime upsurge cannot be solved by merely policing more or throwing money at the problem. This can only be changed if we change. We alone must Silence the Violence.

Dallas Police Chief Renee Hall has been given an ultimatum to reduce crime. If she is going to reduce crime, a tremendous task, Chief Hall needs help from the Black Community. The Community, our Black Community, must police itself.

We must Silence the Violence

The Black Lives Matter movement must immediately be an internal call for Dallas. We must stop the self-inflicted genocide that goes on yearly. If we do not, then 2020 will be just like 2019. If we do not, it will be another number, another death, and another hashtag.

I am Ed Gray, and this is Straight Talk.

Ed Gray is a presidential scholar at Southern Methodist University. He is the host of The Commish Radio Show airing Saturdays 3-5 p.m. on FBRN.net, can be reached at [email protected]. NDG was awarded NNPA’s 2018 Robert S. Abbott Best Editorial for Gray’s “Confederate Statues: The White Man’s Burden” column.

By Dwain Price, North Dallas Gazette Sports

FRISCO – Mike McCarthy was so comfortable after spending the night at the home of Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones last weekend that he decided to stick around for a while.

For a long time.

McCarthy, who was 135-85-2 while coaching the Green Bay Packers from 2006 until he was fired on Dec. 2, 2018, following a 20-17 upset loss to the Arizona Cardinals, was introduced Wednesday as the new coach of the Cowboys. He replaces Jason Garrett, whose contract wasn’t renewed after he led the Cowboys to an 87-70 record during his nine-plus years as the team’s head coach.

Needless to say, McCarthy, who signed a five-year contract with the Cowboys, knows he has stepped right in the middle of a Super Bowl or bust situation. And he thrives on those types of dynamics.

“The goal will never change here,” McCarthy said. “It’s about winning championships.

“But the expectation is going to be trusting the process.”

McCarthy expected to return the Cowboys back to the Bowl

Part of that trust is that Jones believes McCarthy is the coach who can get the Cowboys back to Super Bowl glory. After all, McCarthy did lead the Packers to a Super Bowl victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers nine years ago in a game ironically was played at AT&T Stadium in Arlington.

The Cowboys hope McCarthy can bring some of that magic their way – and real soon.

“I won my first Super Bowl here in North Texas at AT&T Stadium,” McCarthy said. “And I just want to tell you I am anxious and excited to get to work on winning the next Super Bowl for the Dallas Cowboys.”

By the way, when McCarthy spent the night at Jones’ home, Garrett was technically still the Cowboys’ head coach. But Jones didn’t let semantics get in the way of him finally getting the man he thoroughly thinks will lead the Cowboys to the promised land.

Of course, Jones reportedly has a history of meddling with the inner-workings of his head coach. Jones doesn’t like the criticism and added:

“Believe it or not before I got to be involved with the Dallas Cowboys – and that’s all I’m going to say about this – on my desk was, ‘If you’re willing to give others the credit you’ll conquer the world.’ Bam!

“Somehow this thing has turned me into something perceived that I don’t like about it.”

McCarthy knows a thing or two about championship quarterbacks.

Meanwhile, McCarthy has some pretty gaudy sheepskin on his resume in that he’s worked with Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Montana when he was the offensive coordinator of the San Francisco 49ers in 2005. When he was coaching the Packers, McCarthy also coached Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre and future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

Now, McCarthy gets a chance to work with quarterback Dak Prescott while also incorporating running back Ezekiel Elliott into an offense that had its problems this past season when the Cowboys finished the season with an 8-8 record.

“With Zeke, he’s going to get the football,” McCarthy said. “Let’s not make no mistake about that.

“You have to clearly understand that when you say that the offense is going to make the quarterback successful, the best way to make (Prescott) successful is a great run game. We clearly understand what we have here and how we can build off of that.”

McCarthy also began building his coaching staff, starting with hiring Mike Nolan to replace Rod Marinelli as the Cowboys’ new defensive coordinator.

“In my own evaluation I’ll have an opportunity to visit with some of the coaches on the current staff, and those evaluations will play into the direction we go with the coaching staff,” McCarthy said. “Special teams will be a priority here.”

Plenty of bro love in the room

Ironically, it is Jones who thinks McCarthy is the special head coach for his team at this time.

“It’s a lightning in a bottle,” Jones said. “I think we were fortunate at this time and his time to catch that right now and get our time to do it was just an opportunity.”

An opportunity that wasn’t lost on McCarthy.

“Jerry is telling the story about the purchase of the Dallas Cowboys and at the end of the story he leans over to me and he grabs me by the forearm and reached out to shake my hand and he says, ‘And you need to be the coach of the Dallas Cowboys,’ “ McCarthy said. “So I jumped up and hugged him.

“And I’ll stop right there. We had a helluva time.”

The Cowboys haven’t won the Lombardi Trophy, aka the Super Bowl, in 24 years. Thus, a generation of kids who are now young adults has never seen the Cowboys win a Super Bowl and are personally unaware of their former dominance in the National Football League.

“Lombardi’s are hard to get a hold of, and we know that (McCarthy) has had one of his own right here,” Jones said. “To catch that right now was just an opportunity.”

McCarthy also had some fun at Wednesday’s press conference when, as the Green Bay coach in a divisional playoff game against the Cowboys some five years ago, he threw a challenge flag that led to that infamous reception by Dez Bryant being overturned via replay. A few years later, thanks to some input from Stephen Jones, who is the executive vice-president and director of player personnel for the Cowboys, the NFL changed that rule and added that Bryant did indeed make that successful catch on fourth down.

“I want to tell you exactly what happened,” McCarthy said while laughing. “That was one hell of an athletic play (by Bryant). I was impressed.

