{"id":176464295,"date":"2016-02-03T01:46:12","date_gmt":"2016-02-03T07:46:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/?p=176464295"},"modified":"2016-02-03T01:46:12","modified_gmt":"2016-02-03T07:46:12","slug":"interview-audio-video-openi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/2016\/02\/03\/interview-audio-video-openi\/","title":{"rendered":"INTERVIEW + AUDIO + VIDEO: Openi"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"media\"><a href=\"http:\/\/stayingunderground.com\/image\/131969382182\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/36.media.tumblr.com\/51c26c777b7beff95a98073c5526bfcb\/tumblr_nwuebt1lTb1qahp72o1_500.png\" alt=\"Staying Underground prsnts,COLLABORATOR 027:\u00a0Openiw\/ Mistah Rapsey on the B side.\u00a0I\u2019m excited to share this mix with Lala Openi of Oakland\u2019s own Malidoma Collective\u00a0&amp;amp; Veuxdo Child Films. We have another collaboration in the works, so be on the look up for that too!Collaborator 027: Openi on\u00a0Staying Underground\u00a0Lala on the internet + VEUXDO + Soundcloud + InstagramA side: Openi1. CE - Mudra2. Jesse Boykins III - I Wish3. Max Normal - Good Old Fashion Loving4. Exile - Younger Days (Instrumental)5. Mtume Umoja Ensemble - No Words6. Kendra Foster - Possession Free Philosophy7. Serengeti &amp;amp; Polyphonic - Puppydog Love 8. KING - Supernatural (Live at KPFK)9. Obenewa - He10. Moses Sumney - Dwell In the Dark11. Kendra Foster - This World12. Serengeti - Geti Life (w\/ Yoni Wolf)13. B.Steady\u00a0- PussyB side: Mistah Rapsey1. D\u039bN\u00a5\u039bL - Sango Tango2. EqualStatus &amp;amp; JayLotus - What Did It All Mean3. B.Visible - Light Shapes4. froyo ma - spent missing (w\/ charlotte day wilson)5. nappy chan - shakeit4me6. Wize - You know7. beatboxbandit - onlyU [ERS]8. norvisjr - Kissin On Your Back9. Gil Scott-Heron &amp;amp; Brian Jackson - A Very Precious Time10. Dexter Brandon - Look At You11. Jimi Hendrix Experience - She\u2019s So Fine12. Wu-Lu &amp;amp; Andrew Ashong - Afro Let Down13. Jimi Nxir - Sensation14. The Melodians - Sweet SensationDOWNLOAD\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"copy\">\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 36pt;\"><strong>LALA OPENI <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 36pt;\"><strong>HSIN CHEUNG<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fsoundcloud.com%2Fstayingunderground%2F&amp;t=N2RlOWZmNmJjMzQ5NDRkZWJjNjk0MzAxNDVmZmQ4NDExZTkxY2Y2ZixKR3dncTBOeA%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\"><b>Staying Underground<\/b><\/a>\u00a0prsnts,<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><b><\/b><b>COLLABORATOR\u00a0<\/b><b>027:\u00a0<\/b><b><a href=\"http:\/\/veuxdochild.tumblr.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Openi<\/a><\/b><br \/>\nw\/<b>\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fsoundcloud.com%2Fstayingunderground%2Fmistah-rapsey-love-you&amp;t=Mjk3ZmRkODhlNGVhN2JkMmM4OTYxZTcyZDUxZWMwNTg5OWE4ZDIwNixKR3dncTBOeA%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\">Mistah Rapsey<\/a>\u00a0<\/b>on<b>\u00a0<\/b>the<b>\u00a0<\/b>B side.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">I\u2019m excited to share this mix with Lala Openi of Oakland\u2019s own\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/malidomacollective.tumblr.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Malidoma Collective<\/a>\u00a0&amp;\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.veuxdo.com%2F&amp;t=MzYwOTRmZjFjY2E0MDEwMjg2N2JlMmQzZmFhZDA0NTlhZjQ4MjBjNCxKR3dncTBOeA%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\">Veuxdo Child Films<\/a>. We have another collaboration in the works, so be on the look up for that too!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mixcloud.com\/widget\/iframe\/?embed_type=widget_standard&amp;embed_uuid=7b8cd287-c363-4c19-87bb-2841cda7d70a&amp;feed=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mixcloud.com%2FStayingUnderground%2Fcollaborator-027-openi%2F&amp;hide_cover=1&amp;hide_tracklist=1&amp;replace=0\" width=\"100%\" height=\"180\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/span><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mixcloud.com%2FStayingUnderground%2Fcollaborator-027-openi%2F%3Futm_source%3Dwidget%26utm_medium%3Dweb%26utm_campaign%3Dbase_links%26utm_term%3Dresource_link&amp;t=MzY0YmEzMDMzOTQ5OTE1NDU1NmFiOTY5MmNkZTUyY2Q2NmM1YWQ2ZCxKR3dncTBOeA%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\">Collaborator 027: Openi<\/a>\u00a0on\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mixcloud.com%2FStayingUnderground%2F%3Futm_source%3Dwidget%26utm_medium%3Dweb%26utm_campaign%3Dbase_links%26utm_term%3Dprofile_link&amp;t=ZDM1NzY2OTdlMWQ3OTY1YjcxODVjODE5MmVjMzc1Zjc0NmU0ODU1NSxKR3dncTBOeA%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\">Staying Underground<\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><b><a href=\"http:\/\/veuxdochild.tumblr.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Lala<\/a><\/b>\u00a0on the internet +\u00a0<b><a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.veuxdo.com%2F&amp;t=MzYwOTRmZjFjY2E0MDEwMjg2N2JlMmQzZmFhZDA0NTlhZjQ4MjBjNCxKR3dncTBOeA%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\">VEUXDO<\/a><\/b>\u00a0+\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fsoundcloud.com%2Fopeni&amp;t=NjQ4YTlkNGZhMjM1MGE2MDJkOTZjNTNkMDc5NTIzZGEyODQzYzFmZixKR3dncTBOeA%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\"><b>Soundcloud<\/b><\/a>\u00a0+\u00a0<b><a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Finstagram.com%2Fopeniiiiiiiii&amp;t=YjNhNGM4MDVlODZlOTE0MTVhNzViYjBkZTRmZThhNGEyNGIxNTEyOCxKR3dncTBOeA%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\">Instagram<\/a><\/b><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><b>A side<\/b>: Openi<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">1.