On August 2, 1924, iconic American writer and civil rights activist James Balwin was born. Worldwide, people are gathering and creating to commemorate the occasion.
Charles Reese, an L.A.-based American actor, writer, and speaker, has celebrated by creating “James Baldwin & Me: A Centennial Tribute,” a spoken word album with perspectives interwoven between Reese, Baldwin, and Howard B. Simon, the playwright of Off-Broadway show “James Baldwin: A Soul on Fire” where Reese starred in the principal role as Baldwin.
In an interview with the Sentinel, Reese described himself as a cultural architect of the legacy of Baldwin using his gifts to bring people into Baldwin’s world. Through this work of studying, embodying and performing Baldwin globally, Reese has been a significant force deepening various communities’ understanding of and relationship to Baldwin.
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The entire album was recorded in Los Angeles, specifically at Moon Global Studios in Inglewood.
“I started in March [of 2024 by getting the poems together…the poems were by my late friend and playwright, Howard B. Simon. I call the book of poems he left behind ‘The Purple Book.’ I chose the poems I wanted to use from that purple journal, then, I started adding narratives,” Reese explained.
When choosing which poems he would use for the album, he remarked, “It didn’t take me a long time. I had been [performing] some of the poetry, so there were some pieces I already knew that felt right.”
Each of the poems on the album paint a picture of an instance in James Baldwin’s life. “The song, ‘A-Train’ references his book ‘Go Tell It on the Mountain’ going from a young preacher to being out in the world,” Reese offered. “‘The Eve of Eviction’ represents if Baldwin was alive today, he would be talking about gentrification. But he also left Harlem to be in Paris, and he was always in situations where he was put out or kicked out.”
Reese is currently in the process of submitting his album for a Grammy nomination. It is an aptly timed feat; celebrating 100 years of Baldwin and enjoying the possibility of receiving a Grammy as a celebration of his own career where so much of Reese’s time and love was poured into keeping Baldwin’s legacy alive.
Offering his person favorite quote of Baldwin’s, Reese recited: “Go the way your blood beats. if you don’t live the only life that you have, you won’t live some other life, you won’t live any life at all.”
Listen to Reese’s album by searching “James Baldwin & Me: A Centennial Tribute” on any music platform.