“I think it was clearly a technical rule at that time, which Stephen has since gotten changed on the (NFL) Competition Committee. I can’t tell you how many people from Dallas have told me about that play. It was a great catch, I can say now. But it wasn’t then – technically.”

The Cowboys are just delighted that they have what they perceive to be a “great catch” in Mike McCarthy.

By The North Dallas Gazette

NASHVILLE — Rev. Adam Jefferson Richardson, Jr. was installed as the Senior Bishop of the AME Church on June 26, during the AME Church’s Annual Council of Bishops and General Board Meeting Worship Service. The event was held at the Birmingham-Jefferson County Convention Center in Birmingham, Alabama.

“I am honored for service at this time in the history of our church. I seek an interest in your prayers that I may rise to the occasion, that inadequacies may not be too glaring. Whatever successes, whatever achievements, the credit, the glory will belong to God in Christ,” Senior Bishop Richardson shared during the investiture service.

The Senior Bishop is the active Bishop with the longest tenure of service in the AME Church and is first in order of precedence among the Council of Bishops. The position occupies a key role in the polity and practice of the AME Church. While a Senior Bishop has existed since the incorporation of the church as a denomination in 1816, the first formal investiture ceremony occurred at the 2004 General Conference.

The ceremony includes the passage of the Senior Bishop’s regalia—a solid gold medallion with the logo of the denomination donated by the family of Claude Stephens.

Bishop Richardson succeeds the Right Reverend McKinley Young who died in January 2019. He was elected and consecrated the 115th Bishop at the 1996 General Conference. With service in pulpits throughout Georgia and Florida, the last church he pastored prior to his election was Bethel AME Church in Tallahassee, Florida where he served for 18 years.

He obtained the Bachelor of Arts degree from the Florida A&M University (where he was noted as the head drum major of the “Marching 100” Band). He received his Master of Divinity and Doctor of Sacred Theology degrees at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, Georgia.

As a Bishop, he has served churches in Sierra Leone, Ghana Liberia, Cote D’Ivoire, Togo and Benin (14th District), the Republic of South Africa (19th District), Virginia, North Carolina, Maryland and Washington, DC (2nd District) and currently Florida and the Bahamas Islands (11th District). Within he has served as chair of the Health Commission, Lay, Commission on Seminaries, Colleges and Schools and as President of the Council of Bishops.

He has represented the AME Church in a number of Ecumenical bodies including the World Methodist Council and the National Congress of Black Churches. He is also a prolific author with articles or chapters in several books including the African-American Devotional Bible and Headlines to Homilies.

Bishop Richardson will serve as Senior Bishop until his retirement in 2024. Reflecting on his time as a FAMU drum major he said, “There are quite a few steps (literally and figuratively) between the Patch (the practice field) and Senior Bishop!”

He and his wife Dr. Connie Speights Richardson are the parents of two adult children Monique (a Leon County Judge) and Trey (a certified hospital radiographer and professional saxophone player).

By David Wilfong, North Dallas Gazette Contributing Writer

In 1988 Byron Bradford joined the National Guard as a junior in high school. Finding the military a good fit, he enlisted and ended up serving 28 years in the Army. Now in civilian life, Bradford is looking to translate his experience and skills into a leadership role on the Plano City Council in Place 5.

“I want to continue to be a public servant,” Bradford said. “I looked at what would be a good fit for serving. In the military, I went through a process of following, leading and then mentoring others. So I think that gives me good insight on how to get things done.”

His duties in the military, including time spent as a paratrooper, line up with different aspects of what government administration entails. He began work in logistics, which along with the MBA he later earned, gives him the ability to work with numbers and scheduling. Later in his career, he served as a DOD-certified sexual assault response coordinator, a job requiring both diligence in the investigation and delicate handling of victims and their needs.

“That one is important because I had to be assigned by a general,” Bradford said.

The upcoming municipal elections will not be Bradford’s first go-around in the political arena. During the 2018 election cycle, Bradford challenged Republican Duncan Webb for the Precinct 4 chair on the Collin County Commissioners Court. He fell 5 points short in that bid against an incumbent who had run unopposed twice previously, but says the experience prepared him well for future runs.

“I got 47 percent of the vote really just by knocking on doors and talking to people,” Bradford said. “We didn’t win, but we were able to beat every other benchmark we set in that election. For example, I needed to get 139 signatures to get on the ballot, and I was able to get more than 500 signatures.”

He was also able to garner the support he feels is necessary to move on into the city council race. Running on a platform of transparency, accountability, and integrity; he says his goal is to make the community more a part of the decision-making process. The “hot button” issues in Plano he sees as most pressing currently are property taxes, transportation, and education.

“Two of those are state issues affecting us in Plano,” Bradford said. “We really can’t be proactive on those, we have to be reactive.”

He’s looking to raise awareness among his constituents as to how the process works and how to address such issues on the local level. One of the things he sees a need for is more town hall meetings, which he says he has not seen in the two years he has been in Plano.

Finally, he said veterans issues strike close to home for him, and there are more than 55,000 veterans in Collin County.

“I still get calls today to be a mentor to other veterans,” Bradford said. “I want to create a system to know these vets and their families, so they can know the support is there. Whether it is knowing where the hospital is, or that there is a veteran out there to talk to for suicide prevention or support in cases such as sexual assault.”

Currently, Bradford is facing two opponents in his bid for Place 5 on the Plano City Council. Ron Kelley and Shelby Williams are also on the ballot for the election which will be decided on May 4. First elected in 2015, Kelley currently holds the seat and is Plano’s current Mayor Pro Tem. Williams, an advocate against Plano’s rising taxes, comes to the table with some key endorsements from local GOP officials.

For more information and upcoming events, Bradford can be reached through his campaign website (bradford4plano.com).