\u00a0<b>CE<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; Mudra<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">2.\u00a0<b>Jesse Boykins III<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; I Wish<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">3.<b>\u00a0Max Normal<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; Good Old Fashion Loving<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">4.\u00a0<b>Exile<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; Younger Days (Instrumental)<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">5.\u00a0<b>Mtume Umoja Ensemble<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; No Words<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">6.\u00a0<b>Kendra Foster<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; Possession Free Philosophy<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">7.\u00a0<b>Serengeti &amp; Polyphonic\u00a0<\/b>&#8211; Puppydog Love\u00a0<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">8.\u00a0<b>KING<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; Supernatural (Live at KPFK)<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">9.\u00a0<b>Obenewa<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; He<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">10.\u00a0<b>Moses Sumney\u00a0<\/b>&#8211; Dwell In the Dark<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">11.\u00a0<b>Kendra Foster<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; This World<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">12.\u00a0<b>Serengeti<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; Geti Life (w\/\u00a0<b>Yoni Wolf<\/b>)<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">13.\u00a0<b>B.Steady\u00a0<\/b>&#8211; Pussy<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><b>B side<\/b>: Mistah Rapsey<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">1.\u00a0<b>D\u039bN\u00a5\u039bL<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; Sango Tango<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">2.\u00a0<b>EqualStatus<\/b>\u00a0&amp;\u00a0<b>JayLotus<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; What Did It All Mean<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">3.\u00a0<b>B.Visible<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; Light Shapes<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">4.\u00a0<b>froyo ma<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; spent missing (w\/\u00a0<b>charlotte day wilson<\/b>)<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">5.\u00a0<b>nappy chan<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; shakeit4me<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">6.\u00a0<b>Wize\u00a0<\/b>&#8211; You know<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">7.\u00a0<b>beatboxbandit<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; onlyU [ERS]<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">8.\u00a0<b>norvisjr\u00a0<\/b>&#8211; Kissin On Your Back<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">9.\u00a0<b>Gil Scott-Heron\u00a0<\/b>&amp;\u00a0<b>Brian Jackson<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; A Very Precious Time<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">10.\u00a0<b>Dexter Brandon<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; Look At You<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">11.\u00a0<b>Jimi Hendrix Experience\u00a0<\/b>&#8211; She\u2019s So Fine<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">12.\u00a0<b>Wu-Lu\u00a0<\/b>&amp;<b>\u00a0Andrew Ashong<\/b>\u00a0&#8211;\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fsoundcloud.com%2Fwu-lu%2Fwulu-x-andrew-ashong-afro-let-down&amp;t=MTllNDNiZTQ4MTlkODZlZDgxMTY3YjkwZTZjYjkxNDc1NDY3OTZmYyxKR3dncTBOeA%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\">Afro Let Down<\/a><\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">13.\u00a0<b>Jimi Nxir<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; Sensation<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">14.\u00a0<b>The Melodians<\/b>\u00a0&#8211; Sweet Sensation<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><b><a href=\"http:\/\/t.umblr.com\/redirect?z=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mediafire.com%2Fdownload%2Fiw85q7gw8doy7wn%2FCollaborator+027_+Openi.mp3.zip&amp;t=M2I1ZWE5YzMxZjY0MDYzNzNiMGVlZTczNGE2Y2JkMWIxZTg2YmI4YyxKR3dncTBOeA%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\">DOWNLOAD<\/a><\/b><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #000000;\">____________________<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<header class=\"single-blog-header clr\">\n<h1 class=\"single-post-title entry-title\"><span style=\"font-size: 36pt;\">ENTER THE<\/span><\/h1>\n<h1 class=\"single-post-title entry-title\"><span style=\"font-size: 36pt;\"> DISCOURSE<\/span><\/h1>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul class=\"meta clr meta-with-title\">\n<li class=\"meta-author\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><strong><span class=\"vcard author\">By\u00a0<a title=\"Posts by Max Gibson\" href=\"http:\/\/wineandbowties.com\/author\/Max\/\" rel=\"author\">Max Gibson<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"meta-author\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><strong><em>Photography by Max Gibson<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"entry clr\">\n<h3><span style=\"color: #000000; font-size: 18pt;\">A glimpse inside the creative world<br \/>\nof filmmaker Lala Openi<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: left;\" align=\"right\"><a href=\"http:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/OPENI-02.png\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone  wp-image-176464298\" src=\"http:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/OPENI-02.png\" alt=\"OPENI 02\" width=\"600\" height=\"429\" srcset=\"https:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/OPENI-02.png 700w, https:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/OPENI-02-300x215.