Roy Shuler – Actor. Print Model. Blogger. Voice Actor. Inspirational Speaker.

Roy Shuler

Actor. Print Model. Blogger. Voice Actor. Inspirational Speaker.

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Black While _____

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Driving. Walking. Shopping. Selling loose cigarettes in front of a store on Staten Island. Waiting on a business client in a Philadelphia Starbucks. Add to those list of ‘offenses:’ Doing his job. By now, thousands, if not millions, have seen the video of the attack on Damien Pickett, a Black man and Co-Captain of the Harriet II, a riverboat docked at a riverfront dock in Montgomery, AL, by a group of White men and a White woman. The reason? For asking the group to move their private pontoon from a spot designated for the Harriet II. According to reports, Mr. Pickett tried for 45 minutes to get the group to comply while more than 200 people on board his boat waited to get off and proceed with the rest of their evening. According to those same reports, he was ignored and mocked, then blindly attacked before a full out brawl ensued. Some heard at least one of the attackers called him a nigger while striking him. For having the audacity to do his job. At this time, I’m satisfied to know that four of the attackers have been arrested and charged accordingly. I hope that they’re prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, and, that their respective employers disassociate themselves from such behavior by terminating their employment. More arrests may follow. Interestingly, despite the allegation that he was called a nigger while being attacked, Mr. Pickett, according to police interviews, does not believe that the attack was racially motivated. Still, the authorities have reserved the right to charge the attackers with a hate crime based on where the investigation leads them. Allow me to pose these questions to the cowardly attackers: Just how did you think this was going to go in the year 2023? Did the residue of the march in Charlottesville in 2017 or the assault on The Capitol in 2021 lead you to believe that you could operate in the absence of accountability? Did you think that this proud Black man would simply yield in obedience to your disrespect, meanness, and taunts? Did you think that, despite being in plain view, that you existed within some opaque silo and that people who looked like Mr. Pickett would not come to his aid and boldly thwart your attempts to hurt this man? Did you THINK at all?

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In Deep Ends Day

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On this 4th of July, one on which our country purports to proclaim its independence, by definition according to the folks at dictionary.com: “freedom from the control, influence, support, aid, or the like, of others,” know that this is still a fight for many of its citizens. For some time now, in light of the pronounced aggression towards and treatment of similarly hued people by those whose job description calls for them to “protect and serve,” to protect the health of my psyche, I’ve chosen to limit my exposure to those beyond questionable recorded interactions between the parties, if you will. That is, until about 45 or so minutes ago. In short, out in Los Angeles County, a Black woman was recording the arrest of her husband, a Black man suspected of shoplifting, by local law enforcement. I know of no law that prohibits this. One of the arresting officers leaves the detained man, grabs the woman by the back of her neck, throws her to the ground, and places a knee on her neck before handcuffing her as well. According to The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, they’ve opened an investigation into this incident. Merriam-Webster defines the idiom “the deep end” as follows: “starting a new and difficult activity when one is not fully prepared or ready to do it.” Hmm. In Deep Ends Day. Sounds about right. Oh, say can you see…🎵.

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Happy Birthday, Sam Cooke

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A few weeks ago, Rolling Stone Magazine released its 200 Greatest Singers List. In what is certain to spur a number of spirited debates, this list will make news for who it excludes as much as for who it includes – and where they are placed. On a personal note, I’m delighted to see that many of of my favorites made the cut: Frank Sinatra, David Ruffin, Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson, Solomon Burke, Steve Perry, the tragically under-appreciated Clyde McPhatter, Jackie Wilson and Gladys Knight (did they really place 100+ singers ahead of them 🤔?) Teddy Pendergrass, Dion, Amy Winehouse, and a few others. Still, from my perspective, the likes of Levi Stubbs of The Four Tops, Marvin Junior of The Dells, Sting, and Sananda Maitreya (formerly known as Terence Trent D’Arby) would’ve been welcome additions. But make no mistake about it: on this 92nd anniversary of his birth, I’m here to talk about Sam Cooke. Reflect, if you will, on the fact that a voice that was silenced 58 years ago the 11th of last month in a still controversial shooting was ranked #3, behind Aretha Franklin and Whitney Houston, respectively – two still relatively contemporary voices who left us in 2018 and 2012. The man hasn’t sung a note in almost six decades. To borrow a quote that accompanied the list: “There is American popular music before Sam Cooke and popular music after.” Joe Gross, Rolling Stone Magazine It’s somewhat redemptive to see the ‘pundits’ confirm what 10,000+ members of Facebook’s Sam Cooke Club have known all along. That’s a #1 in our book. Happy Birthday, Sam 🎉

