What does Blackspace do and what is your role in the organization? 

I started as the hip-hop program director at Blackspace, but now I work as the executive director. We aim to empower youth through science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEaM). We specifically look at providing free WokeShops (activities in the digital and creative arts) for children 13 to 19-year-olds in poetry, hip-hop, ciphers, digital storytelling, and even digital coding/programming. 

How did the Black History Month event at the Duke Nasher Museum of Art event come about?

We’ve had a beautiful relationship with the Nasher. We had people over there who worked on a lot of the youth engagement talk to us and thought Blackspace would be great for the February Family Day and Black History Month. They gave us a talk, and we’ve brought some really rich youth programming to highlight some of the stuff we do. We have some dope poets, puppetry, b-boys, and more. 

Why is celebrating Black History Month important?

Black history is happening every day, so it’s important to highlight it. It’s also great to highlight our people’s amazing achievements and advancements throughout this month. But again, the work we do, you know, Black genius is celebrated every day.

Credit: Photo courtesy of the subject

What do you want this event to highlight and achieve regarding Black History Month in the Durham community?

We’re just starting to do full-scale programming, and now that we’ve partnered with the City of Durham Youth Division and now the North Carolina Arts Council, we want to show the Nasher our thing and what we do in these short two hours. That includes b-boying, beat-making, ciphering, poetry, and all in this condensed programming to show the world some dope, free activities available to the city of Durham.

How does someone get involved in Blackspace either as a child or an adult?

We offer free WokeShops to the general public. We also have upcoming open mic events, the Med City Cypher, Wonder Bop, weekly beat-making workshops, and more. I say either go on our website or email us at [email protected]. Contact us about what interests you, and we’ll ensure you find the right facilitator and set you up for the program you are looking for.

Correction: We corrected “bead-making” to “beat-making” in the fourth question.

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