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">It\u2019s funny how you happen upon things. The bike makes it so easy to just check shit out. It was only recently that I was introduced to the art of\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/veuxdo.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Lala Openi<\/a>. It was curiosity that brought us together first. Biking home, I saw the MOCO Gallery in Downtown Oakland filled to the brim, spilling out into the streets. \u201cLemme check this out,\u201d I thought to myself.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">Fortunately for me, the work being consumed was\u00a0The Discourse, Openi\u2019s exploratory look into the thoughts and lives of today\u2019s youth. Centered in the Bay Area, the film tackles broad questions about society, oppression, consciousness, and growth. Comprised of over five years of footage,\u00a0<em>The Discourse<\/em>\u00a0features a variety of DIY interviews whose true value lies in the words being expressed. After peeping the film, it only seemed right to sit down with Lala to chat about the world, her artistry and the origins of\u00a0The Discourse.<\/span><\/p>\n<div align=\"right\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><strong>What\u2019s going on right now\u2026in the Bay, in the US, in the world?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">A lot. But when is there not a lot going on? Some of the things are good some are bad. In the Bay, we are building. Creating movements and making beautiful art and building community. I think The Bay has always been the place to be for building like that. That\u2019s what I see initially.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">When I look outside, I see people are consuming too much. I see that government is the leading cause of unnatural death in the 20th century. The world is changing. People getting diseases from acting like they\u2019re not a part of the world. I can only try to balance it out by building with folks here, doing projects for voice and education and creation and rising-vibration\u2013film projects like\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/veuxdo.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Veuxdo Child<\/a>, positive space building projects with\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/malidomacollective\" target=\"_blank\">Malidoma Collective<\/a>\u2026I mean you can\u2019t really complain if you ain\u2019t trying to fix things, right?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><strong>Right\u2026Tell me a little bit about your name.\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">My grandma calls me Lala. Openi is twofold: folks often read it as \u201copen eye,\u201d but it is pronounced Oh-peh-knee, as in the first five letters of \u201copening.\u201d My last two names are Chinese. Hsin represents mind-heart: heart as the ultimate truthseeker and guiding force for action. My last name, Cheung, means good fortune. In summary, I guess you could say I\u2019m lucky as shit, blessed. I follow my heart, and I\u2019m constantly evolving and honing in on my truth.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/wineandbowties.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/000078190003.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter  wp-image-49962\" src=\"http:\/\/wineandbowties.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/000078190003-700x689.jpg\" alt=\"000078190003\" width=\"599\" height=\"590\" \/><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><strong>What is your truth?\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">Stay woke. Third eye to the sky, feet in the earth. Using heart power, practicing constant flight towards the clouds: growth.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><strong>\u201cThird Eye to the Sky, Feet to the Earth\u2026\u201d What do those words mean to you?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">The ones to be respected be respectin\u2019 the turf. Our third eye is the one that sees truth; the crown chakra. A tree will grow and be strong with a strong web of roots. So: rock the crown, hold your head high, and make sure to nourish the root. Remain grounded. We are of this earth, and this earth is of the stars.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><strong>Why did you make The Discourse?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">The Discourse was something that needed to happen. It was a natural progression. Along my path, I\u2019ve been blessed to run into so many dope individuals, where conversation was mad captivating. I kept saying \u201cwhen they make the documentary, I wonder if they\u2019ll get the story right,\u201d and one day I finally realized that the best person to tell the correct story are the people living it. Why wait around for someone else to come and do it for us? Our voice is sacred.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">I\u2019d have to agree. One thing you mentioned that I really liked at your panel was the idea of finding your voice. What did you mean by that, and how have you come to discover yours?