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The Black Sinatra

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For those who really know me, this finding by the folks at Spotify (watch until the end) is no surprise. On this 58th anniversary of his shocking killing, an event that preceded my birth by five-and-a-half months, Sam Cooke has had a profound influence on my thinking and on my aspirations as well as my musical tastes, and, as a vocalist of the first order, on generations of singers worldwide. A Gospel music phenom as a teenager, in seven short years as a secular singer that began with the release of the self-penned classic “You Send Me” in September 1957, Sam managed to carve out a distinctive career as a pioneering Pop, Soul, and R&B singer and songwriter, and, as an entrepreneur that is revered to this day. After President-Elect Barack Obama quoted a line from his magnum opus ‘A Change is Gonna Come’ on Election Night 2008, courtesy of various interpretations on YouTube, TikTok, and beyond, that song is as popular as it ever has been. Here’s what Pop crooner Michael Bublé said about Sam in an interview earlier this year: He also lauds everyone from Pink to Eminem, but saves his highest praise for Sam Cooke, whom he calls “the greatest voice in the history of music.” “It might sound strange for some of you listening out there, [but] I’ve always considered myself a soul singer,” he says. “When people tried to put me into a box and asked me what I was, well, soul singer was always what I wanted to be and who I felt I was. And one of the big reasons for that is Sam Cooke, the greatest voice in the history of music. Not the genre, not a genre, not soul, not R&B. I think music. Sam Cooke was a very special, special performer, a special writer, an incredible human being.” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

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Happy Birthday, Stevland Hardaway Morris 🎉

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If you don’t recognize the name, I’m certain that you’ll recognize the songs. Fingertips. Uptight. My Cherie Amour. I Was Made to Love Her. For Once in My Life. Superwoman. Superstition. Don’t You Worry ‘Bout A Thing. You Are The Sunshine of My Life. You Haven’t Done Nothin’. I Wish. Sir Duke. All I Do. Part Time Lover. These Three Words. From the Bottom of My Heart. Today is the 72nd birthday of the incredible artist, musician, singer, songwriter, composer, and humanitarian Stevie Wonder. I’ve shared with a few people how he helped to change my life as a preteen. I was 11 years old in 1976 when he released, by common consent, his magnum opus, Songs in the Key of Life, the final album in what has been described as “The Greatest Creative Run in the History of Popular Music.” In addition to containing a brilliant array of songs supported by an equally brilliant group of musicians and singers, it was the first album that I recalled having a booklet that contained the lyrics to all of the songs. By learning and reciting those lyrics, unknowingly, this would set me off on a path in which I would embrace the power of words in storytelling as a writer, public speaker, and actor. Almost 50 years after its release, I still listen to this landmark release today. By clicking on the Spotify logo below, I invite you to the do the same in celebration of this phenomenal man. Thank you, Stevie. Happy Birthday 🎉!

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A Move Towards Reparations for Black Americans?

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As uncomfortable as it may be, I firmly believe that this country cannot be what it purports to be without addressing the long shadow of its sordid, racist past. Specifically, its treatment of Black people. Discovering that this behavior is deeply rooted in what is often described as one the finest institutions in the world is indeed an eye opener. Perhaps this step by Harvard University, among others, is a bold and necessary step towards righting a wrong and establishing a level playing field, a fight that is several centuries in the making.

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🎵 Play that one called ‘Soul Twist, play that one called ‘I Know’…🎵

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Some may recognize those words as lyrics from Sam Cooke‘s hit song ‘Havin’ A Party,’ one of many, that was released 60 years ago that hit #17 and #4 on the Billboard Pop and R&B Charts, respectively. Sam was talking about playing records, the dominant form of music during that time. Well, many may be surprised to know that vinyl records, once considered a thing of the past upon the arrival of compact discs, then, digital formats, have been making a steady comeback for the past 15 years. According to the folks Statista, for the first time in three decades, last year album sales exceeded CD sales! Today is Record Store Day, an annual event that began back in 2007. According to their website: “Record Store Day was conceived in 2007 at a gathering of independent record store owners and employees as a way to celebrate and spread the word about the unique culture surrounding nearly 1400 independently owned record stores in the US and thousands of similar stores internationally. The first Record Store Day took place on April 19, 2008. Today there are Record Store Day participating stores on every continent except Antarctica.” In addition to classic releases, many contemporary artists acknowledge the day by releasing limited versions of their current releases. Check out their website to see if there are participating record stores in your area!

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Blurred Lines and the Absence of Deterring Consequences

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“I quit.” In essence, humbly, tact and eloquence aside, at the infancy of what was supposed to be an assignment for the balance of the academic year, that is what I communicated to a school administrator one week ago today. Respectfully, I’ve worked to build a personal work ethic and brand, if you will, that affords me options and I delighted in exercising them with the quickness. Disheartened by both student behavior and subsequent administrative responses, in full recognition of my value, intent, and triggers, and in the absence, from my perspective, of remedies and consequences strong enough to deter behavior that is detrimental from the purpose of its very existence, I chose to bounce. From what I’ve witnessed during the past few years as a Substitute Teacher, there are far too many children who don’t understand the relationship between their actions and their ultimate consequences. Dictionary.com defines consequence as ‘the effect, result, or outcome of something occurring earlier.” Politely, without painting with a broad brush, I’m concerned. The coarse and rampant disrespect shown towards adults and others in authority. The dismissiveness towards the importance of learning. The normalization of such behavior that ill prepares them for the challenges of the real world. I pray that those who have already gone astray find correction.

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