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">A lot of what we take in and end up projecting as our own thoughts and opinions are what we\u2019ve been told by others: our parents, our teachers, society, the media, etc etc. I mean, we don\u2019t exist in a vacuum, and we should fasho-ly share knowledge and build, but there comes a time you need to just sit and figure out what\u2019s real to\u00a0you.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">Everyone is different. While everything is everything, I believe voice is important for both finding and strengthening roots. In the scope of sharing history for the sake of passing on knowledge and experience, if we all sit back and let the powers that be write our history for us, what type of knowledge will that provide to our future? What good will that be? Even from an evolutionary standpoint, variety is key because once everyone is the same it increases vulnerability to getting wiped out in one fell swoop.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">Shared knowledge will offer insight where perhaps we hadn\u2019t thought to look before. If we wait for others to tell us what to think, collective history gets homogenized, and insight lost. Beyond that, it\u2019s more interesting that way. Life has too much to offer to have everyone be about the same ass shit.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/wineandbowties.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/000078190002.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter  wp-image-49964\" src=\"http:\/\/wineandbowties.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/000078190002-700x689.jpg\" alt=\"000078190002\" width=\"600\" height=\"591\" \/><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><strong>What do you make of the rise of creative collectives. It seems like all around us small groups of folks are coming together to pull resources and create things.\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">Chest-beating will only leave us with sore heart cages. In this world of \u201cindividualism,\u201d the importance of the collective often gets forgotten. Building is necessary to exchange insight, ideas, and to exercise collaboration and organizing, while strengthening the idea of our collective power.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">I think the urge to create with our folks is definitely on the rise and is something that makes the Bay magic. Malidoma is a collective of female-bodied and female-identifying artists rooted in healing ourselves and the community through creative expression, healthy living, and regenerative entrepreneurship. Some of us are photographers, filmmakers, emcees, fine artists, poets, curators, designers\u2026 We all do different things with interlocking purpose. All the women in Malidoma are putting in serious work on their own, but when we come together to collab on an event, it\u2019s just that much more powerful.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><strong>What are you hoping to communicate to people through the film?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">There\u2019s something about critical conversation. I fully believe that it is as important as solitude and reflection, and touches on all levels: intellectual, emotional, physical, personal, communal. I just wanted to give people a taste of what\u2019s going on in the minds and spaces of folks I build with here in the bay, and I can only hope that they feel inspired to hold their own conversations beyond what\u2019s in the tabloids &amp; \u201cnews.\u201d Words are power. So is the funk.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/68685668\" width=\"700\" height=\"420\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/wineandbowties.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/000078190005.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter  wp-image-49966\" src=\"http:\/\/wineandbowties.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/000078190005-700x689.jpg\" alt=\"000078190005\" width=\"600\" height=\"591\" \/><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">More words, work and inspiration from Lala at\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/wineandbowties.com\/art\/enter-the-discourse\/veuxdo.com\">Veuxdo<\/a>\u00a0and her\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.openi.in\/\">personal website<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&gt;via:\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/wineandbowties.com\/art\/enter-the-discourse\/\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/wineandbowties.com\/art\/enter-the-discourse\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; LALA OPENI HSIN CHEUNG Staying Underground\u00a0prsnts, COLLABORATOR\u00a0027:\u00a0Openi w\/\u00a0Mistah Rapsey\u00a0on\u00a0the\u00a0B side.\u00a0 I\u2019m excited to share this mix with Lala Openi of Oakland\u2019s own\u00a0Malidoma Collective\u00a0&amp;\u00a0Veuxdo Child Films. We have another collaboration in the works, so be on the look up for that too! Collaborator 027: Openi\u00a0on\u00a0Staying Underground\u00a0 Lala\u00a0on the internet +\u00a0VEUXDO\u00a0+\u00a0Soundcloud\u00a0+\u00a0Instagram [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","_s2mail":"yes"},"categories":[6],"tags":[4,12,11],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176464295"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=176464295"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176464295\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":176464300,"href":"https:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176464295\/revisions\/176464300"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=176464295"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=176464295"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=176464295"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}